Latest news with #Northland-based
Scoop
2 days ago
- Business
- Scoop
Government Congratulates Ahuwhenua Trophy Winners
Press Release – New Zealand Government Sheep and beef farms are the backbone of the Mori primary sector, valued at over $12 billion, and these awards honour the landowners, rangatira and kaimahi who keep that success going, says Mori Development Minister Tama Potaka. Minister of Agriculture Hon Tama Potaka Minister for Māori Development Agriculture Minister Todd McClay and Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka have congratulated the winners of the 2025 Ahuwhenua Trophy and the Ahuwhenua Young Māori Farmer Award, recognising their excellence and leadership in Māori agribusiness. The Northland-based Whangaroa Ngaiotonga Trust was awarded the 2025 Ahuwhenua Trophy for excellence in Māori sheep and beef farming at a gala dinner in Palmerston North tonight. 'Whangaroa Ngaiotonga Trust turned a struggling farm into a thriving 1,200-head bull beef operation, and it's a clear example of what vision and hard work can achieve,' says Mr McClay. 'This award celebrates Māori excellence in farming and the kind of leadership that will help us double the value of exports in 10 years,' says Mr McClay. Mr Potaka says the Ahuwhenua Trophy recognises excellence in farming know-how, as well as the wider role that Māori intergenerational farming entities play in our regional communities and in protecting the environment. 'Sheep and beef farms are the backbone of the Māori primary sector, valued at over $12 billion, and these awards honour the landowners, rangatira and kaimahi who keep that success going,' says Mr Potaka. Te Tai Tokerau farm manager Coby Warmington took out the 2025 Ahuwhenua Young Māori Farmer Award for sheep and beef. 'Congratulations to the winner and all those who took part in this year's competition. 'The prosperity and wellbeing farming generates for Iwi and Māori across the motu has far reaching impacts for communities, for whānau, for reinvesting back into marae and more. I tautoko the outstanding work these finalists are doing.'
Scoop
2 days ago
- Business
- Scoop
Government Congratulates Ahuwhenua Trophy Winners
Hon Todd McClay Minister of Agriculture Minister for Māori Development Agriculture Minister Todd McClay and Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka have congratulated the winners of the 2025 Ahuwhenua Trophy and the Ahuwhenua Young Māori Farmer Award, recognising their excellence and leadership in Māori agribusiness. The Northland-based Whangaroa Ngaiotonga Trust was awarded the 2025 Ahuwhenua Trophy for excellence in Māori sheep and beef farming at a gala dinner in Palmerston North tonight. 'Whangaroa Ngaiotonga Trust turned a struggling farm into a thriving 1,200-head bull beef operation, and it's a clear example of what vision and hard work can achieve,' says Mr McClay. 'This award celebrates Māori excellence in farming and the kind of leadership that will help us double the value of exports in 10 years,' says Mr McClay. Mr Potaka says the Ahuwhenua Trophy recognises excellence in farming know-how, as well as the wider role that Māori intergenerational farming entities play in our regional communities and in protecting the environment. 'Sheep and beef farms are the backbone of the Māori primary sector, valued at over $12 billion, and these awards honour the landowners, rangatira and kaimahi who keep that success going,' says Mr Potaka. Te Tai Tokerau farm manager Coby Warmington took out the 2025 Ahuwhenua Young Māori Farmer Award for sheep and beef. 'Congratulations to the winner and all those who took part in this year's competition. 'The prosperity and wellbeing farming generates for Iwi and Māori across the motu has far reaching impacts for communities, for whānau, for reinvesting back into marae and more. I tautoko the outstanding work these finalists are doing.'
NZ Herald
20-05-2025
- Health
- NZ Herald
Northland divers start New Zealand-first caulerpa elimination work
Kelliher said the underwater rapid response dive team helped maintain momentum and respond quickly while larger funding decisions were still pending. The Conquer Caulerpa mahi is being carried out by Whangārei -based company Northern Divers. Company managing director Stephen Te Tai (Ngāti Hine) said his Northland-based team's mahi was crucial as part of the community getting on top of the invasive seaweed. It honoured his forbear, prominent Ngāpuhi rangatira Te Ruki Kawiti, by helping protect the moana and whenua he fought for. Biosecurity New Zealand, through Northland Regional Council (NRC), is providing $118,000 for four divers for pending 17 days of caulerpa survey and elimination work in the Bay of Islands. Kelliher said more was needed. 'We have 11 trained divers, with professional experience in offshore oil rigs and more, ready to work on caulerpa – but no funding for them to do this work beyond those 17 days,' Kelliher said. 'Time is of the essence in the fight against caulerpa.' Kelliher said $600,000 was needed, to extend the surveillance and elimination work north from Cape Reinga to the Bay of Islands. Conquer Caulerpa has set up a Givealittle page. The link to this page can be found here. Kelliher said money would be used for diver-led surveys, rapid-response treatments, specialised equipment, and community outreach. The rapid response dive team is first surveying potential high risk caulerpa locations. It has started working around four of the seven major Ipipiri Islands and Te Rāwhiti's mainland Hauai Bay. The surveillance and treatment plan has been created with Biosecurity New Zealand and NRC. Kelliher said caulerpa would be treated with benthic mats and chlorine tabs, ultra-violet light, chlorine curtains or the underwater tractor being developed at least in part in the Bay of Islands' Omākiwi Cove. The team's work follows caulerpa elimination trials in the Bay of Islands. Kelliher said community members, including Ngāti Kuta hapū, Motukōkako Ahu Whenua Trust, Foundation North, Eastern Bay of Islands Preservation Society and a number of private donors, had already raised $65,000 towards previous caulerpa work. He said it was hoped new fundraising could help towards a motorised underwater scooter to help divers move more efficiently through the water, meaning they could cover bigger areas. The divers are working in the Bay of Islands on the high-value boat anchorages - Urupukapuka Island's Paradise Bay and Entico/Otaia Bay; Waewaetorea Passage on the island of the same name, Moturua Island and Motukiekie Island. They will lay large mats known as benthic mats, covering chlorine tabs placed on isolated caulerpa plants. The goal is to kill small, isolated patches of caulerpa. This work follows earlier local trials. These will be put down at three sites on the east of Moturua Island in Army /Waiwhapuku Bay, one site of the west of Motukiekie Island; three sites in Waewaetorea Passage, nine sites on Urupukapuka Island and two sites in Te Rāwhiti mainland's Hauai Bay. Divers will then start surveying to check whether selected anchorages are still caulerpa-free and set up baseline data. Comprehensive grid-based island surveying will be done at sites including Urupukapuka's Otehei Bay tourist boating hub and Paradise Bay, Intico/Otaia Bay and Cable Bay as well. It will also be done on the south of Okahu Island in the passage of the same name, Waewaetorea Passage and Moturua Island's Army/Waiwhapuku Bay. Mainland surveying will be done at Te Rāwhiti's Kaimarama Bay, Oruruhoa Bay and Hauai Bay. A national community exotic caulerpa locations map viewer shows where surveillance work has previously been carried out nationally. $9.4 billion hit from caulpera's spread as it threatens tourism and recreation, commercial fishing, aquaculture and ecosystems.
Scoop
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
NZ Faces $9.4b Hit From Invasive Caulerpa, Analysis Shows
Article – Susan Botting – Local Democracy Reporter New Zealand's economy risks a $9.4 billion hit as the invasive seaweed caulerpa gains an increasing stronghold – with reports of it now spreading to the Bay of Islands tourist town of Russell. That's the stark warning after new NZIER analysis showed caulerpa's spread will impact tourism and recreation, commercial fishing, aquaculture and ecosystems if more is not done to stop the spread. The analysis is part of a New Zealand-first iwi, community and council consortium December business case to the government pushing for a co-ordinated, scaled up approach. The heavyweight consortium wants up to $215 million – $43 million annually – for the first five years of a 30-year fight against caulerpa, which would be funded through taxpayer contributions, local rates and vessel levies. But Biosecurity Minister Andrew Hoggard has challenged the $9.4 billion economic impact figure. 'The impacts of exotic caulerpa in New Zealand are still not fully understood and long-term studies are underway to understand this better. 'Given that we are still studying how caulerpa behaves and affects local marine ecology it would be extremely difficult to identify a cost with any certainty,' Hoggard said. Hoggard would not comment on how much money the government would be putting towards caulerpa in the 22 May Budget. 'The government always faces difficult choices about what to fund and I cannot discuss Budget ahead of its release later this month,' Hoggard said. Exotic caulerpa has been described by independent scientific experts as the country's most serious marine biosecurity invasion in a lifetime. Northland-based Conquer Caulerpa Trust chair Verdon Kelliher said the situation was desperate and the government wasn't doing enough to remedy the issue. 'We're talking about major impacts,' Kelliher said. 'Without immediate, co-ordinated action, our fishing grounds, tourism industry and cultural heritage face unprecedented damage.' The caulerpa threat area stretches 1500 kilometres of coastline from Cape Reinga to East Cape, including the 'golden triangle' economic powerhouse of Auckland, Waikato and Bay of Plenty, as well as Northland. It has spread to more than 90 locations from the Bay of Islands to the Mercury Islands, off the upper Coromandel Peninsula. Ex-Tropical Cyclone Tam washed more than 500 tonnes of caulerpa ashore in thick carpets in the Bay of Islands' Omākiwi Cove and adjacent Whiorau Bay over Easter. Local volunteers rushed to remove it due to fears of it creating a growth explosion. The consortium wants a strengthened government approach to caulerpa with a stronger marine biosecurity framework to co-ordinate a scaled-up fight. Its business case, by consultants Martin Jenkins and based on the NZIER economic analysis, was developed over four months by Hauraki Gulf-based Pou Rāhui iwi (Ngāti Pāoa, Ngāti Hei, Ngāti Tamaterā and Ngā Tai ki Tāmaki) with financial and/or other input also including from marine scientists and Northland Regional Council, Auckland Council, Waikato Regional Council, Thames-Coromandel District Council, Hauraki District Council, DOC plus affected industries. Hoggard met Pou Rāhui iwi and councils behind the business case in March. He said the meeting had been 'very useful' and asked officials to consider the business case and provide advice to him 'in due course'. Pou Rāhui iwi spokesperson Herearoha Skipper said the cost of the government not taking appropriate action outweighed the cost of doing so. 'The arrival of caulerpa represents an unprecedented threat to our marine environment,' Skipper said. 'We are deeply concerned about the lack of a comprehensive approach to fighting this seaweed species and its potentially devastating impact.' NZIER modelling suggested that without proper intervention, $9.4 billion of the upper North Island's natural capital asset value could be lost over the next 30 years. That includes an $8.8 billion recreational and tourism loss including recreational fishing – fish biomass has been halved in overseas caulerpa infestations. Recreational boating would be impacted with significant movement restrictions, the report said. There would be a $118 million loss for commercial fishing, $24 million for aquaculture and $489.4 million in ecosystem services degradation, NZIER said. Roles and responsibilities in the caulerpa fight were not clear and regulatory barriers often prevented rapid responses. Traditional frameworks failed to adequately incorporate mātauranga Māori and invasive species funding had been reactive rather than proactive, the report said. New Zealand's first mainland exotic caulerpa infestation was identified in Omākiwi Cove in the eastern Bay of Islands in May 2023. More than 1000ha – the equivalent of 1429 rugby fields – have been closed to boat anchoring since June 2023 to help stop its spread. Sightings of caulerpa have now been reported outside this anchoring ban area including Russell's Kororarēka Bay, about 10 kilometres by boat from Omākiwi Cove. It's also been reported at Long Beach (Oneroa) and Tāpeka Point. 'And it's highly likely that additional beaches are affected but remain unreported,' Kelliher said. Hoggard said the caulerpa that had been shown globally to create dense monocultures were different species from those causing issues in New Zealand – where there was no clear evidence the marine pest was overgrowing seagrass. Biosecurity New Zealand, mana whenua, regional councils, affected communities and other agencies had invested a huge amount of effort and money to tackle the situation, he said. The government had put more than $20 million towards efforts to understand the pest, contain its spread and develop new technologies to remove it, Hoggard said. World-leading technology was also helping to remove different types of caulerpa infestations including the development of a large-scale suction dredge in the Bay of Islands.
Scoop
08-05-2025
- Business
- Scoop
NZ Faces $9.4b Hit From Invasive Caulerpa, Analysis Shows
New Zealand's economy risks a $9.4 billion hit as the invasive seaweed caulerpa gains an increasing stronghold - with reports of it now spreading to the Bay of Islands tourist town of Russell. That's the stark warning after new NZIER analysis showed caulerpa's spread will impact tourism and recreation, commercial fishing, aquaculture and ecosystems if more is not done to stop the spread. The analysis is part of a New Zealand-first iwi, community and council consortium December business case to the government pushing for a co-ordinated, scaled up approach. The heavyweight consortium wants up to $215 million - $43 million annually - for the first five years of a 30-year fight against caulerpa, which would be funded through taxpayer contributions, local rates and vessel levies. But Biosecurity Minister Andrew Hoggard has challenged the $9.4 billion economic impact figure. "The impacts of exotic caulerpa in New Zealand are still not fully understood and long-term studies are underway to understand this better. "Given that we are still studying how caulerpa behaves and affects local marine ecology it would be extremely difficult to identify a cost with any certainty," Hoggard said. Hoggard would not comment on how much money the government would be putting towards caulerpa in the 22 May Budget. "The government always faces difficult choices about what to fund and I cannot discuss Budget ahead of its release later this month," Hoggard said. Exotic caulerpa has been described by independent scientific experts as the country's most serious marine biosecurity invasion in a lifetime. Northland-based Conquer Caulerpa Trust chair Verdon Kelliher said the situation was desperate and the government wasn't doing enough to remedy the issue. "We're talking about major impacts," Kelliher said. "Without immediate, co-ordinated action, our fishing grounds, tourism industry and cultural heritage face unprecedented damage." The caulerpa threat area stretches 1500 kilometres of coastline from Cape Reinga to East Cape, including the 'golden triangle' economic powerhouse of Auckland, Waikato and Bay of Plenty, as well as Northland. It has spread to more than 90 locations from the Bay of Islands to the Mercury Islands, off the upper Coromandel Peninsula. Ex-Tropical Cyclone Tam washed more than 500 tonnes of caulerpa ashore in thick carpets in the Bay of Islands' Omākiwi Cove and adjacent Whiorau Bay over Easter. Local volunteers rushed to remove it due to fears of it creating a growth explosion. The consortium wants a strengthened government approach to caulerpa with a stronger marine biosecurity framework to co-ordinate a scaled-up fight. Its business case, by consultants Martin Jenkins and based on the NZIER economic analysis, was developed over four months by Hauraki Gulf-based Pou Rāhui iwi (Ngāti Pāoa, Ngāti Hei, Ngāti Tamaterā and Ngā Tai ki Tāmaki) with financial and/or other input also including from marine scientists and Northland Regional Council, Auckland Council, Waikato Regional Council, Thames-Coromandel District Council, Hauraki District Council, DOC plus affected industries. Hoggard met Pou Rāhui iwi and councils behind the business case in March. He said the meeting had been "very useful" and asked officials to consider the business case and provide advice to him "in due course". Pou Rāhui iwi spokesperson Herearoha Skipper said the cost of the government not taking appropriate action outweighed the cost of doing so. "The arrival of caulerpa represents an unprecedented threat to our marine environment," Skipper said. "We are deeply concerned about the lack of a comprehensive approach to fighting this seaweed species and its potentially devastating impact." NZIER modelling suggested that without proper intervention, $9.4 billion of the upper North Island's natural capital asset value could be lost over the next 30 years. That includes an $8.8 billion recreational and tourism loss including recreational fishing - fish biomass has been halved in overseas caulerpa infestations. Recreational boating would be impacted with significant movement restrictions, the report said. There would be a $118 million loss for commercial fishing, $24 million for aquaculture and $489.4 million in ecosystem services degradation, NZIER said. Roles and responsibilities in the caulerpa fight were not clear and regulatory barriers often prevented rapid responses. Traditional frameworks failed to adequately incorporate mātauranga Māori and invasive species funding had been reactive rather than proactive, the report said. New Zealand's first mainland exotic caulerpa infestation was identified in Omākiwi Cove in the eastern Bay of Islands in May 2023. More than 1000ha - the equivalent of 1429 rugby fields - have been closed to boat anchoring since June 2023 to help stop its spread. Sightings of caulerpa have now been reported outside this anchoring ban area including Russell's Kororarēka Bay, about 10 kilometres by boat from Omākiwi Cove. It's also been reported at Long Beach (Oneroa) and Tāpeka Point. "And it's highly likely that additional beaches are affected but remain unreported,' Kelliher said. Hoggard said the caulerpa that had been shown globally to create dense monocultures were different species from those causing issues in New Zealand - where there was no clear evidence the marine pest was overgrowing seagrass. Biosecurity New Zealand, mana whenua, regional councils, affected communities and other agencies had invested a huge amount of effort and money to tackle the situation, he said. The government had put more than $20 million towards efforts to understand the pest, contain its spread and develop new technologies to remove it, Hoggard said. World-leading technology was also helping to remove different types of caulerpa infestations including the development of a large-scale suction dredge in the Bay of Islands.
