Workshop on backyard biodiversity

Rotorua residents can learn more about the variety of life in their own backyards and how to restore it at a Bay of Plenty Regional Council workshop this weekend.

The Regional Council is hosting a free backyard biodiversity restoration workshop at Mangakakahi Stream reserve in conjunction with the Department of Conservation.

Regional Council Manager, Land Management Rotorua Greg Corbett said the aim was to promote information-sharing with current and new Care Groups on how to get started and how to sustain community biodiversity projects. It would focus on methods for controlling weeds, which was an important issue for biodiversity restoration.

“Around the Bay of Plenty, many volunteers join Care Groups or community groups to help restore the biodiversity and amenity values of areas near where they live or places they like to visit. This workshop will help them restore their areas, and maintain them for the future as well as learn more about what other groups are already doing,” he said.

“Removing weeds is a big task, but the workshop will help make the process more understandable and easier to tackle.”

Department of Conservation staff will outline community work being done on the conservation estate, and the Regional Council’s Environmental Enhancement funding will also be outlined at the workshop, which is open to anyone. It starts at 9.30am on Sunday, 26 February and is followed by a barbecue lunch. If wet it will be held at the Linton Park Community Centre.

For more information contact Regional Council Land Management officer Mel Whiting on 0800 884 881 extn 7576.