Hon Dr Nick Smith
Minister for the Environment

12 November 2015
Funding for Lake Horowhenua clean-up

The Government is to provide $980,000 in funding from the Te Mana o Te Wai Fund to restore the health of Lake Horowhenua, Environment Minister Dr Nick Smith and Maori Party co-leader Marama Fox announced today.

“The Government is committed to turning around the poor water quality of Lake Horowhenua. This funding will go towards a $1.2 million project that will involve a scientific assessment of the lakebed sedimentation and native fish populations, community planting days, an education programme, development of a plant nursery, completion of stormwater treatment upgrades and the repairing of fish barriers,” Dr Smith says.

“The balance of the funding for the project will come from Horizons Regional Council and Horowhenua District Council, with support from the Department of Conservation and the Lake Domain Board. This joint commitment to restoring the health of Lake Horowhenua will complement the Lake Accord restoration work currently underway.”

“Lake Horowhenua is known as the heartbeat of Mūaupoko. The grant from the Te Mana o te Wai Fund recognises the importance of the lake as an ancient taonga valued across many dimensions of the Mūaupoko culture,” Ms Fox says.

The Te Mana o te Wai Fund was announced as part of Budget 2014 in partnership with the Māori Party, and provides $5 million over two years to support iwi and hapū to improve the water quality of their local freshwater bodies. Proposed projects for the fund are required to support partnership and collaboration, and grants will be for a minimum of $200,000 to help guarantee that the successful projects will produce significant outcomes.

“The Government believes iwi and hapū have an important role to play as active partners in improving our country’s freshwater, and that partnership and collaboration is key in ensuring positive and lasting gains,” Dr Smith says.

“I welcome this opportunity for the local hapū and iwi to be able to continue to support their role as kaitaki of Lake Horowhenua. The basis of Te Mana o Te Wai is that healthy waterways support healthy environments, which in turn supports healthy whanau,” Ms Fox says.

Further information on the Te Mana o Te Wai Fund is available from: http://www.mfe.govt.nz/more/funding/te-mana-o-te-wai-fund.

ends

© Scoop Media