22 November 2001
Local Government New Zealand will launch today a project that aims to help councils work with their communities and
other agencies to address biodiversity issues on land outside the conservation estate.
President Basil Morrison says the new project called Action Bio-Community aims to help local government and communities
to build the motivation, skills, knowledge and contacts to enable their biodiversity projects to be really successful.
The project is a partnership between local and central government that will mean more information sharing and less
project duplication. The project will fund and support “pilot” projects with councils and communities to test approaches
to biodiversity management on private land.
“The collaborative approach of Action Bio-Community will help councils share experiences with each other, test new ideas
and techniques and build on lessons learned from the past.”
For the project to work well it is important that councils build wider partnerships with land owners/managers, other
local authorities, environmental/community groups and other key agencies like the Department of Conservation, says Mr
Morrison.
The Government has allocated $1.1 million for a three-year period, from the Ministry for the Environment’s Sustainable
Management Fund. The money will be used to target what will make a difference to the whole, not just individual projects
and agencies.
Mr Morrison says pilot projects that will be considered for funding need to be a council initiative or be supported by a
council.
At the launch children from Paremata School will build an environmental sculpture of the project logo. The Minister for
the Environment Hon Marian Hobbs and Mr Morrison will place the final pieces of the sculpture to mark the official
launch of the project.
The Action Bio-Community launch will be at the Karori Wildlife Sanctuary in Wellington today from 6pm to 7.30pm.
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For more information contact: Elizabeth Hughes, Communications Manager, Local Government New Zealand, Phone: 04 470 0008