Wellington Regional Erosion Control Initiative

Trees help protect the soil while grazing continues

 Soil erosion is a significant issue for the Greater Wellington Region with over 40% of the region classed as erosion prone.  Greater Wellington Land Management staff have helped landowners manage this issue by preparing farm plans and encouraging tree planting. However, there are still large areas to be tackled.

Whole farm planning provides the basis for soil conservation work. Soil Conservation Plans have been prepared for about 40 Years and Sustainability Plans have been prepared since 1998. In the last ten years 27 Sustainability Plans have been prepared.  Sustainability Plans are comprehensive, and contain land resource information, an assessment of erosion risk, a programme of works implementation, and an assessment of the economic impact on the business.

The new Wellington Regional Erosion Control Initiative (WRECI) aims to increase the amount of soil erosion work completed, by developing 100 new WRECI plans and supporting an additional 3100 ha of erosion prone land being managed more appropriately. This work will provide a number of positive benefits including reducing sedimentation to rivers and maintaining the productivity of the region’s soils. The new initiative will also focus on the development of community partnerships in the catchments, in line with Greater Wellington’s total catchment management approach.

WRECI focuses on erosion-prone areas considered most in need of treatment: the Whareama, Awhea, Opouawe and upper Taueru catchments, smaller coastal catchments in the Flatpoint area, and isolated erosion prone areas. The catchments and local hotspots have been selected on the basis of rates of sediment discharge and percentage of erosion prone land in the catchment.

 The initiative includes financial contributions from central government, Greater Wellington and landowners. The commitment of central government and Greater Wellington means landowners receive funding for 60% of the cost  of erosion control works. This increased assistance for landowners should bring more erosion prone land under appropriate management..

A series of community meetings will be held in key areas over the next few years to roll out the new initiative.

If you would like more information about the new WRECI plans, please contact project co-ordinator Andrew Stewart 06 370 5669 (andrew.stewart@gw.govt.nz) or the land management officer you usually deal with to find out if your property will be eligible to be included in the programme.

If you would like more information on how the catchments and properties for work are prioritised, click on this link WRECI implementation strategy