Waimata River
The Waimata River is dying and, in order for it to heal, the “voice of the river” must be heard.
That is the concept of Te Awaroa: 1000 Rivers project — a national movement that aims to inspire New Zealanders to take care of their waterways from the perspective of the river, and ask “what is the river saying?”
The project has a goal of 1000 rivers being returned to a state of ‘ora’ (wellbeing) by 2050.
It draws from matauranga Maori — Maori knowledge, culture, values and world view, as well as science and technology.
The Waimata is one of two case studies for the project.
The Te Awaroa project team will report back to the community on Sunday on research it has done into the past, present and future of the Waimata River.
Te Awaroa is a partnership model between the University of Auckland and Nga Pae o Te Maramatanga, the Maori Centre for Research Excellence.
The Waimata project team includes includes writer, scholar and environmentalist Dame Anne Salmond, Professor Gary Brierley, a global authority on rivers restoration, Dr Dan Hikuroa from Nga Pae o te Maramatanga, and local researchers Sheridan Gundry who has investigated the settler history of the river, and Abigail Salmond, who has researched its ecological history.
They have also worked with local freshwater advocates and advisers, Murray Palmer and Ian Ruru.
'There is a lot of concern'Central to the project is the question, ‘‘what is the river saying?’’
“Our focus is on restoring rivers and waterways to a state of ‘ora’ (wellbeing),” says Dame Anne.
“We think everybody cares about that. That’s something we all have in common. We all want the rivers to be places where our kids can swim and fish, and where our waka ama paddlers don’t get sick.
“We’re in that space of talking about how to restore our awa to a state of wellbeing and prosperity.
“There has been no particular study of the Waimata, which is amazing when you think that it runs right through the heart of the city.
“So why don’t we listen to the river? The science is telling us. If all the sediment is coming down, the river is saying ‘I’m getting choked to death’.
“If the tuna are dying, that’s a sign of them saying we don’t want to live here any more.
“Why are we having to pull these logs off the beaches? Why is the port having to dredge all the time?
“Why did the bridges nearly get taken out in the big floods? Why can we just about walk across the river at low tide in summer now, where we used to be able to swim in deep water?
“There is a lot of concern. It is one of the most used rivers in Tairawhiti.”
Many local people have been interviewed by the research team — those who live on the river, and frequent users who fish, swim and paddle on the river.
“This report back to the community is not about telling anyone what to do. It’s informing the local discussion about what might be some of the best ways forward, and letting people have their say about that. We’re trying to enrich the conversation.
“Equally we’ll be having a hui with governing agencies, discussing these things, and reminding them of their own policies and obligations.
“But we will talk with the people who care about the river first.”
People had often felt powerless about freshwater issues, said Dr Dan Hikuroa of Nga Pae o Te Maramatanga.
“They did not feel that they had any sense of ownership or role to play. We’re trying to give people their agency,” he said.
“The speak that is used in policy is often hard to understand.
“It’s designed to be that way. We’re trying to flip that.
“Let’s get around the table and have a chat, and that way everyone is empowered.
“In our framing, the ‘voice of the river’ is the collective of all those different little voices.
“Agencies have reports with data that are telling us the rivers are dying. Yet no one is trying to give solutions.
“We didn’t see any encouraging signs from that framing that anything was going to change.
“Let’s listen to what’s the river is saying? What’s the river trying to tell us?”
There will be two community sessions — the first at 10am in the Waimata Hall, the second at 3pm at Waikanae Surf Life Saving Club.Community sessions will have a pecha kucha presentation style, which usually has 20 slides shown for 20 seconds each.
The format keeps presentations simple, concise and fast-paced, but it will also be backed by access to Te Awaroa reports for those who are interested.