New additions to the Aotea / Great Barrier Local Board’s infrastructure and environmental work programme provide locals with tools to better protect the environment and partake in sustainable practices.
Wai Resilience Programme
A Sustainability Co-ordinator position has been funded by the local board for AoteaOra Trust to engage with the community on rainwater harvesting. The programme will help raise awareness of the benefits of rainwater harvest for water supply and discharge reduction, along with guidance on sizing of rainwater collection tanks. It will be supported by a new raintank engagement app that Auckland Council is piloting.
The Wai Resilience Programme aims to increase uptake of rainwater tank usage on the motu while also increasing awareness of its benefits to stream ecosystems and hauora (health and wellbeing). Other benefits include improving drought resilience on the island; and enabling home gardening and food resilience which decreases the need for food freight and packaging.
Aotea Trap Library
While the local board has already supported this project in the past with grant funding, this is the first year that it is supported through the work programme.
The programme provides education and pest control tools to private landowners and residents on Aotea to increase local knowledge on pest species, and options for effective control. Aotea Trap Library has a goal that ‘setting a backyard trap’ becomes an everyday occurrence for all residents. They have “swap a jar” boxes located around the island where locals can bring their empty jar and swap it for peanut butter for their traps.
Conservation Advisor for Aotea / Great Barrier, Annamarie Clough says:
“This is an important project for Aotea, raising awareness of local biodiversity and pest species, providing residents with the resources, knowledge and encouragement to set a backyard trap or join a community trapping group and work together to protect our local taonga.”
Aotea Trap Library 'swap a jar'
Locals can find more information on where to collect a trap and who they can speak to for more information here.
Construction and Demolition Waste Leadership Project
A Demolition and Construction Waste Advisor has been funded in the 2022/23 work programme, based at Anamata. This role began in June 2022 with reallocated funding from underspend in the work programme, with the purpose to deliver the construction and demolition waste leadership project. The advisor, Felicitas Weisbach, works with builders and developers to improve site practices, minimise waste to landfill and drive awareness of waste issues on the island.
“I have spent a lot of time getting to know the local builders, understanding their work sites and how they function within them based on the restrictions we have from living over here,” says Felicitas.
“This role has given me invaluable insight into how and why certain waste is created, and will lead to the development of some awesome initiatives to help minimise and divert a lot of that waste going forward.”
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