So far, in this section, Kumara They have already harvested pumpkins and potatoes which have been distributed to 14 families. The initial success of the project has encouraged another local landowner to get involved, by donating his flock of ewes to the group as they explore ethical local livestock farming.
“This is just the beginning,” says Tania, “We hope to see this project take off organically, inspire others and spread throughout the region.”
But Melin says a “change in mindset” is needed to encourage more people to donate their land for community use: “You have to see it for yourself first. If everyone contributes in whatever way they can – their time, their land, their knowledge – the whole community and everyone who lives there wins.”
Rivers
Another community-led initiative in Raglan proved what is possible when communities work together in this way.
Over the past 30 years, farmers have voluntarily planted native cabbage, flax and manuka trees on their land at their own expense to capture and naturally process pollutants, and this effort has transformed Raglan’s port from one of the most polluted in the country to one of the cleanest.
The impetus for action was sparked by local farmer Fred Lichtwerk and resident Fiona Edwards. ““Thirty years ago the harbour was in a terrible state,” Fred says, “It had the lowest fish stocks in the country. Dead animals were washing up on shore and surfers were getting stomach ulcers.”
They distributed fliers and gathered small groups of concerned residents at City Hall, and from that meeting in 1995, Waingaroa Harbour Care was founded, along with a native plant nursery that provides locally grown seeds and planting services to farmers for less than $4.
“This was an incredibly inexpensive, yet professional service offered as a reward to farmers for removing vital land from agriculture to protect water quality,” says Fiona. Since then, over 80% of local farmers have participated, planting more than 2.5 million trees along 1,200km of waterways, significantly improving water quality and fish populations.
resistance
Agricultural runoff poses a major threat to New Zealand’s water quality. Most of the agricultural land is devoted to raising livestock, and 95% of rangeland rivers have levels above safe nutrient levels. Cuts to the new government’s freshwater program announced last month (May 2024) make it crucial to find ways to mitigate this problem.
The Fred and Fiona Harbour project is frequently held up as a blueprint for action: former Environment Minister Eugenie Sage called it “a national model for river and catchment management”.
But getting farmers’ interest wasn’t easy, Fred says. “Many farmers were skeptical, worried that production would decrease and they would lose money.” So they set up a pilot site on city-managed farmland and reported that productivity had increased by 40 percent, livestock losses had decreased significantly, and grass growth rates had improved. And people began to listen.
“From that point on, the local farming community started pitching in. They started talking to their neighbors over the fence about the economic benefits and word spread quickly.”
Since then, numerous projects modelled on that success have sprung up across the country, from Northland to Invercargill.
community
Fred and Tania emphasize that the success of each project depends on community members implementing it themselves.
A key part of this is the local knowledge that residents bring with them, helping to maintain expertise within the community.
For Fred, this meant sourcing local seeds rather than plants grown commercially elsewhere: “Using seeds adapted to the local environment has given us a greater success rate in our cultivation. It also helps to preserve the natural local genetics and reduce the spread of disease.”
Through their volunteer work, young people also learn about environmental protection and water resource conservation, and the project has been recognized by local police for its contribution to reducing juvenile crime.
Reflecting on the WEC project, Tania said: “It was a great honour for us to have members of our group share their knowledge of Māori growing methods.” They played a key role in sharing their traditional growing methods. KumaraThese include raised bed cultivation, lunar farming, Malamataka, Aging and storage.
future
These two projects, and the many farmers who support them, are prime examples of the potential of community action.
Both demonstrate what’s possible with investment and support in local solutions, helping communities learn about, protect and sustainably use their environment to the benefit of all — and what can happen when residents gain buy-in from farmers and landowners and their reach and impact can expand rapidly.
But the Ministry of Social Development, an early major donor that helped set up WEC’s food security project and funded similar projects across the country, announced spending cuts last month.
Fred’s Harbour Project, despite 30 years of success, will unfortunately close at the end of 2023. Fred cites several reasons for this, including the supposed privatization of HarbourCare’s operations, with outside organisations and factories being brought in to replace them.
“Local councils should employ more community groups like us to do this kind of work,” Fred says. “When local people do this it creates a real pride of place. They become the custodians of the land.”
Merrin added: “We have such a dynamic and great feeling as a group. Doing difficult things together makes it incredibly easy.”
This author
Emma Seeley is a freelance writer focusing on environmental issues, currently based in New Zealand.
