Taranaki people and organisations doing their bit for Mother Nature can put their hands up for assistance from a dedicated fund.
Wild for Taranaki is calling for applications for grants from its $40,000 Community Biodiversity Fund.
It's open to private landowners, community groups and organisations, and applications close at the end of April.
The funding can go towards a range of activities that protect and enhance Taranaki's indigenous biodiversity: control of predators and/or pest plants, restoration planting, fencing, environmental education, or surveying and monitoring native plants or animals.
Up to 50 per cent of the cost of a project can be funded, to a maximum of $10,000.
"We know a lot of great work is occurring and Wild for Taranaki wish to get alongside our community and show their support," says Mike Weren, Chair of the Taranaki Biodiversity Trust - the trust behind Wild for Taranaki.
Leicester Cooper, of the Pātea Planting Trust, can vouch for the usefulness of Community Biodiversity Fund grants, having been a recipient in previous years.
"Our Pātea River walkway replanting project has greatly benefited from the amazing support that we have received from Wild for Taranaki," he says.
"It's particularly motivating because it represents an endorsement of our work by our regional peers. This support has enabled the community to begin the task of improving the environment in a type of ecosystem which is regionally and nationally rare."
- Application forms for this year's funding round are available from www.wildfortaranaki.nz or the Regional Biodiversity Co-ordinator Leigh Honnor. Email contact@wildfortaranaki.nz or call 0800 736 222. The deadline for applications is 30 April.