Hon Jo Goodhew

Associate Minister for Primary Industries
12 October 2016

$2.39m of erosion control funding welcomed

Associate Primary Industries Minister Jo Goodhew has welcomed $2.39m of funding for projects from the latest round of the Erosion Control Funding Programme (ECFP), to reduce the serious erosion issues faced by the Gisborne District.

“I am pleased to see 1,438 hectares of land will be treated, eighty per cent of which will be through the enabling of indigenous scrub and tree cover regeneration. That is a fantastic result which will be a great benefit for biodiversity and reduced erosion, says Mrs Goodhew.

“Working in partnership with Gisborne District Council and Te Runanganui o Ngati Porou has been a priority to increase the uptake of the programme. Having a dedicated staff member on the ground in Gisborne this year has helped to achieve this, as we have had greater contact with land owners.

“Doubling the number of applications and the area approved for treatment, when compared to last year, is a great indicator of the confidence in the ECFP, in addition to the positive environmental outcomes.

“The programme will bring environmental benefits to the region’s infrastructure, waterways, hill country farms, and higher-quality floodplain land through reducing sediment run-off and improving the resilience of the land to severe weather events,” Mrs Goodhew says.

In operation since 1992, the ECFP is focused on reducing the severe erosion problem facing the Gisborne district, which causes long-term damage to the productivity of rural land. The district is also susceptible to regular high-intensity weather events that cause soil erosion and downstream flooding.

More information on the Erosion Control Funding Programme can be found atwww.mpi.govt.nz.

ends

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