Northland iwi work with Aboriginal Girringun people to prevent wildfires

Far North iwi Ngāti Kuri has entered into a knowledge sharing exchange with the Girringun Aboriginal peoples of Queensland to learn cultural fire practices.

A unique firefighting initiative between Northland iwi and indigenous Australians is aiming to reignite traditional practices to help communities prevent wildfires and protect the environment.

Far North iwi Ngāti Kuri has entered into a knowledge-sharing exchange with the Girringun Aboriginal peoples of Queensland to learn cultural fire practices to keep communities, and flora and fauna, safe.

A group of 13 Ngāti Kuri environmental leaders travelled to Cardwell, between Townsville and Cairns, in August last year.

Ngāti Kuri Trust Board executive director Sheridan Waitai said traditional fire practices used to be carried out generations ago, but hadn’t been done since Europeans arrived in Aotearoa.

“The knowledge exists within our people; it’s just uplifting it.

“If we could work together on this with our indigenous rangers ... with our Government, and with iwi Māori, we could come up with a more cost-effective way of preventing wildfires.”

The project, led by 4th Gen rangatahi and Taiao teams, was part of Te Haumihi, a programme aimed at environmental restorative work within their region.

In January, the iwi received a $6.6 million Foundation Far North grant to step up iwi-led projects which have brought multiple endemic species back from the brink of extinction.

Hine Waitai-Dye from Ngāti Kuri learned traditional fire burning practices from Girringun Aboriginal people on a recent trip to Australia.

“This project is a result of them [4th Gen] experiencing wildfire over the last few years,” Waitai said.

“A fire can literally wipe us out an extinction of some species.”

Waitai said they had an existing relationship with the Girringun; who have been doing traditional burn practice for 60,000 years.

The Australian trip involved going through site plans and protocols before heading up to Sullivan’s Track to spot-fire.

The group learned about different firing techniques along the way, including fire breaks to keep taonga species and neighbouring forests safe.

“We got an appreciation that not all fire is bad fire when it’s in the bush,” Waitai said.

“Most of all, trusting in our traditional knowledge is part of the solution to better forest management and thrive-ability.”

Waitai said they learned about more traditional natural firebreaks instead of using heavy machinery and clearing big areas for breaks.

“We have to think of alternative ways that are more cost-effective to manage our forests as a tribe and within our community.”

Ngati Kuri learned different techniques in Queensland, including fire breaks to keep taonga species and neighbouring forests safe.

As part of the knowledge exchange, up to six Girringun rangers are visiting Northland from March 10 to 20 to base themselves in the Te Paki ecological area in Cape Reinga.

Waitai is hoping to work with other Far North tribes to share knowledge about the whenua, as well as government agencies such as the Department of Conservation and Fire and Emergency NZ.

Fire and Emergency Northland District manager Wipari Henwood said he was keen to talk to Ngāti Kuri about the various ways of managing fire.

“At the end of the day, it’s their whenua, and we want to work with them to ensure they carry out safe practices for their whānau.”

However, Henwood urged caution, especially at the top of the Far North, because of the topography and scrub.

He cited the Waiharara fire which ripped through 2800ha of a protected wetland north of Kaitāia in 2021, and twice forced the evacuation of about 50 homes at Kaimaumau.

The fire cost more than $7 million to fight and took almost three months to put out.

A Fenz report found the blaze was caused by a permitted land-clearing burn on private property that got out of control.

“A lot of our jobs now, especially in a drought, we have to modify the way we fight fires,” Henwood said.

“When we’ve got ample amounts of water the majority of fire attack is water, but in a drought we definitely changed our practice. When all the rivers were empty... we had to change our approach.

“Even today we do back burning. We will create a fire line and burn the vegetation out to increase the size of the fire break.

“Obviously, the risk of getting it wrong can be catastrophic.”

Jenny Ling is a news reporter and features writer for the Northern Advocate. She has a special interest in covering roading, lifestyle, business, and animal welfare issues.