Waimakariri Biodiversity Fund 2024 recipients

This year we teamed up with Mainpower to offer a brand new contestable fund of up to $5,000 to support local projects that enhance biodiversity in the Waimakariri region.

The criteria for choosing the recipients was focused on the long term ecological benefits of the project and how well the funded work will be protected in the future.

We are proud to announce the recipients of this years funding are as follows:

Robert Loughan

Robert’s project aims to enhance the biodiversity of a riparian site on his property by establishing native plantings that support water quality within the stream - the stream feeds into the Cust River.Robert will undertake weed control to clear the site of noxious weeds and to release existing native regenerating seedlings. Then the site will be planted in native plants to establish a rich biodiverse area suitable for a range of species such as birds, invertebrates and lizards.

Annabelle Thompson

Annabelle’s project aims to increase native flora and fauna by minimising predators, eliminating grazing animals and planting native plants. The goal is to provide an environment where native plants can thrive, seeds can germinate and invasive exotic plants are managed. This in turn with provide habitat, shelter and food for birds, insects, lizards and canterbury mudfish.

Annabelle will begin digger work to create access tracks and planting zones on the steep hillside, and a lizard habitat will be created with the addition of a gravel bank planted in subalpine native plants.

Sarah Chamberlain & Andreas Jaeger

The purpose of Sarah and Andreas restoration project is to improve native biodiversity, support carbon sequestering to mitigate climate change and restore the indigenous environment on their property.They aim to develop an island of diversity, connecting with plantings at the Ohoka Stream Walkway and Ohoka Bush through the planting of native riparian plants which will create a habitat for native birds, insects, frogs and reptiles while enhancing water quality.

The judges were impressed with the high standard of all the applications and we look forward to seeing the transformation of these sites.