Hundreds of landowners and groups are working with Kaipara Moana Remediation (KMR) to regenerate forest on erosion-prone land in the Kaipara Moana catchment

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If you are a landowner in the catchment wanting to fence off waterways or remnant forests on your land this summer, or plant trees or regenerate forest to protect erosion-prone slopes next winter, KMR has funding and support to help you.

They will pay up to 50% towards eligible projects, walking your land with you first to see if your project is suitable and discussing your goals for it. Their Field Advisors will then prepare a plan to access funding and provide support throughout the project.

If you are a community group, marae, iwi/hapū or other collective KMR will also provide support for engagement and project costs.

Further support may be possible if your project meets QEII National Trust goals.

Two grants

 “We offer two grants – Landowner Grants and Whenua Whānui Fund grants with both supporting sediment reduction projects on the ground and contracted directly with the project owners," says Justine Daw, KMR Pou Tātaki.

“KMR is already working with over 735 landowners across the catchment, and are supporting over 75 projects led by catchment, community, hapū, marae, whānau, schools or other groups. On average, a new group joins us every fortnight.” 

Global significance

As the largest natural harbour in the Southern Hemisphere, Kaipara Moana has global environmental significance including 6,000 km² of catchment across Auckland and Northland regions, and over 8,000 km of waterways flowing into the harbour

However, high sediment levels have put the harbour at risk. Decades of deforestation and land-use intensification have degraded the catchment, leading to a seven-fold increase in sediment washing off the land – about 700,000 tonnes a year. Around an eighth of the catchment is highly erodible land.

To turn this around, in October 2020, the Ministry for the Environment, Ngā Maunga Whakahii o Kaipara, Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Whātua, Te Uri o Hau, Northland Regional Council and Auckland Council signed a Memorandum of Understanding to jointly establish KMR.

It is a $200m programme, with $100m invested by the Crown, matched by $10m each from Northland Regional Council and Auckland Council. A further $80m of project activity must come from landowners, industry, community or philanthropic organisations. This is because widespread action is needed to restore the Kaipara Moana, and because a matching contribution – often in the form of labour or materials – is required to unlock the Crown funding.

Auckland Council Rodney Ward Councillor Greg Sayers says the programme invests in projects that will bring wider benefits to the Rodney area.

"We live in one of the most beautiful areas of Auckland and with that comes the huge responsibility to help our valued species thrive. We need to do everything we can and increase our resilience to storms and other extreme weather events. It's very clear that restoring wetlands, fencing rivers and streams, planting trees and forest regeneration helps restore the environment. I'd encourage anyone who is able to, to get involved with the programme."

Contact KMR on [email protected] as soon as possible if:

• Your land is in the Kaipara Moana catchment
• You are thinking of fencing this summer, and/or planting next winter (2025)
• You’d like to know more about how KMR can support you.