Funding boost to monitor native birds
By David Hill, Local Democracy Reporter
A project to monitor native birds on the Ashley Rakahuri River has received a funding boost from the Waimakariri Zone Committee.
The Ashley Rakahuri Rivercare Group will receive $9000 from the zone committee’s 2023-24 action plan budget to assist with the costs of its shorebird monitoring.
The group extended its monitoring efforts last year, engaging a postgraduate student from the University of Canterbury to undertake the work.
The project monitored banded dotterel/turiwhatu, pied stilt (poaka), black-fronted and white-fronted tern/tarapirohe and tara, South Island pied oystercatcher/tōrea and black-billed and black-backed gull/tarāpuka and karoro.
Zone committee chairperson Carolyne Latham said the rivercare group had been working to protect native birds on the river and estuary for several years.
"You have to admire them for getting on with the work," she said.
"We are pleased to be contributing to the extension of that work which will expand the data that we have on the birds."
The rivercare group has been working with Eleanor Gunby, who is studying for a masters of science degree under the supervision of Professor Jim Briskie.
The project was the first to receive funding for the new financial year.
The funding has increased from $50,000 to $75,000 this year and Latham said the committee was keen to hear from other groups working on projects to enhance the environment and water ways.
"We want to hit the ground running this year and so we encourage groups to get in contact with the zone committee if they have a project."
She said the action plan budget funding was similar to the "immediate steps" funding, which zone committees had allocated in the past, but it had greater flexibility.
"We have more scope to support a wider range of projects and an example of this is a water monitoring project by the Waimakariri Landcare Trust, which wouldn’t have qualified under the immediate steps funding. Identifying where groundwater and surface water monitoring is happening in the zone is something we have been talking about at the zone committee for a while.
"We are delighted the trust is proceeding with the project, which will also trial nitrate testing in private wells."
The Waimakariri Landcare Trust’s monitoring project received $26,400 out of the $50,000 available in the zone committee’s 2022-23 action plan budget.
The Waimakariri Zone Committee is a joint committee of Environment Canterbury and the Waimakariri District Council.
■ Public interest journalism funded through New Zealand on Air.
Photo: Banded dotterels (pohowera) pictured on on the the Ashley-Rakahuri River. Photo supplied by Grant Davey of the Ashley-Rakahuri Rivercare Group
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Hero
“I was born and raised in war. To be honest, those are not good memories.
I really like Iran, and I really miss it, but I couldn’t be myself there. Even though my family didn’t like my decision, I left Iran. I promised myself that I would do whatever I can for all communities, especially for the kids, so they do not have the same experience I had.
I studied software engineering in Iran and left in 2006. I went to Malaysia and stayed in Kuala Lumpur for seven years. I was admitted to Lincoln University to do my PhD here, but unfortunately, I couldn’t afford the expenses. I requested a scholarship, but they told me I had to be there for six months first. So, I stayed in Malaysia and did my PhD in network security. In December 2013, I came to New Zealand with a work visa.
It took me a while to connect with the Iranian community here. I volunteered with the Multicultural Council, SPCA, and community patrol, and I established the Christchurch Iranian Society in 2017. Before that, I started working on Radio Toranj, the only Farsi-language radio show in New Zealand.
One of the reasons I started organizing cultural events was to showcase Iranian culture. I wanted to show people that we have delicious food, colorful dresses, traditional customs, and our own instruments. My hope was to show people that we are not what you see in the media.
I am working to involve all the communities that celebrate Nowruz, the Persian New Year, in the Nowruz festival in March 2025. We want to share this celebration not only with our community but with the public as well. It’s better when it’s shared.
I remember the first time someone from Dunedin called me and asked, Hero, can you help? Something happened, and they keep declining Iranian visa applications. When I heard that, I felt insulted. We are still human, so how can they do that?
Through this journey, I’ve learned a lot. Every single day, people with different cases call me, and I try to share my knowledge and guide them as much as I can.
I have received several awards, including the Christchurch Civic Award and an Award of Recognition for my contributions to the community during the pandemic. In 2021, I established Canterbury Kia Ora Academy, a charitable trust. Through this charity, I can help other communities as well, not just the Iranian community.”
- Hero
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