Northland REGIONAL COUNCIL Te Kaunihera a rohe o Te Taitokerau Good progress on urban Growing great local science waterway protection project Removing grass carp from Lake Swan - Rachel Drysdale (left) with Northland Rogional Council environmental monitoring officer Scott Lyon. We're pleased lo announce the Whangarei Urban Awa project is on track to achieve targets for year one. The collaborative effort between council Searching for rare frogs using e-DNA, shorebird surveys, and removing grass carp "No two days have been the same, and from a Far North dune lake are just some of the experiences Whangarei Girls' High School science teacher Rachel Drysdale has Building community connections has been an had as she's dellved into the world of regional incredibly valuable part of the experience says Building on previous projects in the upper Halea school education events and more. and the Ministry of the Environment (MIE) aims everyone has been so wecoming and incdlusive to improve water quality in four of Whangarei's in allowing me to be part of their field work." key urban river catchments - Waiarohia, Lower Hatea, Kirikiri and Raumanga. council science. Rachel. River catchment, the project involves stock exclusion fencing, riparian planting and providing land management advice to eligible landowners. Rachel has spent the last six months with Northland Regional Council's biodiversity team, as part of the prestigious Science Teaching and Leadership Programme through the Rayal Society Te Aparangi. "As well as looking at the key skills sclentists use in real-world oontexts, 's about seeing where our girls can take ownership of projects So far, 7.6km of fencing and 1308m of planting and contribute to their local environment in really meaningful ways through citizen science. has been completed, with a further 1.2km of As part of council's Enviroschools programme. in the coming months. Whangarei Girls' High School already had a strong relationship with council, which has been strengthened by the new connections Rachel has made across the organisation, "Our head of science, Suzie Scourfield, and fencing and 663m of planting due to take place I embarked on this programme to ensure our science curriculum is anchored back to our place and community - Northland has a unique ervironment with many taonga," says Rachel. "We want to empower our students to be Rachel will head back into the classroom scientifically literate in an ever-changing world and to be curious and engaged with whar's around them. We also want to ensure our next term, though the Science Teaching and Leadership Programme continues for a further 12 months. curriculum gives mana örite to Matauranga Maori." "That's when the rubber hits the road - we take all of these incredible leamings and look at how we can apply that to our curriculum, grow Rachel's placement at council has seen her spend time with many different people and projects, getting involved in shorebird surveys, estuarine species surveys, kauri dieback sampling, dune protection, freshwater pest fish control, wetland monitoring, community and scientic teracy with our students and inspire Dune planting season kicks off great science in our kura and our community." Planting season has begun for CoastCare groups around the region who are working hard to protect and restore our precious Weed workshops a winner sand dunes around Te Taitokerau. Our free annual workshops offering Northlanders tips on how to tackle some of the worst weeds threatening our region have proven popular once again. Nearly 100 people came along to hear from pest plant experts at the winter workshops last week in Dargaville, Kerikeri, Coopers Beach and Whangrei. If you missed out, check out our pest control hub for advice! Not only are these dunes home to precious native plants and creatures, they help protect against coastal hazards and erosion. Keen to help out? Contact our CoastCare Coordinator to find a group near you. coastcare@nrc.govt.nz www.nrc.govt.nz/pestcontrolhub Northland Contact your local councillor at www.nrc.govt.nz/councillors REGIONAL COUNCIL Te Kaunihera a rohe o Te Taitokerau Northland REGIONAL COUNCIL Te Kaunihera a rohe o Te Taitokerau Good progress on urban Growing great local science waterway protection project Removing grass carp from Lake Swan - Rachel Drysdale (left) with Northland Rogional Council environmental monitoring officer Scott Lyon. We're pleased lo announce the Whangarei Urban Awa project is on track to achieve targets for year one. The collaborative effort between council Searching for rare frogs using e-DNA, shorebird surveys, and removing grass carp "No two days have been the same, and from a Far North dune lake are just some of the experiences Whangarei Girls' High School science teacher Rachel Drysdale has Building community connections has been an had as she's dellved into the world of regional incredibly valuable part of the experience says Building on previous projects in the upper Halea school education events and more. and the Ministry of the Environment (MIE) aims everyone has been so wecoming and incdlusive to improve water quality in four of Whangarei's in allowing me to be part of their field work." key urban river catchments - Waiarohia, Lower Hatea, Kirikiri and Raumanga. council science. Rachel. River catchment, the project involves stock exclusion fencing, riparian planting and providing land management advice to eligible landowners. Rachel has spent the last six months with Northland Regional Council's biodiversity team, as part of the prestigious Science Teaching and Leadership Programme through the Rayal Society Te Aparangi. "As well as looking at the key skills sclentists use in real-world oontexts, 's about seeing where our girls can take ownership of projects So far, 7.6km of fencing and 1308m of planting and contribute to their local environment in really meaningful ways through citizen science. has been completed, with a further 1.2km of As part of council's Enviroschools programme. in the coming months. Whangarei Girls' High School already had a strong relationship with council, which has been strengthened by the new connections Rachel has made across the organisation, "Our head of science, Suzie Scourfield, and fencing and 663m of planting due to take place I embarked on this programme to ensure our science curriculum is anchored back to our place and community - Northland has a unique ervironment with many taonga," says Rachel. "We want to empower our students to be Rachel will head back into the classroom scientifically literate in an ever-changing world and to be curious and engaged with whar's around them. We also want to ensure our next term, though the Science Teaching and Leadership Programme continues for a further 12 months. curriculum gives mana örite to Matauranga Maori." "That's when the rubber hits the road - we take all of these incredible leamings and look at how we can apply that to our curriculum, grow Rachel's placement at council has seen her spend time with many different people and projects, getting involved in shorebird surveys, estuarine species surveys, kauri dieback sampling, dune protection, freshwater pest fish control, wetland monitoring, community and scientic teracy with our students and inspire Dune planting season kicks off great science in our kura and our community." Planting season has begun for CoastCare groups around the region who are working hard to protect and restore our precious Weed workshops a winner sand dunes around Te Taitokerau. Our free annual workshops offering Northlanders tips on how to tackle some of the worst weeds threatening our region have proven popular once again. Nearly 100 people came along to hear from pest plant experts at the winter workshops last week in Dargaville, Kerikeri, Coopers Beach and Whangrei. If you missed out, check out our pest control hub for advice! Not only are these dunes home to precious native plants and creatures, they help protect against coastal hazards and erosion. Keen to help out? Contact our CoastCare Coordinator to find a group near you. coastcare@nrc.govt.nz www.nrc.govt.nz/pestcontrolhub Northland Contact your local councillor at www.nrc.govt.nz/councillors REGIONAL COUNCIL Te Kaunihera a rohe o Te Taitokerau