Freshwater project focuses on Lake Rotorua

FILE

Researchers from GNS Science have teamed up with Rotorua iwi Ngati Rangiwewehi and the Bay of Plenty Regional Council for a two-year project to improve the understanding of freshwater resources on the western side of Lake Rotorua.

The project will extend work currently underway by the regional council in this catchment area.

The three organisations were awarded funding of $100,000 over a two-year period from the Ministry of Business Innovation Employment's Te Punaha Hihiko - Vision Matauranga capability fund. The project will also receive co-funding from each of the collaborators.

The focus is the Awahou groundwater catchment, which covers an area of about 51sq km stretching from the western and northern shoreline of Lake Rotorua to the Mamaku Plateau. The area includes the iconic Taniwha Springs.

An overarching goal is to extend work undertaken by the regional council to protect the quality and quantity of groundwater resources of this area for future generations. Other goals included strengthening the cultural, social, environmental, and economic wellbeing of present and future generations of the iwi.

Project leader Abigail Lovett from GNS Science said with Ngati Rangiwewehi taking a lead role, the project would blend western scientific knowledge with Maori spiritual and cultural values and demonstrate that this shared approach could be applied to other regions, resources, and projects.

"The project aims to improve understanding of groundwater on the Mamaku Plateau, which is a key water resource for Rotorua, Tauranga, and Waikato areas," she said.

"It also aims to deliver increased capacity of Ngati Rangiwewehi to contribute to sustainable management of this resource for future generations.

"Many Maori communities are seeking to restore their traditional knowledge base around natural resources for both protection and enhancement."

Ngati Rangiwewehi is an iwi of the Te Arawa confederation of tribes. Earlier this year GNS Science and the iwi signed an agreement to work together on earth science and environmental issues in the wider Rotorua region.

Ngati Rangiwewehi said they were very excited to embark on the collective research project.

The iwi said the sustainable allocation and management of their groundwater resources had always been a priority issue for the iwi, as are their associated puna/springs and awa/streams and rivers. The opportunity to now develop a model that incorporates both cultural and western science methodologies to provide a holistic assessment tool was a challenge they were looking forward to undertaking, the iwi said.

GNS Science and Ngati Rangiwewehi have been working together informally for some years, particularly on improving the understanding of groundwater resources and springs in the Bay of Plenty and in exploring options to use low temperature geothermal heat.

The new agreement opens the way for collaboration to involve a wider range of topics such as groundwater, geothermal energy, minerals, and geobiological resources.