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According to the scientists’ models, if mature indigenous forest had been on that catchment’s highly erodible land areas, the mass of eroded soil would have reduced from 5.7 million tonnes to 4 million tonnes, with an average depth of sediment reduced by 30%, to 50cm. The report only looked at satellite imagery that applied to land classes six and seven, which represent 70% of the land area in the affected regions.

Manu Caddie, spokesperson for Mana Taiao Tairāwhiti in Gisborne, said the research is a nail in the coffin for all unsustainable land use in the region, and highlights how specific Tairāwhiti-northern Hawke’s Bay issues are.

“Crown policies supported land clearance over the past 150 years, now we need public policy that supports rapid restoration of permanent indigenous forest, with associated jobs and income to landowners.”

He said the results also challenge the current claims about transition forestry, where exotic plantings provide an initial income and cover for emerging native forests.

“The problems with that idea are that pine performs poorly compared to indigenous forests in terms of keeping the land in place. We can’t wait another 30 years, let alone 70-80 years, as some companies are proposing.”

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“Everything is separated yet there are commonalities across all of the biosecurity threats that we are missing by working in this simple way,” he said.

“In New Zealand, animal health, human health environmental health and plant health are often dealt with separately.

“Really what we need to do is bring in biosecurity to work much more at the centre of these different areas.”

Hulme called this approach “One Biosecurity”.

There also need to be better links in the biosecurity continuum between pre-border, border and post-border, he said.

This has increasingly been seen as a way forward as the Ministry for Primary Industries refreshes NZ’s biosecurity system, which is comforting, he said.

DairyNZ biosecurity manager Liz Shackleton backed the call, saying the refresh is a huge opportunity to get the system right for the future.

She said NZ has a fragmented biosecurity system where different sectors tend to work in their silos.

“We have policies that are 30 years old and the funding settings have served us well to date, but ultimately will have to be reformed to be match-fit into the future,” she said.

For dairy farmers, when an

“Be aware that this is the reality you’re facing when you’re trying to get science communication out there and into the community.

Liz Shackleton DairyNZ

“More than ever, the anchor in this storm of chaos is going to be the need to take a step back and have that leadership to strengthen and integrate systems and partnerships and build that trust.

“That investment in face-time is so crucial.”

Shackleton said there were key take-home messages from reviews following the M bovis incursion.

These included the value of investment in preparedness around relationships, planning and people and ensuring data systems are properly integrated to allow for a single, more streamlined biosecurity approach.

“Until we get those system and information flows more integrated, we are continually going to be on the back foot.”

Kate Scott Business Owner Positive force Nuffielder