Burke Family, Pukekauri Farms receive their award. Photo / Cawthron Institute
Burke Family, Pukekauri Farms receive their award. Photo / Cawthron Institute
‘’Genuine trailblazer’' farmers from Katikati and a catchment group are being celebrated as 2024 Freshwater Champions.
The event is a refreshed version of the previous New Zealand Rivers Awards. Hundreds of people attended the champion ceremony at Te Papa in Wellington on Thursday night.
More than 50 nominations from throughout New Zealand were submitted for the awards that are designed to celebrate the work by groups and individuals to restore and protect the health of rivers, lakes, wetlands and aquifers.
The five champions are:
Burke Family, Pukekauri Farms at Katikati, Bay of Plenty
The Burke Family from Bay of Plenty (Rick Burke and Jan Loney, recently joined by John and Debbie Burke) received their award for individual/family actions. For more than three decades they have developed eight wetlands, fenced waterways, reticulated stock water and retired a quarter of their 300ha sheep and beef farm into forest.
Assessors described them as “genuine trailblazers” who proved that it’s possible to enhance the environment without jeopardising profits.
Catchment group Project Parore, took out the established catchment award with a solid track record of growth and diversification for more than 20 years.
Some of the Project Parore team.
Starting with a small group trying to increase native bird numbers in Uretara Estuary, it now encompasses eight catchments in the area and is a “shining example of how to grow a multi-catchment entity that will achieve long-lasting results for many generations.’’
The awards are run by Cawthron Institute, supported by NZ Landcare Trust and National Science Challenge, Our Land and Water.
Five scientists - four from Cawthron Institute and one from Our Land and Water - assessed nominations to identify the five champions who are making outstanding contributions to improve water quality and environmental outcomes.
Cawthron Freshwater ecologist Kati Doehring said they were thrilled with the number and range of entries.
“While this made it hard to determine just a small number of champions, we are delighted by the stories and experience that our champions offer to inspire others on this important journey.”
A three-minute video has been produced with each champion to celebrate and share their hard work. They also received a certificate and a cash prize.
Cawthron Institute is New Zealand’s largest independent science institute based in Nelson. One of its core objectives is to protect and enhance aquatic environments.
