Community and partnership projects

Community programmes

The 2024/25 Community Partnership Programme builds on the capacity and capability development within community organisations over the past few years.

Our community organisations across the region continue to deliver projects that improve their local environment through education, collaboration and on-the-ground action.

Waitaha Action to Impact (WAI) Fund

In 2021, We initiated the Waitaha Action to Impact (WAI) Fund, for projects supporting building community engagement and action for a better environment. That year $205,190 was allocated to 19 projects, with 14 of them receiving multi-year funding. In year two, $600,000 was allocated to 33 projects, 20 of which were new, in addition to 13 multi-year projects, and in year three (2023/24) we allocated $370,000 to 23 projects.

In the 2024/25 year, we distributed $331,575 to support 25 projects across Waitaha. View successful applications.

Biodiversity and biosecurity partnerships

Our partnership programmes bring together mana whenua, external partners, and internal teams under co-governance arrangements to deliver initiatives that strengthen both environmental and cultural values across Waitaha Canterbury.

These collaborative efforts are making a real difference — enhancing indigenous biodiversity and supporting mahinga kai at priority sites throughout the region.

We deliver five key programmes in partnership with mana whenua and other organisations:

Whakaora Te Waihora programme

Whakaora Te Waihora is an operational programme of the Te Waihora Co-Governance Group, with the long-term goal of restoring and rejuvenating the mana, mauri and ecosystem of Te Waihora/Lake Ellesmere.

The programme is partnering with other organisations to achieve outcomes for this vast wetland, including:

Landscape-scale restoration of the lakeshore wetlands through the Weed Strikeforce (delivered by the Department of Conservation);
Progressing the restoration of Ahuriri Lagoon (in partnership with rūnanga, Te Ara Kākāriki and others); and,
Improving protection of the nationally critical matuku-hūrepo/Australasian bittern (delivered by the Department of Conservation).

Whakaora Te Waikēkēwai programme

Whakaora Te Waikēkēwai is led by Te Taumutu Rūnanga Ltd., and co-managed by us. It is the largest project in the Whakaora Te Waihora programme.

This project is working to restore the mid-lower reaches of Te Waikēkēwai/Waikēkēwai Stream through:

The planting of 37,610 trees and shrubs, which is now connected with existing habitat to create 1.4km of continuous riparian habitat;
The restoration of Te Repo o Paptahora wetland; and,
Predator trapping to protect the nationally critical matuku-hūrepo/Australasian bittern.

Whaka-Ora Healthy Harbour programme

This programme is a multi-year, catchment-wide partnership between Te Hapū o Ngāti Wheke, Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu, Christchurch City Council, Lyttelton Port Company, and us to improve the environmental and cultural values of Whakaraupō/Lyttelton Harbour.

Outcomes for biodiversity are being achieved through:

Restoring ecosystems through support for the Whaka-Ora Pest Project (delivered by Conservation Volunteers);
The control of Spanish heath to protect vulnerable habitat on Te Ahu Pātiki/Mount Herbert; and,
A feasibility study for the re-establishment of tītī/muttonbirds.

Wilding Conifer Programme

We’ve been involved in wilding pine control since 2003. In 2016 we partnered with the National Wilding Conifer Control Programme (NWCCP), delivering control in Canterbury via 16 active management units.

Led by Biosecurity New Zealand, the NWCCP brings together government, communities, researchers, landowners, industry, and skilled contractors to address this national issue. 

In the past year, $3.58M from the NWCCP supported control in 10 MUs. An additional $2.45M from the International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy enabled priority work in two more MUs, mostly on public conservation land. 

In partnership with Land Information New Zealand (LINZ), we started control on one of the largest infestations on the Mackenzie Basin. 

Altogether, contractors completed 33 aerial and 40 ground operations with volunteers logging 559 hours. The total spend on operations for the year, including contributions from us and LINZ, was $7.38M. 

Find out more about the wilding conifer programme.

National Wallaby Programme

We’ve completed our fifth year of the Tipu Mātoro National Wallaby Eradication Programme — a partnership between central and local government, iwi, landowners, communities, and us.

In Waitaha/Canterbury, our work focuses on three key areas: 

STOP - We target wallabies outside the containment area to prevent further spread. Specialist ground and aerial contractors have covered hundreds of thousands of hectares. We’re making progress, but ongoing effort is crucial. 
SEARCH - We investigate areas on the fringe of known populations. After following up many reports, we’re confident there are no hidden breeding populations — but illegal movement is a risk, so every report is checked. 
SEAL - We continue intensive control along the containment buffer zone. Over the past five winters, more than 110,000 hectares of public and private land has been baited, reducing wallaby numbers by over 95 per cent. Other methods are used where baiting isn’t possible.

A new 51km wallaby-proof fence from Lake Tekapo to Lake Benmore is on track for 96 per cent completion by November 2025. 

Continued progress depends on central government funding and greater contributions from landowners and agencies within the containment area.

Find out more about the wallaby eradication programme and watch our latest wallaby video.

The wilding conifer and wallaby programmes are just two of the ways we deliver biosecurity work that improves biodiversity outcomes. Read more about our biosecurity work programme.