Tourism businesses ensure our treasured natural places are there for generations to come

The businesses that run underground tours in Waitomo are fully aware the caves are fragile ecosystems and that protecting them, together with the surrounding streams and native forest, i

To mark Conservation Week next week, from Monday to Sunday, September 11, the Waikato Herald is taking a look at the tiaki – the care and protection – mighty local tourism businesses are undertaking to ensure the region's treasured natural places are there for people's enjoyment now and for generations to come.

Image / Hamilton and Waikato Tourism

Conservation Week is organised by the Department of Conservation to encourage Kiwis to get involved in nature and help take care of it. This year's week focuses on taking action for nature with special initiatives and events planned in the Waikato.

A survey conducted by Hamilton & Waikato Tourism reveals that whether they are planting native trees, constructing energy-efficient buildings, controlling predators, or recycling, the tourism companies guiding visitors around – and under – the Waikato place a premium on protecting the unique environment.

Although this was known anecdotally and there will always be more to be done, the survey confirms there is some amazing mahi (work) being done as the region espouses the Tiaki Promise and moves toward being a fully integrated sustainable and regenerative tourism destination.

The Tiaki Promise is a collaborative kaupapa (platform) set up to provide strategy and direction across New Zealand's tourism sector. It is backed by DoC along with Air New Zealand, Local Government New Zealand, New Zealand Māori Tourism, Tourism Holdings Ltd, Tourism Industry Aotearoa, and Tourism New Zealand.

Caveworld has planted 30ha surrounding its Footwhistle Cave, placing the area around the cave entrance into a QEII Trust covenant to ensure the protection of its biodiversity. Photo / Supplied

Many Waikato tourism companies have ongoing programmes to trap predator species, plant native trees and shrubs, weed bust pest plants, maintain clear culverts to avoid landslips and mow ungrazed grass areas to reduce the risk of wildfires.

They have also fenced off waterways to keep out animals and areas of native bush to help protect and assist with the regeneration of trees – and document and compare any changes to their environment.

So, who are some of the eco-hero tourism businesses in the region?
The businesses that run underground tours and experiences in Waitomo have been undertaking conservation work for several decades now, well before protecting the environment became an everyday endeavour.

They are fully aware the caves are fragile ecosystems and that protecting them, together with the surrounding streams and native forest, is crucial.

Hamilton Zoo is committed to inspiring conservation action, both among zoo visitors and through the work it does across a range of conservation projects. Photo / Hamilton and Waikato Tourism

For the past 25 years, Waitomo Adventures has teamed with local farmers to plant more than 50ha of native trees in the vicinity of the Lost World and Haggas Honking Holes caves where it runs abseiling and blackwater rafting adventures.

Likewise, Caveworld has planted and maintained some 30ha of planting surrounding its Footwhistle Cave, placing the immediate area around the cave entrance into a QEII Trust covenant to ensure the protection of its biodiversity forevermore.

Discover Waitomo employs a fulltime environmental manager and has a range of protective systems in place, including taking photographs to monitor glowworm population trends.

Amongst the awards Discover Waitomo has won for its work is the Outdoor Aotearoa Tiakina Taiao Environmental Leadership Award for its future-fit approach to a sustainable future.

Otorohanga Kiwi House and Bird Park has worked for the past 50 years to protect New Zealand native wildlife, including kiwi.Photo / Hamilton and Waikato Tourism

During Conservation Week, the Discover Waitomo Kaimahi for Nature team is hosting a series of workshops about the cultural, environmental, and spiritual benefits of connecting with the land, as well as the mahi the team has been carrying out in the area over the past two years.

Kaimahi for Nature is part of the programme set up by DoC to help businesses maintain their workforce and do conservation work as the country moved through the Covid-19 pandemic towards recovery.

The Conservation Week workshops are free and are at the Waitomo Caves Visitor Centre. For details go to waitomo.com/whats-on/conservation-week

Another sustainability superstar in the Waikato is Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari.
During Conservation Week, Sanctuary Mountain is encouraging visitors to take a tour to learn about the native forest that cloaks the mountain and then take action by purchasing native plants from its nursery shop to plant in their own backyards.

The largest conservation "island" on mainland New Zealand and one of the country's top eco-tourism destinations, Sanctuary Mountain covers 3400haes. It has been a reserve since 1912. Today the maunga (mountain) is one of the largest areas in the world to be protected by a pest-proof fence that safeguards the native forest and the endangered native species living there – among them birds and bats, frogs and reptiles, tuatara and giant wētā.

Sanctuary Mountain also receives awards for its mahi. Recent wins include the Social and Environmental Sustainability Award in this year's Waikato Chamber of Commerce business awards and the New Zealand Tourism Community Engagement Award when judges said they felt strongly that the sanctuary's model is how tourism will survive in New Zealand and the way the country's tourism industry should be.

Hamilton Zoo is committed to inspiring conservation action, both among zoo visitors and through the work it does across a range of conservation projects such as contributing to breeding programmes for endangered species in New Zealand and around the globe.
Initiatives include a conservation fund that was established 16 years ago to raise awareness and funds for the protection of animals in the wild.

Adjacent to the zoo is Waiwhakareke Natural Heritage Park, the flagship biodiversity project for Hamilton City which was set up in 2004 to re-establish native flora and fauna.
To return the area to its natural pre-European state native forest has been replanted and the wetland and lakes re-constructed. There is also an intensive predator control programme in place.

Ōtorohanga Kiwi House and Bird Park, another Waikato entity with a lengthy history of conservation, has worked to protect New Zealand native wildlife, including kiwi, for the past 50 years.

Another sustainability superstar in the Waikato is Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari. It has been a reserve since 1912. Photo / Hamilton and Waikato Tourism

The park supports essential research and breeding programmes for kiwi and other endangered native birds and reptiles.

Located at Lake Rotopiko just north of Te Awamutu,the National Wetland Centre is also a favourite with visitors keen to learn more about nature, the role wetlands play, and the types of wetlands.

A network of walkways around the 10,000-year-old peat lake and the surrounding ancient kahikatea forest includes an interactive education trail.

Take a moment to act for nature next week. Get involved locally, as well as visiting one of these great Waikato attractions.

Ka ora te whenua, ka ora te tangata – when the land is well, the people are well.