Watershed Systems'
Living Water Foundation
presents
The Opihi is Dying
and dying water is deadly
Haikai Tane
Watershed Ecologist
Dying Rivers?
The symptoms are everywhere
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Depleted aquifers & dead springs
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Disappearing wetlands & streams
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Degraded floodplains & waterways
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Polluted waters & toxic algae
Why? Because of dysfunctional watersheds...
Dysfunctional Watersheds
are characterised by
Land degradation & desertification
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Drained wetlands & gullied streams
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Depleted aquifers & dead springs
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Algal blooms in polluted streams
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Frequent aggravated droughts &
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Hazardous floods carrying
Toxic pollutants and pathogens
What happened ?
Land Degradation leads to
Stream Degradation
Deforesting the mountain rangelands,
Burning and clearing hills and downs,
Pugging and draining wetlands,
Spraying streams, bull dozing rivers &
Grazing hard hoof animals everywhere
undermines the functions of
floodplain habitats, riparian zones
and watershed ecosystems
How to kill a river ... All parts of a watershed
are intricately connected:
the mountains, hills and downlands,
aquifers, springs, streams and rivers
They all behave as one system...
Destroy its forests, wetlands and springs,
Degrade its riparian habitats and floodplains,
Graze hard hoof animals everywhere you can
And you end up destroying
the streams and rivers.
The Opihi is very sick
Not because of climate change,
Not because of low flows and
Certainly not because of
the incompetence of nature...
But because of a long history of
farmland degradation, floodplain destruction
& Incompetent River Management
Algal Blooms are Nature's Warning
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Algae are everywhere
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They are necessary for
starting and sustaining life
on earth
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They help control aquifer
recharge and discharge
They are Nature's most
effective way of restoring
derelict waterways and
dysfunctional watersheds
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Phormidium algae are NZ
native endemics : they are
Nature's response to extreme
abuse of our streams & rivers
They keep out livestock &
other animals with toxic
cyanobacteria until the
problems are fixed
By absorbing excess nutrient,
fixing nitrogen from air & by
providing a tough fibrous mat,
they stabilize river beds and
reestablish plant succession
Now for the Bad News!
Based on surveys of soil
erosion, land degradation and
rangeland desertification, the
UN FAO & UNESCO rank NZ
farmland among the most
degraded in the world.
Overseas teams of senior
environmental scientists and
watershed managers have
described NZ stream & river
management as “absolutely
deplorable”
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＜ Is this the future for NZ?
The Choice is Ours!
Dying Watersheds
Land degradation &
unhealthy watersheds
result in dying water &
declining community
health.
Everyone lives in and
shares a watershed
Living Watersheds
Every part of a healthy
watershed is connected
by living water ...
Living water
sustains life sweetly ~
dying waters are deadly!
Good News!
Healthy watersheds store
ten times more water in
aquifers, wetlands, streams
and rivers than pastoral
watersheds
Healthy watersheds also
generate ten times more
sustainable livelihoods
while releasing reliable
flows of fresh clean water
First Principle for Sustainable Rivers
Fix Council boundaries to
ensure land use planning
and resource management
for whole river watersheds
eg Timaru City Council Orari-Opihi-Pareora Zone Committee
When it comes to restoring
streams & river health,
Committees are world
renowned as Government
ploys for delaying necessary
and urgent action .
Note
The Zone Committee's given
boundaries offend against
the first principle for
sustainable watersheds
Second Principle for Sustainable Rivers
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Engage in Participatory
Watershed Programs
Build Watershed Teams
To restore & maintain healthy
for Orari, Opihi, Pareora &
Waihao Rivers (not parts of) river floodplains, riparian
zones, wetlands & waterways
Engage schools and polytechs in
systematic monitoring &
evaluation with daily on-line
reporting
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Restrict all gov agencies to their
public policy roles
Reward successful projects
on performance outcomes
Guide to Participatory Watershed Teams
The success of community
watershed teams is quickly
undermined by conflicts of
roles and interests.
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Participatory team programs
engage the whole watershed
community, from beginning
to end, fairly and equitably
Build winning teams with
effective & skillful leadership
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Don't participate in teams
with gov staff members ~
it is not their role.
REFUSE Project Funds with
strings attached
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Remember the All Blacks
motto ...
“Winning teams celebrate
Losing teams have meetings”
Third Principle for Sustainable Rivers
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Protect Critical Systems
for Orari, Opihi, Pareora &
Waihao River Watersheds
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Watersheds store living water
for droughts and dry years
Aquifers, springs and wetlands
keep rivers alive
Floodplains and riparian
zones are needed for storing
floods, recharging aquifers &
cleaning water
Engage Universities, Schools &
Polytechs in education and
training programs for ensuring
the environmental health of
streams and rivers.
The Choice is Ours of Right! We don't need to have Dying Watersheds
We are entitledto Land degradation & unhealthy watersheds result in dying water & declining communities.
Every part of a healthy watershed is connected by living water affecting everyone ...
Refer NZ HRC website
“Human Rights to Water in NZ”
NZ Human Rights Commission
(2012)
Living water
sustains life sweetly ~
Dying waters are deadly!
Living Watersheds
THREE BASIC RULES for Sustainable Rivers
Promote 3 River Rules
for wetlands, waterways and
watershed riparian zones ●
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1. No hard hoof animals for any
purpose whatsoever
2. No poisonous substances,
toxic wastes, pesticides or
polluted effluents
3. No vehicle tracking,
bulldozing or burning off.
AFFIRM in District Scheme
All streams & rivers are fresh
food producing ecosystems &
essential life support systems. …
Beware the risks of acting alone!
The last time I raised these
issues publicly in the 1980's,
the personal attacks were
ruthless and violent ...
My riparian research trials &
family beefarming enterprise
were destroyed, with losses
over $100,000 ($1980$)
Join the Opihi Team
Mission Statement
Game Rules
for winning against
great odds
First they ignore you
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Then they ridicule you
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Then they fight you
And then you win!
Mahatma Gandhi
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Engage all the Opihi
watershed community
With equity, fairness and
friendliness at all times
Through practical team
activities and family based
initiatives
To build trust and respect
for living watersheds
Celebrate Success
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You will know when you are
successful
There will be plenty of fish to catch
in a pool & riffle stream system
lined with water friendly trees.
And the water in the stream will be
safe to drink !