Dr. Russ Ballard talked about the Peace, Remembrance, and Community Forests Trust
Dr. Russ Ballard has a CV of some weight, having been a scientist, senior public servant, and Chancellor of Massey University. He is also a member and past President of the Rotary Club of Wellington.
Last evening he came to talk to the club (and numerous visitors) about the Peace, Remembrance, and Community Forests Trust.
As part of its centenary celebrations, Wellington Rotary decided to start three projects, one of which was the planting of 200,000 trees, which would fit nicely with the government’s ‘billion trees’ employment and climate change initiative. This has since been given further impetus by the report of the Climate Change Commission.
To make it happen, the Peace, Remembrance and Community Forests Trust was formed and Dr. Ballard was appointed chair. The Ministry for Primary Industries gave a project-scoping grant of $70,000 and then a full grant of $1.4M which takes the project through to May 2022. This will enough to reach the target of 200,000 trees planted, and probably many more.
The Trust works with partner organisations throughout the country and has contracted Conservation Volunteers NZ to manage the various sub-projects.
Russ took us through some of the complexities of the project, including the contractual and financial issues. In-kind contributions must be at least 50% of total costs, under the agreement with MPI. It costs about $16 to plant a native tree, to which MPI contributes $6.80 and partners $7.00-9.00. Volunteer labour is assessed at $22 per hour.
Carbon Credits are payable to the Trust at $3.50 per hectare planted, per annum, and will be on-sold to provide funds for more plantings.
This project is a fine example of an initiative exploiting the various skills available within Rotary, with many clubs involved throughout the country. Our own Taupo Swamp/Plimmerton Domain planting and conservation project will contribute 10,000 trees to the total, assisted by the City Council who are providing the young trees at cost.
Poll: Should all neighbours have to contribute to improvements?
An Auckland court has ruled a woman doesn’t have to contribute towards the cost of fixing a driveway she shares with 10 neighbours.
When thinking about fences, driveways or tree felling, for example, do you think all neighbours should have to pay if the improvements directly benefit them?
-
82.5% Yes
-
14.8% No
-
2.7% Other - I'll share below
Riddle Alert! Who’s Up for Some Brain-Busting Fun?
4-letter word, always done tomorrow,
We’re out of tea, the ultimate sorrow!
Without the eye, you owe me some money,
No sugar no nectar no sweetness no honey,
4-letter word, if by chance you choose,
You can never win, you can only lose!
What is the 4-letter word?
Do you think you know the answer to our daily riddle? Don't spoil it for your neighbours! Simply 'Like' this post and we'll post the answer in the comments below at 2pm.
Want to stop seeing riddles in your newsfeed?
Head here and hover on the Following button on the top right of the page (and it will show Unfollow) and then click it. If it is giving you the option to Follow, then you've successfully unfollowed the Riddles page.
Live Q&A: Garden maintenance with Crewcut
This Wednesday, we're having another Neighbourly Q&A session. This time with John Bracewell from Crewcut.
John Bracewell, former Black Caps coach turned Franchisee Development Manager and currently the face of Crewcut’s #Movember campaign, knows a thing or two about keeping the grass looking sharp—whether it’s on a cricket pitch or in your backyard!
As a seasoned Crewcut franchisee, John is excited to answer your lawn and gardening questions. After years of perfecting the greens on the field, he's ready to share tips on how to knock your garden out of the park. Let's just say he’s as passionate about lush lawns as he is about a good game of cricket!
John is happy to answer questions about lawn mowing, tree/hedge trimming, tidying your garden, ride on mowing, you name it! He'll be online on Wednesday, 27th of November to answer them all.
Share your question below now ⬇️
Loading…
