Farmers field trip for mahinga kai

Date: 15 May 2023

Category: Events | Biodiversity | Ngāi Tahu | Rivers | Water

Zone(s): Waimakariri

Did you know that mahinga kai species like kākahi/freshwater mussels can help protect the natural environment? Join Makarini Rupene (Pō Mātai Ko, Cultural Land Management Advisor) and Channell Thoms (Mātauraka Putaio Senior Advisor, Science) for a three-stop hop along the Cust River catchment.

What will we learn?

Ki uta ki tai (from the mountains to the sea) is a Māori concept that acknowledges the interconnectedness of all elements of the environment. This idea will guide the field trip, as we discuss how we monitor the health of our catchment, and how mātauraka Māori (Māori knowledge) relates to farmers.

We will travel to three locations from the foothills down to the Kaiapoi confluence. This field trip is open to farmers, landowners and all who are interested in broadening their knowledge on how they can implement practises on-farm that will protect and improve mahinga kai values within the catchment.

See first-hand how mātauraka monitoring, together with on-farm and catchment monitoring help us understand what is going well and where improvements are needed within a catchment context, which will be useful for farmers when Freshwater Farm Plans are rolled out in Canterbury in the future.