1.1 The Waikato River Authority and its role
The overarching purpose of the legislation that created the Waikato River Authority and the
Waikato River Clean-up Trust is to restore and protect the health and wellbeing of the Waikato
River and its catchment for future generations.
The purpose of the Waikato River Authority is to:
• set the primary direction through the Vision and Strategy to achieve the restoration and
protection of the health and wellbeing of the Waikato River for future generations
• promote an integrated, holistic, and co-ordinated approach to the implementation of the
Vision and Strategy and the management of the Waikato River
• fund rehabilitation initiatives for the Waikato River in its role as trustee for the Waikato
River Clean-up Trust.
The Waikato River Authority (the ‘Authority’) is the sole trustee of the Waikato River Clean-up
Trust (the ‘Trust’). The Trust administers and distributes a contestable fund to work towards the
restoration and protection of the health and wellbeing of the Waikato River for present and future
generations (this forms the Trust’s objective). In doing so it must pay adequate regard to the
Vision and Strategy and the Waikato River Independent Scoping Study (WRISS). As the sole trustee
the Authority determines which projects receive funding in accordance with criteria set annually.
The area that this Strategy applies to is the Waikato River and its catchment from Huka Falls to Te
Puuaha o Waikato and the upper catchment of the Waipa River through to its junction with the
Waikato River (as shown in the map on page 7).
1.2 The purpose of this document
The Trust reviews funding priorities annually to ensure funding continues to be aligned with
the objectives of the Waikato River Clean-up Trust and the Waikato River Authority. To help
achieve this the Authority has formed, with other members of the community, the Waikato River
Restoration Forum to support a comprehensive and connected approach to clean-up projects.
This document forms the Funding Strategy for 2014 for the Waikato River Clean-up Trust. It
presents the criteria that the Authority believes will best position the Trust to award funds in
a fair and consistent manner to projects that will not only meet the requirements set out in
its legislation but importantly will lead to the most effective response for the restoration and
protection of the health and wellbeing of the Waikato River and its catchment.
Priorities are presented both in terms of the geographical areas the Authority believes should
draw particular focus from applicants for funding, and also the nature of the projects the
Authority believes are a high priority in those geographical areas.
1.3 The Waikato River Clean-up Fund
The Trust is responsible for administering a Clean-up Fund of $220 million over 30 years. This
year the Trust has decided that up to $7 million will be available in the funding round.
Annual funding decisions are based on:
• Applicants meeting the funding criteria;
• Applications being for projects identified as priority areas by the Trust; and
• The quality of the applications received.
The Clean-up Fund is contestable. The Trust may or may not award all or any of the identified
funds in a funding round as this will depend on the quality of applications received and the
quantity of funding sought by applicants. Where the Trust does not award all available funds it
will consider how funds may be applied to future funding rounds.
1: Background
and context
Restoring and protecting the health and wellbeing of the Waikato River
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