Sustainable Land Management (SLM) Hill Country Erosion Programme
Questions and answers about the SLM Hill Country Erosion Programme
What is the programme?
The Sustainable Land management (SLM) Hill Country Erosion Programme was established by the Government, under the management of MAF, to provide leadership and targeted support to communities that need to protect erosion-prone hill country. One of its components includes the SLM Hill Country Erosion Fund for regional councils' initiatives.
What will the programme cover?
The Programme has four parts:
SLM HCE Fund: Allocation of funding through the SLM Hill Country Erosion Fund for regional initiatives that seeks to work with hill-country farmers to treat or prevent erosion. Regional councils and unitary authorities can apply for this funding.
Capacity Building Initiatives: Training, development and support for existing local government land management teams to assist their work alongside farmers of land that is prone to erosion, and find and implement practical solutions. This will include the establishment or enhancement of catchment facilitation groups. The Programme will support these groups by funding facilitators through the relevant regional councils.
Critical Resource Information: Review and development of scientific and information resources to assist in addressing the risk of erosion on hill country farms.
Leadership: Management of day to day implementation of the Programme and setting a longer term direction in line with other government initiatives. The longer term direction of the Programme will be guided by engagement with external stakeholders and policy development around other Government's Initiatives such as the Sustainable Land Management and Climate Change Plan of Action and the Sustainable Water Plan of Action.
Why do we need this programme?
Protecting erosion-prone hill country prevents damage to both rural and urban businesses, communities and infrastructure.
Annual costs associated with hill country erosion are estimated at $100 to $150 million. This is through loss of soil and nutrients, lost production, damage to houses, fences, roads, phone and power lines, and damage to waterways.
The SLM Hill Country Erosion Programme has been developed to reduce the risk of erosion and flooding.
How much has been budgeted for the Programme?
A total budget of $2.5 million per year (exclusive of GST) is allocated to maintain the Programme. Of this, $2 million per year is allocated for the SLM Hill Country Erosion Fund. Another $300,000 is available for capacity building initiatives, which includes $200,000 for establishing or enhancing catchment facilitation groups and $100,000 for training initiatives.
Councils may be able to access funding from other programmes to ensure successful outcomes.
Will assistance be given to farmers?
Under the SLM Hill Country Erosion Fund, applications for funding will be sought from regional councils and unitary authorities only. Assistance to farmers will be part of those projects managed by local government land management teams.
How will farmers' ability to farm their own land be protected?
The Programme will be delivered through regional government initiatives. It will be up to regional councils and unitary authorities to administer their plans to achieve regional sustainable land management goals.
Eventually, some limits may be placed on how hill-country farmers farm their land. However, these limits will be based on the greater good of the whole catchment, to minimise the much greater limits that severe flooding places on farmers and communities in lower catchments.
Each catchment will be judged on its own merits, with decisions made by regional councils and communities within that catchment.
What areas are most likely to receive assistance?
Regions that are particularly prone to hill country erosion and the consequent high risk of flooding are the most likely to receive assistance through the SLM Hill Country Erosion Fund. These regions are Northland, Gisborne, Hawkes Bay, Greater Wellington, Manawatu-Wanganui and Taranaki. Parts of Eastern Bay of Plenty and Waikato are also prone, but to a lesser degree.
What is the role of local government?
Issues around land management and erosion have been, and will remain the responsibility of local government. Most regional councils have existing sustainable land management projects. Government has initiated this programme to facilitate partnerships with local government and therefore achieve more rapid progress towards moderating the impact of flooding caused by erosion.
Is this just about planting trees?
No - it is about more rapid progress in protecting erosion-prone land. Planting trees is however one of the most effective ways to reduce the risk of hill country erosion. What kind of trees, how many and where they need to be planted to most effectively limit erosion are the key questions. It is also necessary to ensure that, wherever possible, farmers can retain the maximum practical production from their land.
What is sustainable land management?
Sustainable land management is about getting the best use for each unit of the farm while protecting the land for future generations. Many farmers have been able to retire land that was unsuited to grazing and to sustain or even increase production by devoting extra resources to the better parts of the farm.
What is total catchment management and how does it work?
A total catchment management approach is taken in under the SLM Hill Country under this and other government sustainability programmes.
Because reducing erosion in the upper areas of a catchment is more cost effective than bearing the cost of flooding and flood control structures in the lower areas, total catchment management stresses focus on the off-site or downstream effects of activities.
A total catchment approach to hill country erosion requires all landowners and community members to be involved in identifying issues and creating solutions within their own catchment. Part of the SLM Hill Country Erosion Programme is to ensure those with the necessary community-facilitation skills are available to assist those in each catchment to find their own solutions.
How does climate change come into this?
It is predicted that climate change will increase the risk and magnitude of extreme weather events. Under this scenario, erosion in the hill country, especially during extreme rain, will continue to cause major problems such as soil loss, sediment build-up in rivers, flooding and damage to roads and bridges.
What other government programmes work alongside this one?
MAF and other government agencies are responsible for a number of programmes with similar objectives to those of the SLM Hill Country Erosion Programme. Click here to see relationship to other programmes and funds.
Common elements of these programmes are protection of the environment, the landscape and communities. Each seeks to achieve this protection without sacrificing the other objectives of sustainable land management: economic viability and long-term social well-being.
Contact for Enquiries
HCE Project Adviser
Natural Resources Group
MAF Policy
PO Box 2526
WELLINGTON 6140
Telephone: (04) 894 0632
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