Conserving our Homeland

Posted by Frana Cardno on 13 August 2009 | 0 Comments

Tags: Fiordland Conservation Trust, volunteers, conservation, bird song

All of us have experienced the silence of the bush and despaired.

So it's really great to be part of a group that's doing something about it. The Fiordland Conservation Trust is a community-driven project supporting conservation projects in Fiordland, Southland and the Sub-Antarctic region. It has been established to provide independent funding and resources to further protect the natural treasures (taonga) of southern New Zealand.

I am a trustee on the Trust and am proud to be so, as I believe it is really important for future generations to hear the bird song in the bush like we did when we were children.

The Trust has been established to enable donations from individuals or businesses to go towards specific conservation projects, some of which would not be able to be carried out without that support.

Businesses can work with the Trust to identify specific projects that are of interest to them. So often we hear negative reports about business exploiting our natural environment, but this trust is all about partnerships. We are working with businesses that realise the importance of the environment and are prepared to financially and physically support work being done to protect it.

The Southland District Council supports the Trust by providing accounting services and some of the other businesses and organisations already involved include Peregrine Wines, Chalky Digits, Fiordland Ecology Holidays, and the Gary Chisholm Family Trust.

I also became aware of the hundreds of hours of work volunteers do, with the projects already completed by the Trust and also the ongoing ones.

The transfer of 39 endangered saddlebacks to Te Kakahu (Chalky Island) involved Peregrine Wine staff and supporters helping out Department of Conservation staff; 15 volunteers replaced traps on Pomona Island last year and there are many more examples. Without this support, many projects would cost too much to carry out.

We should be proud of what we achieve in our country for New Zealand's communities are based on the work of volunteers, but there is still a long way to go so I encourage people to keep volunteering. Not only are you helping our country remain one of the most beautiful in the world, you are also seeing parts of it that not many New Zealanders have.

The Fiordland Conservation Trust has been operating for only just over a year, but is already making a difference and in some areas we will be hearing the sound of birds and seeing unique bush being restored very soon.