ENVIRONMENT IMPROVING LAND AND WATER
Sustainability: thinking, sharing, and acting Kaipara dairy farmer Earle Wright is a newly-minted DairyNZ Climate Change ambassador, a role that to him is a recognition of his whakapapa, his actions making change to environmental matters, and his credibility locally as a farmer making a difference to the whenua. Chris Neill reports.
E
arle Wright is a second-generation dairy farmer on what was a Lands Settlement Scheme ballot farm at Tapora on the edge of the Kaipara Harbour. He took it on because his brothers chose to follow other careers. Being of Ngati Whatua and Ngati Porou descent, Earle is a passionate conservation-minded farmer intent on reintroducing native flora and fauna for stronger biodiversity and harbour protection. His whakapapa takes him back to the waka Mahuhu ke te Rangi, which came from Hawaiki to land at Taporapora. The small island Manukapua (‘bird cloud’) off Tapora, which is significant to where the waka landed, is of great importance to Earle and he’s committed to its restoration. With his wife Gaeline they milk 300 cows on a 120ha platform, with a 61ha runoff and substantial areas of conservation planting. The 100,000ha Okahukura Peninsula is a challenging place to farm and subject to the extremes of Northland’s climate. Because of its proximity to Auckland, this district, which was previously remote, is undergoing significant land use change. Avocado trees are taking over dairy pasture, with consequential increases in demand for people and water resources. Earle’s roles as an Integrated Kaipara Harbour Management Group (IKHMG) flagship farmer, a member of the Dairy Environment Leaders Forum, chairman of Tapora Land and Coastal Care Group and respected dairy farmer, readily identified him as a candidate for a DairyNZ Climate Change Ambassador. DairyNZ sees the role as “an important part of helping dairy farmers and our farming communities understand how they can 70
Earle has planted an extensive wetland area - here he is in front of it in 2017.
make environmental improvements on their farms”. IKHMG and now the substantial Kaipara Moana Remediation programme are intent on improving water quality in the harbour, which aligns with Earle’s personal values and vision.
“It’s not something that can be done alone, it requires a collective effort to make a difference.” A key element of achieving their outcomes is farmer participation in sediment reduction through stock management, erosion control, and riparian planting. The primary focus is on reducing the 700,000 tonnes of sediment
entering the Kaipara annually, which is compromising water quality and marine life. Personal success for Earle is finding whitebait returning to the streams on his farm, and returning gorse-infested land to a wetland with thriving native plants that have been established by students from the neighbouring Tapora School. The Climate Change Ambassador role adds another dimension to Earle’s interests. He expects that applying and encouraging farming practices that ultimately reduce methane emissions and sequester carbon will contribute to the local, national, and global effort to address climate change. Knowledgeable farmers acting locally with intent to enhance the environment will accumulate to achieve substantive change. “It’s not something that can be done alone, it requires a collective effort to make a difference.” More research is required to develop farming systems that farmers can adopt
Dairy Exporter | www.nzfarmlife.co.nz | July 2021
