Tairawhiti selected as a pilot region for Freshwater Farm Plan

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Tairāwhiti has been selected as a pilot region for testing the new Freshwater Farm Plan (FWFP) system, which starts this year.

FWFPs will provide a practical way for farmers to identify, manage and reduce risks to the freshwater environment across the whenua.

Alongside Ministry for the Environment representatives, Gisborne District Council land management staff are doing a test run of the FWFP process on a small number of farms.

Other regions involved so far are Southland and Waikato.

The purpose of the pilot is to test the FWFP system from start to finish to find out what aspects of the system work or don't work in practice.

Pastoral and arable farms over 20 hectares, horticultural properties over five hectares or a combination of over 20 hectares will be required to have an FWFP.

During the pilot run, each farmer/grower will need to prepare a mock FWFP, followed by certification and an audit.

They will provide feedback at all stages which will help shape aspects of the system that are still being worked through.

A key focus of FWFPs will be to use the catchment context.

For instance, catchment values and priorities and key contaminants of concern will be considered to prioritise actions for improving fresh water and meeting the needs of the wider catchment.

Once all pilot farm plans have been completed, a summary report featuring an overview and evaluation will be prepared.

The regional pilot has a tight timeline. Feedback on the core elements of the system must be supplied to the Ministry for the Environment by the end of November this year.

The focus of the feedback will be on how well the project achieved its objectives, where the gaps were, lessons learned and opportunities to take through to the roll-out of FWFPs across the region.