Lake and river water monitoring underway

NATURAL RESOURCES LAKE & RIVER WATER MONITORING UNDERWAY

PICTURED : Brett Taylor, Trust Board Environmental Coordinator

Tūwharetoa Māori Trust Board

In July 2020, the Trust Board became the first iwi authority in Aotearoa to receive a transfer of water monitoring functions from the Waikato Regional Council under Section 33 of the Resource Management Act.

Following the formal transfer, our Natural Resources team has been working with the Regional Council to ensure a seamless transfer. Our monitoring work includes the following:

Summer Beach Bathing

We monitor the health of our moana at five (5) key summer swimming sites around Lake Taupō to ensure the safety of whānau and the community. We take weekly water samples which are analysed by Hills Laboratory and NIWA – the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research. The test results are made available on the LAWA (Land, Air, Water Aotearoa) website www.lawa.org.nz

Ground Water Monitoring

The purpose of ground water testing is to track the level of nutrient phosphorus (nitrogen and phosphorus) in our awa. A significant amount of work was carried out in 2000 to reduce 20% of manageable nitrogen within the Lake Taupō catchment. We collect samples through a series of ground water pumps which cover more than 40 sites in the lake catchment area.

River and Stream Monitoring

We carry out monthly testing of 12 rivers and streams which is geared towards tracking the health of our awa. These samples are also analysed by Hills Laboratory and NIWA.

Doing the mahi

Brett Taylor (Ngāti Hinemihi) is our Environmental Coordinator leading the transition of the monitoring functions. “I feel privileged to be carrying out this mahi and to be contributing to the role of Ngāti Tūwharetoa as kaitiaki of Taupō moana and our rivers and streams,” says Brett. The team will look to transition the functions and embed them in the organisation during the next 12 months. Reviews will be ongoing to look at ways of further improving this mahi to help protect our taonga tuku iho for future generations.