Hawke’s Bay Environmental Awards 2009
Winners and Highly Commended Notes
Ede Award, environmental education category

The Ede award (pronounced ‘eddie’) is for ‘education to the power of the environment’. This award is for schools and educational institutions which have a crucial role in teaching children, young people and adults about the environment and the possibilities for the future.

For the first time in the awards the judges have decided to have joint winners. This is an extraordinary circumstance due to the extremely high quality of each applicant and yet some clear differences between them – while the judges tried their best to find a clear winner, they found it impossible to judge one project over another.

Joint Winner - Taikura Rudolf Steiner School, Hastings

Taikura Rudolf Steiner School is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year ... 60 years of an ethos of education bound up with environment care. The judges were impressed by the commitment of the students to environmental care and community action. Each class has its own vegetable garden and they manage composting and soil care. The school also has a native plant nursery. Younger students have the task of raising plants, often from seed, and bagging up the growing plants, while older students take on the task of planting these alongside the Maraetotara Stream as an important contribution to this community restoration project

Joint Winner - Havelock North Play Centre

The other joint winner of the Ede Award category is Havelock North Play Centre. In comparison with Taikura’s 60 years, the play centre has achieved everything within 18 months which is proof that real commitment can make a great change in a small amount of time. A year and a half ago Havelock North Play Centre wrote up a timeline for themselves and their children under 5. This focused on a fruit and vegetable garden and native plantings. The children are involved in the whole process from growing to eating the fresh fruit and vegetables as snacks with excess crops sometimes taken home for mum and dad. The playcentre has been involved in planting natives at the Karamu Stream Enhancement Project, further involving their children and families in environmental care and community action. Families inspired by what was happening at the play centre, were encouraged to try out gardening at home ... extending the learning into a more sustainable way of life well into the future.

Highly commended Ede category - Hastings Intermediate School

This school seems to live and breathe environmental awareness – they are a past Environmental Award winner and an EnviroSchool. This school has a wide range of sustainability work involving their students and they are great at thinking up something innovative and practical to encourage positive sustainable behaviour. This year their entry is for their new Fresh Tastes Best cafe – a new project where fresh produce from their school garden can be served for student snacks. It also boasts the use of many recycled building materials plus biodegradable dishes. The cafe was not fully operational at the time of judging so we expect to see great developments here in future.

Product or Service Category

Products and services designed, developed and/or manufactured in Hawke’s Bay that assist customers to use resources or energy more efficiently, prevent pollution and/or has benefits for natural resources. The product or service may be new or may have a proven track record or a newly recognised benefit.

Winner - BBE Architects Hawke’s Bay – Building, Biology and Ecology Institute.

This company has been a pioneer in eco-architecture in New Zealand since 1990 and recently amalgamated with two Napier design groups to establish an independent Hawke’s Bay practice. The aim is to improve education on eco building and to design healthy and sustainable homes and buildings in the Bay. They have worked with the Hastings District Council, Karamu High School and Sustaining Hawke’s Bay Trust. They are leading the way with cost effective, user friendly, sustainable, environmentally friendly homes and buildings in the region, including an eco lodge as an educational and recreational facility. And they walk the talk in their own business with a ‘solid green’ philosophy in their offices.

Business Resource Efficiency Category

For small and large businesses - commercial and industry involved in secondary production, processing, manufacturing, or servicing – which show leadership through sound environmental practices such as energy saving, water reduction, waste management, or preventing pollution, and may be doing added work such as protecting or enhancing natural resources, or involving the community in some environmental activity.
Winner - Quantum Laboratory Ltd.

This independent Waipawa company is taking an innovative approach to our soils. While this company might not fit with ‘orthodox farming’ views, they are making a difference to soils and water- their customers report better pasture and animal health, and a reduced impact from droughts. They provide farmers with the knowledge to re-establish the nitrogen cycle so that more sustainable agriculture can be achieved. They have been successful in increasing farm productivity and reducing dependence on phosphates, and restoring a sustainable pollution free environment to farms. They are taking an innovative approach to issues that are generating more and more interest within the farming community.

Community Category

For ‘not for profit’ groups, organisations, marae, neighbourhood groups and volunteers who are involved in planting, restoration, conservation and environmental education.

Winner - St Vincent de Paul Recycling Hastings
The St Vincent de Paul Society in Hastings started this project in 2007 with the lease of an empty packhouse. They take e-waste – all computers and other associated equipment – to either refurbish for resale or to dismantle. They try to match product to users. The only export is motherboards as this is best recycled in India. They crush metal and granulate plastic into chips. They are working to a business plan which takes account of government regulations and also steers funding and business development. They have an enthusiastic work force of paid staff and work experience people, plus volunteers. Their motto is “let us do without hesitation whatever good lies at our hand” which is appropriate as e-waste is one of the more difficult to keep out of our landfills and definitely needs a lot of hands to do good.

Highly commended - Hastings/ Havelock Forest and Bird Society

The restoration of their 63 hectare Blowhard Bush reserve has been a project that the whole community will be able to enjoy – especially this summer. The high commitment of volunteers has improved the track and facilities including new toilets and a shelter. They have been busy restoring the bush with seedlings grown from seed sourced in the reserve, helped by a large predator control programme since 2003. The society works in well with other agencies, but it’s a keen group of volunteers who ‘chip away’ at the work needed to restore a place which will be enjoyed by today’s and future generations.

No award in rural or individual/family categories

There are no awards in either the rural or individual/family categories this year. Glen Farms was the only entry in the rural category and although they have done some excellent work managing their dairy farm and fencing off of bush gullies as waterway protection, they have not achieved as much as previous winners in this category. The only entrant in the individual category was considered to be more appropriate in the product/service category and the judges are looking forward to that project developing.

ENDS

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