The Sherry River Catchment Group got together on Wednesday 5th October for their spring event. In typical landcare style the event had a very practical component... an opportunity to get involved in 'farmer friendly' weed control.
After lunch Tasman District Council resource scientist Trevor James announced;
"Since monthly testing began in 2003, contamination has fallen from a median of 400 E. coli per 100 millilitres of water to 170, and is on track next year to hit 150 – the mark at which swimming is officially deemed safe."
This is a huge achievement. Eight years of water quality monitoring is now backed by robust scientific data that confirms the benefits associated with the work of the Sherry River Catchment Management Group.
NZ Landcare Trust Regional Coordinator Barbara Stuart said;
"I'm proud of the way the Sherry River community has risen to the challenge of improving water quality. It is one of the first documented and scientific reports of how water quality can be improved in a farming catchment."
Attendees also discussed what to do next now that government funding has run out. In all, the project has received $200,000, of which $95,000 came from the Sustainable Farming Fund. The rest was in small grants and staff time from the organisations involved.
Information about the project is available on the webpage>
To talk about the Sherry River Project and the work linked to the project contact Barbara Stuart:
03 545 0443
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