Here are a few suggestions to help. We can all make a difference to waterways.
Planting trees, restoring wetlands, cleaning up beaches: thousands of Kiwis are getting together and getting stuck in to help protect and restore our waterways all around the country. Click on the links below to see what's happening in your area, sign up to volunteer at an event, or learn what you can do to make a difference at home. It all adds up to healthier waterways, for all of us!
Down To Earth Kiwis
Down to Earth Kiwis NZ organises regular community and family-friendly clean ups of New Zealand's rivers, parks, beaches and community spaces. DTEKNZ are all about family values and respecting and sharing our environment sustainably, so that future generations can enjoy the rich lifestyle New Zealand has given us.
They usually do a clean up every month – you can find these on their Facebook page!
Conservation Volunteers NZ
Conservation Volunteers New Zealand has a range of projects and initiatives that focus on protect our precious coastlines and waterways, and they'd love your help!
Last year, they supported over 100,000 hours of volunteering and planted over 150,000 native trees. They welcome Kiwis with a love of the outdoors and an interest in the environment. You don't need any experience – just a willingness to get stuck in and make a difference.
Student Volunteer Army
SVA is an education charity run for students, by students. Formed in response to Christchurch's September 2010 earthquake, their mission is to inspire and activate students to be the change in their community.
SVA provides a range of volunteering opportunities for primary, secondary and tertiary-aged young people, including waterway clean ups and planting days across the country – check out their Facebook page here.
Keep New Zealand Beautiful
Every year, Keep New Zealand Beautiful mobilises over 70,000 volunteers - cleaning up beaches, picking up litter, removing graffiti, planting trees and lots more. They also work in schools teaching our kids to be tidy Kiwis and helping to protect our beautiful country for future generations. Almost all their work is done by volunteers, so why not join them and keep our country (and waterways) beautiful?
NZ Landcare Trust
NZ Landcare Trust partners with farmers, stakeholders, community catchment and landcare groups to make a tangible difference to New Zealand's waterways and landscapes. They're here to help preserve and protect our land, rivers, streams and tributaries for future generations. They run various workshops and events around the country – follow their Facebook page for more details.
Department of Conservation (DOC)
DOC works with hundreds of community conservation groups all around New Zealand – from restoring forests, coasts and wildlife to managing huts, tracks and historic places. They have a huge list of projects and volunteer groups around the country, so why not jump in and get involved?
LAWA
LAWA stands for Land, Air, Water Aotearoa and, as its name suggests, it's where you can find info about our natural resources - including data on water quality and updates on which waterways are suitable for swimming. LAWA also holds and supports regular events, so check them out here!
Ministry for the Environment
Want to know what you can do on a daily basis to help clean up our waterways? Check out these helpful tips compiled by the Ministry for the Environment to help reduce your water footprint at home and lessen the pollution going into our rivers, lakes, beaches and streams.
Become a citizen scientist with NIWA
NIWA is currently undertaking a nationwide study to provide better guidance to groups undertaking stream restoration. Once that's done, they'll be looking for 'citizen scientists' to improve our environment by tracking changes in water and habitat quality. If that sounds like something you'd like to be involved in, find out more.
Your local council
Regional and local councils are a huge source of info and events – click here to find the official page for your local council..