Haynes Creek Catchment
The Haynes Creek Catchment Group is a community group in the Northern Manawatū area who wish to improve freshwater quality on their farms through working collaboratively, sharing ideas and co-learning with organisations such as Massey University and the Catchment Solutions Project.
Introduction
The Haynes Creek Catchment group had its beginnings in 2019 when Ian Strahan, a local farmer, started a discussion about freshwater quality with several fellow farmers. These conversations morphed into monthly water sampling and an explanation of the results by Alastair Cole- Landcare Trust. The group’s main goal is ‘to be profitably farming and have water ways as clear as practically possible.’ To date, the main on-farm mitigation activity has been fencing and planting of streams and wetlands. Massey University through the Catchment Solutions Project has built a bioreactor on one farm for further farmer learning.
Watch the video to learn more about the group and what they are doing in this area to mitigate contaminant loss into their catchment area. [Video length is 8:02 mins]
Collaborative Catchment Analysis
Explore the facts and figures about the Haynes Creek Catchment area below. The Catchment Solutions Project has been working with the Catchment group through community engagement opportunities to help with water testing and analysis, identifying critical flow pathways and recommending suitable mitigation technologies to help mitigate the effects of contaminants going into waterways.
FACTS & FIGS
WATER QUALITY TREND
The water turbidity (NTU) of the Kiwitea stream is in the best 50% of all the sites measured by Land Air Water Aotearoa (LAWA). The trend for the next ten years is to likely improve. However, nitrate-N and dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) concentrations are in the worst 50% of all the sites measured by LAWA and the trend for the next ten years is to very likely degrade. Similarly, dissolved reactive phosphorous (DRP) is also in the worst 50% of all sites measured and the trend for the next ten years is to likely degrade.
Community EngagEment
We are working together with the catchment community in organising field days and workshops to better understand key freshwater quality issues, stream health, and pathways to develop targeted and effective water quality solutions.
Water testing & Analysis
Working together with the catchment group members, the Catchment Solutions Project is facilitating water testing in their streams and farm drains and offering community in-field water testing days.
critical flow pathways
An analysis of existing and new water quality data identifies losses of nitrate as a key water quality concern. Farm drains (surface and sub-surface) appear to be a critical flow pathway. However, water testing highlights spatial and temporal variability in nitrate losses via drains.
Visit the Haynes Creek Bioreactor
After many years of consistent water monitoring, testing and analysis, the Haynes Creek Catchment Group volunteered to trial a bioreactor on one of the farms in the Catchment area.
Find out how the Catchment Solutions Project and Massey University partnered with the group to build the bioreactor on the Brown family farm in Kiwitea in this virtual tour below. Hear about their experiences, learnings and insights after working with the Catchment Solutions team.
Interviews with Haynes Creek farmers
Meet the farmers in the Haynes Creek Catchment Group to hear about their understanding of contaminants in waterways. Hear how the Catchment Solutions Project is helping the group to provide solutions to mitigate the effects of nitrate in the catchment area.
Got a question?
How do I find out what's happening in the Haynes Creek catchment area?
Check out the Manawatū River Catchments Collective website to find out what’s happening in the Haynes Creek catchment.
How can I learn to take water samples on my farm?
Video demonstrations showing how to take water samples from tile drains and streams will soon be available on this website. Head over to the Freshwater Quality page for more information as soon as it becomes available.
What is an e-DNA sample?
Find out what e-DNA sampling is, and how this is helping to identify taonga species on farms on the Our Land and Water website.