Our water monitoring programme continues-the last run took place in early February. Despite the low flow, water quality was reasonable over the catchment. This means that our hard work to date is paying dividends.
The monthly check at Whangawehi went well. Water levels are dropping in the main Whangawehi stream and tributaries. Water temperature is high especially in the lower reaches. Algae dominate some of our sites which happens every summer. Over time, the shading effect from the trees will allow the water to cool down and restrict algae growth. Tree growth is phenomenal, Malcolm did a fantastic job at controlling blackberry so the place looks amazing.
Water monitoring data at Mamangu is showing very low levels of E Coli which is great.
The Whangawehi community is celebrating this Award received in Sydney in October 2018. A big thank you to the whole team and the wider community. This award celebrates the commitment of a dedicated community that has delivered some key milestones over the past 4 years. Well done to you all. Pai the Mahi.
Representatives of the Whangawehi who attended the Asia Pacific International River Prize awards dinner last Tuesday evening in Sydney were ecstatic to win the Pacific category. The group was grateful just to have been chosen as a finalist but was blown out of the water when they were announced as winners. The judges were very impressed with just how well the group collaborated with tangata whenua, the community and it’s sponsors along with it’s on the ground work which is diligently monitored.
This Awards has allowed the group to be part of the Alumni network, a network of river practitioners who operate all around the world. This will certainly help the group raise its profile and extend its ability to operate at a higher level.
As the winner of the Awards, the WCMG has also been encouraged by the International River Foundation to develop a relationship with a sister project in a foreign country. Passing on the knowledge was a consistent theme during the evening ceremony and several twin projects were presented during the symposium. This support offers an opportunity for the WCMG to influence one of it’s pacific neighbours.
A big thank you to all involved.
Media release :
AsiaPacificRiverAwardsWairoaStarOctober2018
A big thank you to all who have been involved, it is a wonderful achievement.
Hi all,
The water monitoring data for October is now available : October2018
As you can see from the photo’s-all our trees have grown a lot over the winter period. They are flourishing and there is nothing stopping them now. Water is flowing very clear in the Whangawehi stream but algae are already starting to pop up at Mamangu which is a bit early.
A new tree species-the Poroporo-is now growing along the river which has been self-introduced by birds. Poroporo is a native tree already present in the DOC reserve. A small scrub-the Poroporo is traditionally a very valuable plant to Maori because of it’s itch relief properties. It’s a delightful looking plant that is known to grow extremely fast.
It is great to see that the cycle of nature is taking place and allowing the diversification of our local biodiversity.
Our water monitoring data for Mamangu is now available :April2018
