The Motueka has been classified as a Demonstration HELP basin.

Basin Properties

Geographical properties:

Motueka River Basin Physical Features

• Total basin area 2,170 km² 
• Between 41^o00’ S and 41^o45’ S latitude, and 172^o30’ W and 173^o00’ W longitude
• Entirely within the boundaries of the Tasman District, South Island, NZ

Motueka River Physical Features

• Elevation: sea level at Tasman Bay to 1600 m in alpine headwaters
• Length: 110 km
• Breadth: 18 km near the mouth to 50 km at the headwaters
• Delivers 62% of the freshwater inflow to Tasman Bay

Geology

• complex limestone, marble, and calcareous mudstone (Mt Arthur Group), volcanic rock (Riwaka complex) formations (western headwaters)
• clay-bound Pliocene-Pleistocene (Moutere Depression) gravels (mid-basin)
• erodible (Separation Point) granites (mid-basin)
• ultra-mafic (Dun Mountain) mineral formation (eastern headwaters)
• sandstone-siltstone (Maitai Group) formation (eastern headwaters)

Topography

• Flat alluvial plains at mouth, sea-level, young relatively fertile soils
• Rolling and steep hill country in lower basin, low-fertility soils
• Flat alluvial terraces in upper basin valleys, young relatively fertile soils
• Rugged mountainous terrain in headwaters, wide range of fertility and permeability

Seasons & Climatology

• Cool, humid with distinct wet and dry (austral summer) seasons
• Dry season can lead to water shortages on dominant Moutere Gravels
• Climate is affected by:
• Air masses from Tasman Sea (westerly, warm), South Pacific (northerly and easterly, moderate), and Southern Ocean (southerly, cold)
• Orographic effects especially in the western mountains (alps)
• Location within a small island mass, situated within a temperate zone.

Marine resources

• Nationally significant (enhanced) scallop fishery and intertidal cockle fishery 
• Rapidly expanding mussel farming: aquaculture
• Recreational and commercial fin fisheries
• Extensive delta linking land, freshwater and marine ecosystems
• Nationally important coastal recreation areas (Abel Tasman National park)
• Internationally recognised birdlife (e.g. bar-tailed godwits, oystercatchers)

Demographic properties:

Population:

• Sparsely populated: less than 1 person per km²:
• ~12,000 in catchment, mostly in the town of Motueka 
• ~41,400 in Tasman District (2001 NZ Census) 
• Moderate growth: ~2% per annum and increasing

History of settlement in the Motueka River basin

Archaeological evidence suggests that Māori groups first settled the Motueka River area before 1350 A.D. Settlement was largely restricted to the coastal areas, although Māori travelled through the catchment in search of valued “pounamu” or greenstone (argillite). Inter-tribal conflicts decimated the local tribes (iwi) in 1828-1830, about 10 years before the first European settlers arrived. Early European settlers were largely interested in sheep grazing land and in gold. Gold operations existed in the area until the early 1900’s. A major flood in February 1877 transformed the catchment, as a consequence of widespread erosion. Subsequent flooding prompted local river boards to construct stop banks in the lower river in the 1950’s. Introduction of tobacco in the 1920’s brought a period of growth and prosperity. Decline in the tobacco industry in the 1950’s was followed by a rise in fruit tree, berry fruit, and hops and by a rise in commercial forestry. Plantation forests – stocked primarily with exotic species such as Monterey pine (Pinus radiata) and Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) were established on less-fertile, steeplands abandoned and purchased from farmers. More recently, vineyards, marine farming, and tourism have added substantially to the diversity and productivity of the local economy.

Social & cultural setting

New Zealand is a bi-cultural nation, recognising the contributions of both Māori and Europeans (pakeha). The legal document defining the relationship between Māori and pakeha is the Treaty of Waitangi (1840). After languishing for over 100 years, the treaty has served as the basis for recent claims by Māori groups over various land, water and marine resources. Three principal Māori tribes (iwi) are active the Motueka River area and their views and interests are a vital part of this HELP programme.

Land uses:

Land-use & Land cover

• Native “bush”, scrub and grassland in headwaters, southern beech (Nothofagus), podocarps (40%) 
• Commercial forestry on steeplands: Radiata pine, Douglas fir (25%)
• Dry land pasture and scrub: pasture grasses, sheep, beef, deer
• Valley bottom riparian areas: berry crops, hops, kiwifruit
• Coastal plains: apples, kiwifruit, summerfruit, hops

Water resources and uses in the basin:

Major Lakes and Bays in Basin:

• No major lakes
• Motueka River discharges into Tasman Bay, a productive and shallow coastal body of high cultural, economic, and ecological significance

Major Rivers and Waterways in Basin (* = long term flow data exists):

• Motueka River*
• Important west flank tributaries (Riwaka*, L. Sydney, Brooklyn, Shaggery, Rocky, Pokororo, Graham, Pearse)
• Important east flank tributaries (Waiwhero, Orinoco, Dove)
• Major headwater tributaries:
• Baton*
• Wangapeka*, including the Dart and Sherry
• Tadmor*
• Motupiko
• Upper Motueka
• Stanley Brook*

Hydrogeology

• Motueka/Riwaka alluvial plains aquifers (horticulture):
• upper aquifer (1-10 m depth, transmissivity 2000 m³/day/m )
• middle aquifer (10-16 m depth, transmissivity >4000 m³/day/m )
• lower aquifer, (>16 m depth, transmissivity >2500 m³/day/m) 
• Moutere gravels (horticulture, forestry): 3-120 m³/day/m
• Alluvial valley aquifers (dry land pasture, dairy, horticulture)
• Mountain calcareous complexes (deepest karst caves found in S hemisphere)

Hydrologic Budget:

• Average annual precipitation: 1300-3500+ mm gauged over catchment
• Number of rain days >1mm: 102-137
• 50-year, 24-h rainfall event: 141-229 mm
• Annual sunshine hours: ~2400 h
• Annual pan evaporation: 1105 mm
• Annual days of air frost: 31-92 days
• Annual discharge from the Motueka River: 844 mm 
• Mean annual flow: 58.1 m³/s
• Mean annual 7-day low flow: 10.1 m³/s
• 50-year flood event: 2050 m³/s

Pressures on Water Resources

• Water withdrawals (largely irrigation):
• Surface water: 132 permits (761 L s^-1)
• Groundwater: 335 permits (1,715 L s^-1) 
• Permits for discharges into Motueka River:
• Low: 10 of 136 in the greater region
• Type: largely stormwater and dairy
• Activities relevant to Tasman Bay:
• Marine farming: structures, aesthetics, ecological impacts
• Coastal subdivision and development
• Coastal hazards: erosion, flooding
• Coastal structures: marinas, jetties, wharves, outfalls
• Nuisance plants and animals, impacts on biodiversity

Policy and legislative properties:

Tasman District Council (TDC) serves 45000 residents, and alongside Nelson City Council, is one of four unitary councils acting as both a regional and district council. This combination of local government roles combines all resource management within a single authority, and encourages strong links between service delivery and environmental management. Thus the TDC is a ‘one stop shop’ for local government in its region.

Tasman District Council is responsible for sustainable management of land and water and other natural and physical resources of the Motueka Catchment, and its coastal resources up to 19km offshore, under the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA). The RMA has the objective of promoting the sustainable management of natural and physical resources. It has particular emphasis on protecting the life-supporting capacity of resources, safeguarding the foreseeable needs of future generations and avoiding, remedying or mitigating effects on the environment. Rather than controlling activities such as land use, the RMA emphasises avoiding or limiting the environmental effects of those activities.

Tasman District Council has a range of functions relevant to ICM and IWRM, including a mandate for integrated resource management, land management and control of the effects of land use, control of land subdivision, water management, management of contamination, coastal management (shared with the Department of Conservation (DOC)), river and lake management, and natural hazards and hazardous substances management. Tasman District Council undertakes these functions through:

• preparing and implementing a Regional Policy Statement and regional and district plans, the latter two now being amalgamated under the umbrella of its Tasman Resource Management Plan (TRMP)
• granting or declining resource consents, comprising land use consents, water permits, discharge permits and coastal permits
• investigating and monitoring environmental resources, and reporting on the state of the environment
• monitoring and enforcing compliance of resource uses with their resource consents or relevant permitted activity rules in planning documents
• advocating good environmental practice, and in some cases providing funding or services for supporting this for example, funding for riparian fencing, soil conservation or wetland protection.

The Tasman Resource Management Plan (Tasman District Council 1996) is divided into six parts, which are at various stages of development: Purpose and Scope; Land Management; Coastal Marine Area; Rivers and Lakes; Water; Discharges.

Baseline information availability:

The first phase of the Motueka Integrated Catchment Management research programme has concluded with publication of a technical report summarising the present state of knowledge of the catchments, management issues and research needs for integrated catchment management. (Basher et al., 2003). This report summarises the vast amount of information, including metadata and its location, for the catchment. It is available in PDF format for download at http://icm.landcareresearch.co.nz/Library/project_documents/ICM%20Report.pdf

Completed research reports, programme management documents, programme planning and events, and more are all available on the Motueka ICM website at: http://icm.landcareresearch.co.nz.

Organisations and institutions responsible for Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) in the basin:

The local and regional environmental and planning agency is Tasman District Council.

The national environmental policy agency is Ministry for the Environment.

Relevant governmental organisations are:

• Department of Conservation, Nelson
• Nelson Marlborough Fish and Game Council
• Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Richmond
• Ministry of Fisheries, Nelson
• Foundation for Research, Science and Technology, Wellington

Statement of Issues, Purpose and Outputs

Hydrological and Water Management issues:

• Conflicts among water users (especially forestry and horticulture) over availability and allocation of surface and groundwater resources in this seasonally-dry area,
• Declining water quality and aquatic habitat which affects recreational uses and trout habitat quality of the Motueka River and its tributaries, which are nationally and internationally recognised, 
• Concerns about sedimentation, affecting river water quality and freshwater and marine fisheries,
• Afforestation reducing stream flows and groundwater recharge.

Environmental issues:

• consequences of the combined impacts of land and river management on coastal aquaculture and fishing industries, which are nationally of great economic importance
• loss of native fauna and flora caused by introduced animals, especially the possum and mustelids such as stoats, plus introduced plants, especially the Old Mans Beard creeper (clematis vitalba), gorse (ulex) and blackberry.

Livelihoods issues:

• Effects of rapid population growth, and rising land values, on the primary productive base (mainly farming) in the catchment
• Loss of community through changing demographics, loss of rural services, and increased commuting to towns by residents for their work

Policy and legislation issues:

• Developing effective linkages between research and policy, and between scientists, council, sector and community groups
• Achieving a balance between regulation, environmental education and incentives to achieve sustainable management of land, water and coastal resources

How do the issues fit with the Five HELP Policy Issues ?

Water and Food:

In catchments with significant tourism and recreational values, like the Motueka, farmers and foresters are increasingly concerned that increasing land values and pressures from environmental interests could compromise their ability to continue producing food and fibre from productive land – examples of such pressures include limits placed on irrigation pumping, increasing subdivision of productive farms for ‘lifestyle’ owners, and increasing environmental regulation of farming and forestry activities.

Water and environment:

With about 20% of the Motueka in national park or managed for conservation, plus national recognition for the catchment’s trout fishery, and speleological attributes, the Motueka is a prime example of the tension between catchment management for instream as opposed to out-of-stream values and uses.

Water and climate:

Both instream and out-of-stream values are affected by summer droughts and extreme flooding. Climate change predictions suggest increased variability of these extremes, so managing for future climate change is a challenge for the council and the community.

Water quality and human health:

Pathogen levels in the Motueka River increase downstream and after rain due to land use impacts. E.Coli and giardia are particular risks so surface water taken for potable use must normally be treated. An ICM study of campylobacter occurrence throughout the catchment shows heightened risk in tributaries with cattle grazing. Research is being carried out to assess the level of risk from taking groundwater for potable supply from wells near the rivers.

Water and conflict:

Limits imposed on water extracted from the Motueka River have created tension between existing and potential irrigators, and environmental interests. A lengthy period of negotiation achieved compromise environmental flows and allocation limits in the Water Conservation Order (Motueka River) 2003 recommended for gazettal by the Minister for the Environment. The negotiated limits are now being translated into tributary limits through further negotiation then a formal hearing process.

Institutional change and capacity building issues:

Having a single council responsible for resource management and service delivery in the Motueka catchment and surrounding areas is a starting advantage. But many catchment residents and some sector groups are suspicious of council’s regulatory motives and some take no notice of the rules. One challenge in the Motueka is to help people have an integrated “ridgetops to sea” appreciation of the effects of resource use with the catchment as a logical management unit. A second is identifying the balance between regulation, education and advocacy, and incentives for achieving sustainability. A third is to develop futures visioning tools to help map future directions towards sustainability.

A major focus of the Motueka ICM HELP programme is to maximise council and community involvement in the research projects, thereby applying collaborative learning and action research approaches to sustainable management of the catchment and wider Nelson-Tasman region. Tools to assist with this approach include having Council staff as partners of the ICM research programme, regular meetings of the Motueka Community Reference Group as a sounding board for the research, specific projects with landowner and Landcare groups, subcontracting a landowner liaison role to the local co-ordinator of the NZ Landcare Trust, and a specific research project with the Tasman District Council to identify ways to improve institutional learning.

Principal Purposes:

Abstract excerpted from the successful Motueka ICM government funding bid and contract 2003:

“New Zealand’s Integrated Catchment Management (ICM) research programme is implementing a collaborative learning approach with stakeholders to identify and implement sustainable patterns of land, water and coastal uses, as development pressures increase. Programme goals are:

• the equitable allocation of increasingly scarce natural resources, in a manner acceptable to catchment communities
• the application of tools for managing the cumulative effects of land and water use.

This programme, begun in 2000 (http://icm.landcareresearch.co.nz/) , will develop and demonstrate a toolbox to guide sustainable management of land and water resources at small to large catchment scales, including the adjacent coast. We have in place a collaboration involving a committed and continuous partnership among researchers, policy makers, resource users, and community members, including iwi. We expect greater satisfaction for all stakeholders in the resource allocation process, less adversarial action, and hence lower costs.

The ICM programme is built on four integrated objectives asking the question “What factors under human control will achieve sustainability from ridge tops to the sea in a catchment context?” The four research objectives will answer this by developing and considering:

• factors that influence decision makers in councils, resource users and the wider community (Objective 1). 
• critical biophysical processes across land–water–coastal boundaries (Objective 2)
• tools that resource users and agencies can most effectively and economically apply to avoid, remedy or mitigate the effects of their activities down-catchment (Objective 3)
• patterns of resource use and mitigation measures that resource managers can plan for, given likely scenarios of development in the catchment, and the knowledge and tools now provided by ICM research (Objective 4).

As the research proceeds, the framework and lessons already learnt in the study site — the Motueka Catchment in Nelson — will begin to be applied in other catchments throughout the country, starting with the Raglan catchment in the Waikato. At an international level, this ICM programme is recognised as one of the inaugural operational pilot basins in the UNESCO/WMO global HELP project (Hydrology for the Environment, Life and Policy).”

Principal Outputs:

Outcomes excerpted from the Motueka ICM funding contract signed in 2003 are listed below. Expected high level outputs to achieve these are listed in Part III.

Knowledge management (Objective 1)

1. A structured organisational learning process available to improve councils’ use of science and other information for effective resource management.

2. Better resource management decision-making by stakeholders through a framework that allows accessibility to, recognition and use of knowledge related to the Motueka River catchment and Tasman Bay.

3. Council moving towards an active adaptive management approach for the catchment with monitoring results helping refine integrated model development.

4. ICM programme well interlinked with community and able to track progress of collaborative catchment management through shared model development.

Catchment Connections (Objective 2)

1. A robust technique for describing spatial and temporal trends in sediment composition in streams for application in stream health surveys by fisheries biologists and Fish and Game staff.

2. Revision of Tasman District Council water allocation policy for deep aquifers incorporating insights into groundwater recharge from Waiwhero study.

3. Baseline of delta soft sediment habitat condition and health available for assessment of change related to freshwater/land catchment use effects.

4. Data and process understanding available for input into modelling and management scenario analysis (in Objective 4).

5. Methodology available for integrated management of surface and groundwater resources in shallow groundwater aquifers.

6. Implementation of a scientifically defensible means of defining sustainable groundwater extraction levels and appropriate land management policy to protect groundwater resources.

7. Land management policy and practice targeted at reducing sediment impacts on fresh water ecosystem health and marine and aquaculture productivity.

8. Water allocation practice linked with improved knowledge of fish movement requirements, refuge availability and cues for movement.

Tools for Management and Policy (Objective 3)

1. The only New Zealand database and knowledge of the below-ground growth performance of native riparian plants which will assist restoration efforts by allowing selection of appropriate species to perform specific functions such as streambank stabilisation.

2. A generic methodology for analysis of river cross-section data and its application to setting gravel extraction limits.

3. Guidance for government and regional councils on determining appropriate levels of community investment in water infrastructure and improved water allocation.

4. A set of protocols or user guides to assist with prioritisation of community-based riparian restoration efforts.

5. Management of water allocation from small streams based on an understanding of potential effects on ecological, aesthetic and cultural values, rather than just historic flows.

6. Guidance for the sustainable planning and management of fish and shellfish resources of Tasman Bay and other comparable coastal sea locations, both in New Zealand and other parts of the world.

Visualising Futures (Objective 4)

1. Ability to predict impacts of flood events on factors affecting shellfish sustainability.

2. Framework established to build an integrated ecological-economic simulation model able to be applied in other New Zealand catchments.

3. Real time picture of the growth conditions for shellfish within the Tasman Bay Aquaculture Management Areas.

4. A generic model for simulating sediment generation and transport, the impact of land use and management on sediment generation rates, and sediment effects on freshwater and marine habitats and organisms.

5. A framework of linked models developed and tested using a collaborative learning approach to predict how changes in catchment management influence ecological, economic and social factors throughout the catchment, including coastal areas.

6. Improved understanding of the linkages between ecosystems and land uses within a large complex catchment.

Statement of Proposed Activities

Outline of the HELP programme design and plan:

The structure of the Motueka ICM HELP research programme integrates across disciplines and environmental media. It aims to mirror the policy development process applied by councils and sector groups in developing environmental management plans and systems.

The major activities planned over the next six years, split into the HELP areas, are:

Hydrology

• quantify catchment-wide connections between groundwater and surface water leading to calibration of groundwater flow and whole catchment hydrological models
• determine rates, processes and factors governing the generation and transport of sediment in sub-catchments with contrasting geology, land use and rainfall
• assess and model the total load of nutrients and pathogens to the sea and the contribution from sub-catchments with contrasting land-use and geology
• trial and refine a residual flow assessment method for aquatic habitat protection, based on the IFIM methodology
• quantify riverbed degradation rates and assess the contribution of flood events, gravel extraction, channel maintenance activities and natural beach revegetation to river channel stability
• relate river discharge to offshore water column profiles of salinity, temperature, chlorophyll-a, turbidity and nutrients

Environment

• refine and apply catchment and riparian classification methods to help define priorities for riparian protection and revegetation
• complete a five year trial of native riparian plants with attributes of rapid biomass generation and stream bank stability
• test the effectiveness of methods to reduce sediment generation and input to streams on erodible granite and stable claybound gravel terrains; and develop best practice guides for sediment management
• assess cumulative impacts of sediment on in-stream and subtidal habitats, and assess sediment redistribution at scales of the delta and bay scales
• determine the relative importance of terrestrial versus marine sources of nutrients and organic matter for shellfish and other organisms living within the river delta and plume 
• establish bacteriologically safe harvesting criteria for cockles, surf clams, scallops, oysters and farmed mussels ; optimise scallop and mussel spat collecting efforts and optimise mitigation of sea bed impacts
• calibrate models of hydrology, sediment generation, contaminant flows, coastal circulation and related habitat response, but starting with flows of sediment and water through the catchment and within the bay
• develop a suite of linked models able to address key catchment impact questions, utilising (1) a triple-bottom-line approach; (2) a collaborative learning development process; (3) cumulative effects of incremental changes in land and water management

Life

• document good practice guidelines for iwi (Māori tribal) collaboration for sustainable resource management
• build strong research relationships with the council, sector groups, Landcare groups, and our Motueka Community Reference Group to maximize imput into research direction and uptake of results
• explore perspectives on what ICM means in an Arts and Science collaboration based around the research programme
• communicate our research at Annual General Meetings – usually held within the catchment - and later in the programme hold an international conference and produce a book on the New Zealand experience with Integrated Catchment Management

Policy

• evaluate and improve the effectiveness of web-based knowledge bases and ICM communications using the programme website http://icm.landcareresearch.co.nz/
• identify and document good practice guidance for councils’ environmental extension processes
• determine factors influencing local government decision-making in resource policy and consents, to improve institutional knowledge uptake and use
• apply research on fish movement in response to low flow and thermal cues, and policy responses to water allocation issues under NZ water law, to input into guidelines and management plans for catchment-based water allocation
• evaluate alternative water allocation mechanisms and their social and economic consequences

Measurement and reporting of baseline conditions in the basin:

The Motueka ICM programme was built from an in-depth analysis of end-user and stakeholder needs, and reviewed by Prof. Tom Dunne (University of California, Santa Barbara) and Dr Gene Likens (Institute of Ecosystem Studies, New York). An early phase of the research was to summarise existing knowledge about the catchment in a technical report summarising the present state of knowledge of the catchments, management issues and research needs for integrated catchment management (Basher et al., 2003) available at http://icm.landcareresearch.co.nz/Library/project_documents/ICM%20Report.pdf

Stakeholder analysis, participation and consultation:

The Motueka ICM programme is a primary partnership between Landcare Research, Cawthron Institute and the Tasman District Council. Apart from the involvement of the Council as environmental management agency, stakeholder participation is achieved through:

• the Motueka Community Reference Group, comprising 8-10 residents from throughout the catchment who act as a sounding board for research direction and dissemination of results
• a Sector Reference Group, shortly to be formed, who provide more technical guidance on environmental issues and research to address them
• direct involvement of specific stakeholders in specific projects, for example the Fish and Game Council in freshwater habitat and fisheries assessment
• subcontracting of specific stakeholders for research contributions, for example the three iwi tribes of the Motueka, and the NZ Landcare Trust for their facilitation role with landowners and catchment groups nationwide
• the Landcare Research Rural Land Use Advisory Panel who advise on the applicability and direction of the research at a national scale

Capacity building, training and education:

The programme is already contributing to building awareness of Integrated Catchment Management as a natural resource management paradigm, through presentations at international and NZ meetings (e.g. the Kalmar HELP conference, the MAF/MfE Water-Lifeblood conference, Asia-Pacific Assn of Hydrology and Water Resources). Within the catchment and region, the programme runs Annual General Meetings plus specific stakeholder meetings to build capacity in integrated management, including training for iwi Maori personnel. In 2007 we plan an international ICM conference and book on the NZ experience with Integrated Catchment Management, probably in conjunction with the NZ Landcare Trust.

Schedule of proposed activities:

See Milestones in Document attached to this website.

Monitoring and evaluation:

As this HELP programme is funded largely by the NZ government, they require annual reporting against target milestones and outputs and also against outcomes in the catchment and nationally. Examples of outcomes committed in this programme were given in Part II above.

In addition, the programme reports annually to the Council, sector groups and community groups on progress towards achievement of outcomes through the various communication channels mentioned above. By the end of this 6-year programme, a complete review of progress is planned, as a basis for bidding funding for further work either in this catchment or expanded into new ones.

Statement of Commitment

Programme or project team members:

• Mr Andrew Fenemor, Programme Leader, Landcare Research, Nelson
• Dr Tim Davie, Hydrologist, Landcare Research, Lincoln 
• Dr Chris Phillips, geomorphologist and webmaster, Landcare Research, Lincoln
• Dr Roger Young, freshwater ecologist, Cawthron Institute, Nelson
• Dr Les Basher, sediment specialist, Landcare Research, Lincoln
• Dr Anthony Cole, ecological economist, Landcare Research, Palmerston North
• Mr Michael Krausse, resource economist, Landcare Research, Palmerston North
• Dr Will Allen, social scientist, Landcare Research, Lincoln
• Ms Margaret Kilvington, social scientist, Landcare Research, Lincoln
• Mr Garth Harmsworth, iwi social scientist, Landcare Research, Palmerston North
• Dr Linda Lilburne, environmental modeller, Landcare Research, Lincoln
• Mr Mike Page, geomorphologist, Landcare Research, Palmerston North 
• Dr John Stark, freshwater ecologist, Cawthron Institute, Nelson
• Dr Paul Gillespie, coastal ecosystem specialist, Cawthron Institute, Nelson
• Dr Mark Gibbs, coastal modeller, Cawthron Institute, Nelson
• Mr Barrie Robertson, coastal manager, Cawthron Institute, Nelson
• Mr Barrie Forrest, coastal ecologist, Cawthron Institute, Nelson
• Mr Rob Davies-Colley, stream ecologist, NIWA, Hamilton
• Dr Mike Stewart, groundwater isotope specialist, IGNS, Wellington
• Ms Lisa Langer, riparian specialist, Forest Research, Christchurch
• Dr Glen Lauder, organisational scientist, Common Ground Ltd, Wellington
• Mr Steve Markham, Policy Manager, Tasman District Council, Nelson
• Mr Joseph Thomas, groundwater scientist, Tasman District Council, Nelson
• Mr Lindsay Vaughan, policy planner – land, Tasman District Council, Nelson
• Ms Barbara Stuart, regional coordinator, NZ Landcare Trust, Nelson
• Mr Mick Park, Ngati Rarua Iwi Trust, Nelson
• Mr Dean Walker, Te Ati Awa Iwi Trust, Nelson

Supporting partners and stakeholders:

• Mr Neil Deans, Nelson Marlborough Fish and Game Council, Nelson
• Mr Martin Rutledge, Department of Conservation, Nelson
• Mr Martin Workman, Ministry of Fisheries, Nelson
• Mr Chas Perry, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Nelson
• Mr Andrew Karalus, Weyerhaeuser Forestry, Nelson
• Members of the Motueka Community Reference Group (8)
• Members of the Sector Advisory Panel (TBA)
• Mr Don Ross, CEO, NZ Landcare Trust, Christchurch
• Dr Peter Singleton, Environment Waikato, Hamilton
• Ms Helen Gear, Foundn for Research, Science and Technology, Wellington

Provision of resources:

The Motueka ICM programme has government funding from the Foundation for Research, Science and Technology committed for the six years from 2003/04 for this programme (contract C09X0305), plus in-kind support and some co-funding from Tasman District Council, Nelson Marlborough Fish and Game Council, Challenger Scallop Enhancement Company, and the mussel industry.

Contribution to promoting HELP values

The Motueka has been an inaugural operational HELP basin, and the Motueka Integrated Catchment management research programme operating in the basin since 2000, last year received a further six years’ funding, thanks in part to its HELP status and support from Dr Mike Bonell of UNESCO.

As New Zealand’s ICM research programme, the Motueka project has generated national interest and discussion of ICM concepts, to the extent that the NZ Landcare Trust has now developed its own ICM project to share best practice among community ICM and Landcare groups. Our Annual General Meetings in October each year attract considerable community and media support – last year attracting over 100 participants at our field day – and the programme has generated an Arts and Science collaborative project based around the idea of ‘integration’ within a catchment setting.

Our research results, especially as accessed through our dedicated website at http://icm.landcareresearch.co.nz and the media, are being picked up and promoted by NZ’s 16 regional councils and government departments, including the Ministry for the Environment, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, and Ministry of Fisheries. Our experience has generated contract work on water allocation, land-water interactions, land cover effects on water yields, freshwater habitat assessments, and land-marine impacts both within NZ and the Pacific (e.g. recent Fiji and Pohnpei ICM projects). Our HELP-related research has also been presented further afield, e.g. at the Asia Pacific Assn of Hydrology and Water Resources inaugural meeting in Tokyo in 2001 and the Kalmar HELP conference in 2002, the CGIAR Challenge programme and soon at the British Hydrological Society 2004 London conference. The programme has also been recognised through visits by Japanese, Australian and UNESCO visitors.

What inputs from other HELP basins are required through technology-transfer and training to achieve the desired project objectives? What inputs could you provide to other HELP basins through technology-transfer and training?

The Motueka programme would benefit from exchange of knowledge with other HELP basins, especially in the areas of catchment-scale modelling including how to evaluate economic, social and cultural perspectives in achieving sustainable development. We can share our experiences with ICM (and its subset IWRM) particularly in the Pacific and wider Asia-Pacific areas, and will be looking at what training opportunities could be provided, based on our research experience. Our proposed book and international conference on ICM will contribute to this sharing.

Key contact for this project:

Andrew Fenemor

Programme Leader Landcare Research,

Nelson New-Zealand

E-mail: FenemorA@landcareresearch.co.nz

Links:

• New Zealand’s Integrated Catchment Management (ICM) research programme in Motueka: http://icm.landcareresearch.co.nz/
• Landcare Research: http://www.landcareresearch.co.nz
• Cawthron Institute: http://www.cawthron.org.nz
• Tasman District Council: http://www.tdc.govt.nz
• NZ Ministry for the Environment: http://www.mfe.govt.nz/
• Department of Conservation, Nelson: http://www.doc.govt.nz/Regional-Info/009~Nelson-Marlborough/index.asp
• Nelson Marlborough Fish and Game Council: http://www.fishandgame.org.nz/SITE_Default/SITE_your_region/SITE_Nelson_Marlborough/Nelson_Marlborough.asp
• Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry: http://www.maf.govt.nz/mafnet/
• Ministry of Fisheries: http://www.fish.govt.nz/ 
• Foundation for Research, Science and Technology, Wellington: http://www.frst.govt.nz/
• Treaty of Waitangi (1840): http://www.waitangi-tribunal.govt.nz/about/treatyofwaitangi/
• Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA): http://www.mfe.govt.nz/laws/rma/
• Tasman Resource Management Plan (TRMP): http://www.tdc.govt.nz/environmenttasman.asp?page=Resource+Management&story=553
• Motueka ICM First Phase report: http://icm.landcareresearch.co.nz/Library/project_documents/ICM%20Report.pdf
• NIWA: http://www.niwa.cri.nz/
• IGNS: http://www.gns.cri.nz/
• Forest Research: http://www.forestresearch.co.nz
• NZ Landcare Trust: http://www.landcare.org.nz/
• Ngati Rarua Iwi Trust: http://www.ngatirarua.iwi.nz/
• Te Ati Awa Iwi Trust: http://www.teatiawatrust.co.nz/
• Motueka Community Reference Group: http://icm.landcareresearch.co.nz/science_themes/human-dimensions/crg/community_reference_group.htm
• Environment Waikato, Hamilton: http://www.ew.govt.nz/ 
• Challenger Scallop Enhancement Company: http://www.seafood.co.nz/industry/aton/challse.asp