For many years, a huge effort has been put into controlling the animal pests that are threatening kiwi and our other unique fauna. However there is a growing realisation that we are on the verge of succumbing to a wave of invasive weeds that are spreading into our community and into our magnificent native landscapes. Left unchecked weeds will destroy and replace the forest ecosystems we value. Weed Action Whangarei Heads is a peninsula wide initiative whose goal is, very simply, to get action underway to prevent this happening. We want to see weed control happening from the smallest backyard to the whole of Manaia. How are we doing this?
Weed Vision:
We want everyone who lives in the Heads to have “Weed Vision”, to be able to recognise the weeds in their environment and see the damage they are causing, so we are spreading the weedy message.
Information:
Once you know what the weeds are you need to know how to kill them effectively. We have control information available through our Facebook page (and website coming soon!) and directly through our project coordinator Jo Barr. Jo can provide advice about whatever scale of weed problem you are dealing with.
Resources:
Once you know how to kill them you need the tools to do it. We have a pool of community weed control resources (sprayers, tools and protective clothing) and herbicide available to anyone in the heads community who wants to tackle environmental weeds.
Action!
For largescale problems we are going to tackle them as a community, with volunteer Weed Action events and largescale contractor work through funding grants
Whangarei Heads has a major advantage, in that it is a peninsula. For many of the weed species, if we tackle them on a landscape scale we can push them out and keep them out. To do this we need to have the whole community involved. Weeds don’t respect property boundaries so we need to deal to them wherever they occur.
To get involved and start killing weeds in your neck of the woods get in touch with Jo
Joanna Barr
Weed Action Whangarei Heads.
Project Co-ordinator.
434 0293
022 056 2277
weedactionWH@gmail.com