Conservation

14 October 2015

Celebrating 25 years of Ngā Whenua Rāhui

Associate Conservation Minister Nicky Wagner today congratulated Ngā Whenua Rāhui on 25 years of achievements in the protection of Māori land for conservation.

“Since its establishment Ngā Whenua Rāhui has seen over 171,000 hectares of Māori land protected through the extensive use of Kawenata, or covenants,” Ms Wagner says.

“Ngā Whenua Rāhui’s use of 25 year agreements and its emphasis on landowners being decision makers, has enabled the Fund to work with landowners to achieve great conservation outcomes.

“The past 25 years has also seen greater understanding of how the Māori and traditional European views of conservation can be brought together to fight the ‘common enemy’ of introduced pests. Possums, rats and stoats do not read land titles and do not care who landowners may be.

“I also congratulate Ngā Whenua Rāhui’s use of technology in the field, from smartphones that capture biodiversity monitoring data to map journals which provide digital flyovers of conservation land.

“One of Ngā Whenua Rāhui’s most inspiring success stories can be found in the Motatau Forest in Northland, which had suffered significant damage from predators. DOC passed guardianship of the land to local iwi, Ngāti Hine, while Ngā Whenua Rāhui helped double the land area available. The area is now largely predator-free, pigeons are flocking back, and Kohekohe trees are also recovering well.

“There is a lot to be inspired about and together we are making a real difference. I wish Ngā Whenua Rāhui all the best for the next 25 years and beyond,” Ms Wagner says.

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