Biodiversity funding and projects in Christchurch | Targeted Rate Programme

For 2024/25 we awarded just over $400,000 to seven community organisations, supporting eight projects that protect and enhance indigenous biodiversity across Christchurch and Banks Peninsula. 

The fund supported registered community groups delivering work across freshwater, coastal and land-based ecosystems—including on-the-ground action, education, and community-led initiatives.

The funding could be used for:

• Materials (such as plants, traps, fencing or building materials) 
• Services (like project management, technical advice and education sessions) 
• Community engagement coordination and facilitation 
• Capacity and capability (such as upskilling and salary) 

Explore the biodiversity projects funded through this fund: See where funding has been invested across Christchurch and Banks Peninsula and what each project is delivering.

We allocated over $220,000 support t covenanting organisations, including  Queen Elizabeth Ⅱ National Trust (QEⅡ) and the Banks Peninsula Conservation Trust (BPCT) to protect indigenous biodiversity on private land.

This funding helps secure long-term habitat protection, while leveraging additional investment from landowners and partner organisations. Increasing permanently protected native habitat is a key outcome of our Long-Term Plan.

Eight projects were supported across Banks Peninsula:

Queen Elizabeth Ⅱ National Trust (QEⅡ) 

• Diamond Harbour (8.34 ha) – $10,000 
• Teddington (37.8 ha) – $20,000 
• Wairewa (280 ha) – $15,000 
• Hickory Bay (105 ha) – $20,000 
• Pūrau (33 ha) – $25,000 

Banks Peninsula Conservation Trust (BPCT)

• Mt Herbert South Blocks (11 ha) – $61,800
• Okana Valley Head (11 ha) – $65,825
• Glen Ātahu (20 ha) – $3,156

We allocated over $221,000 to six projects addressing key threats to high-value biodiversity across Christchurch. These delivered immediate benefits across wetland, coastal and terrestrial environments, with work led by both Environment Canterbury and community partners.

Key actions included:

• Targeted weed control to protect native habitats
• Wetland expansion on Environment Canterbury land
• Catchment-scale weed control to support ecosystem resilience
• Enhancement of marine biodiversity values

Six projects were supported across Christchurch and the Banks Peninsula:

• Brooklands (Te Rauakaaka) – wetland and raupō expansion – $47,067
• Waimakariri River – yellow flag iris control (17 ha) – $19,999
• Wainui catchment – weed control led by Re-Wild Wainui – $30,000
• Banks Peninsula rocky outcrops – invasive species control – $51,791
• Whakaraupō/Lyttelton Harbour – Mediterranean fanworm response – $48,512
• Akaroa Harbour and Purau Bay – seagrass mapping – $23,950

How the programme is delivered 

• Contestable fund: ~20–30% available annually for community projects
• Direct delivery: multi-year projects in priority landscapes with partners

All projects funded by targeted rates 

Why this area matters  

• River systems, springs, wetlands and dryland ecosystems 
• Habitat for rare and threatened species, including matuku (Australasian bittern) 
• Part of Canterbury’s internationally recognised wetland network 

What makes it important 

• Loss of habitat and ecosystem fragmentation 
• Important for mahinga kai and ecological restoration 

Why this area matters 

• Estuary, river, mudflats, saltmarshes and riparian margins 
• Nationally important coastal ecosystem 

What makes it important 

• Supports diverse birdlife, native fish nurseries and rare plant species 
• Key feeding and roosting site for migratory and resident birds 
• Strong cultural significance as a mahinga kai site 

Why this area matters 

• Harbour, saltmarshes, tidal mudflats and coastal headlands 
• Regionally significant intertidal ecosystems 

What makes it important 

• Supports rare and endemic plant species and ecological corridors 
• Important nursery and habitat for marine life 
• Significant for mahinga kai, mataitai and kaimoana values 

Why this area matters 

• Interconnected coastal, lake and catchment ecosystems 
• Significant at international, national and regional levels 

What makes it important 

• Supports diverse habitats, environmental gradients and ecological processes 
• Provides habitat for nationally threatened species 
• Strong potential for natural regeneration 
• High cultural significance, including mahinga kai and urupā 

Why this area matters 

• Marine, coastal and terrestrial ecosystems across the harbour and catchment 
• Highly productive intertidal and subtidal environments 

What makes it important 

• Supports endangered species such as Hector’s dolphin 
• Provides nursery habitat for fish and invertebrates 
• Sustains native birdlife and plant communities 
• Important for mahinga kai and kaitiakitanga 

Why this area matters 

• Coastal cliffs, rocky outcrops, scarps and tors 
• Naturally uncommon and threatened ecosystems 

What makes it important 

• Habitat for rare, endemic and threatened plant and animal species 
• Provides refuges and ecological connectivity between land and sea 
• Supports species such as spotted shag, tītī and Canterbury spotted skink 
• Significant for mahinga kai and coastal ecosystem restoration