Catchment communities across the Wairarapa are working together to better understand their waterways so they can improve the health of freshwater ecosystems.
One of the key areas that Wairarapa Catchment groups want to know more about is the health of their awa. Currently community based monitoring is underutilised in decision making so NIWA, with support from partners like Greater Wellington Regional Council and Mountains to Sea Wellington, have been working to develop a national quality assurance framework to better utilise the data collected through citizen science. The framework focuses on monitoring of stream health and is built around an initial set of 28 indicators. The framework provides an electronic monitoring and quality plan template, guidance document, electronic field form templates and a supporting background report. Groups in the Wairarapa have all been trialling the monitoring plan and the electronic field form.
Over the past year, MTSW has worked with seven groups monitoring 44 sites across the Wairarapa growing the community's knowledge of our freshwater ecosystems. Some of the groups have led the community with over a year's worth of monitoring, and some groups are just coming up to their first completed year. As more groups begin to monitor their awa there will be a greater community or practice in the Wairarapa.
Groups are undertaking a mixture of bottle sampling and community based monitoring. They are looking at indicators such as visual clarity, temperature, nitrate, phosphate, E. coli and fish health. All of these indicators help the groups to better understand their awa and connect the effects of land use on the health of the waterway.
Most importantly the days out monitoring are always filled with community connection. Neighbours spend a day out (hopefully in the sunshine) around the river talking about their aspirations for the catchment and the community.
A massive mihi to the hard working community members who have been out in te taiao working to better understand their awa.
If you are interested in learning more about your awa, get in touch with our Wai Connection team.
This mahi has been done as part of Wai Connection, a Mountains to Sea Wellington project and in partnership with the Wairarapa Catchment Collective. To learn more about the Wairarapa Catchment Collective check out the website.
Tatai ki te wai (Wai Connection) is a community catchment group engagement project co-funded through the Essential freshwater fund until June 2025. The project aims to empower community catchment groups by providing knowledge, tools and expert support to help identify issues in their local catchment area.