www.
waikatoriver
.org.nz
Waipa River field trip
WAIKATO RIVER AUTHORITY BOARD MEMBERS CARRIED OUT ONE OF THEIR
MOST COMPREHENSIVE STUDY TRIPS WHEN THEY FLEW OVER THE WAIPA RIVER
CATCHMENT AT THE END OF APRIL.
The trip was undertaken with the help of guides
from the Waikato Regional Council and prepared
background material providing information on
important points of interest.
The trip took in the whole of the Waipa River from
its confluence with the Waikato at Ngaruawahia
through to the headwaters at Pekepeke.
The board is hoping to take a first hand look
at the whole of the Waikato River Authority
catchment before the end of this year with the
last remaining area being the Upper Waikato River.
It has previously visited the lower Waikato River
catchment by boat.
The Waipa River, which produced 180,000 tonnes of
sediment into the Waikato River every year, is one of
the priority areas in the 2014 Funding Strategy.
The board wishes to reinforce the importance
of the Waipa River within the Vision & Strategy
of the Waikato River and its integral part in the
overall catchment.
Huge effort in tree planting contributes
to
WRA Catchment Awards
MARGARET AND KEITH ORMSBY WERE WINNERS OF THE BALLANCE FARM
ENVIRONMENT CATCHMENT IMPROVEMENT AWARD THIS YEAR SPONSORED BY
THE WAIKATO RIVER AUTHORITY.
WRA deputy co-chair
Jenni Vernon with
Margaret and Keith
Ormsby with their
Catchment Improvement
Award at the Ballance
Farm Environment
Awards presentation.
Improving the water quality in the Waipa River will have a significant
impact on the Waikato River. The confluence of the Waipa and Waikato
at Ngaruawahia shows the sediment load carried by the Waipa River.
There is some irony that the rolling hills of
the Ormsby property south of Mt Pirongia
once contained native trees that 78-year-
old Keith helped cut down as a young man
to get the farm established.
By contrast in the past five years alone the
Ormsby family have planted 25,000 natives
on the Ngutunui farm and in the past 10
years all waterways and bush areas have
been fenced and planted, and QEII National
Trust covenants placed over 25 hectares.
In making the award the judges commended
the Ormsbys for their proactive approach
to water protection and their good
management of soils and pastures.
