Upper Taieri Wai Inc. Catchment Group

20/07/2026

At our Upper Taieri Wai meeting yesterday we heard from Fish & Game, ORC & Tiaki Maniototo’s comms man Bill about what has occurred overseas with bird flu. This is a lot more serious than I was thinking and can get in to dairy cows, our pet cats, sea mammals and the likes. Please take the time to learn from respectable sources such as MPI about this disease 🦠 and how to keep your staff on farm safe.

Biosecurity New Zealand is ramping up on-the-ground work after a single Kāhu, swamp harrier hawk, found in the Wairarapa, became the second bird in New Zealand confirmed to have H5 bird flu.

The additional work will include:
• Extra checking of birds at selected sites in the Wairarapa over coming days.
• Alongside industry, MPI will offer one-on-one support and advice to poultry and egg operations in Wellington and the Wairarapa.
• Establishing a technical advisory group of expert scientists to supplement advice from MPI’s internationally recognised experts.
• The Department of Conservation continues its vaccination programme for 300 core breeding birds from five of our most endangered birds - kākāpō, takahē, tūturuatu/shore plover, kakī/black stilt and kākāriki karaka/orange-fronted parakeet.
• MPI has approved the second tranche of the vaccination response that gives DOC the ability to extend vaccination to further priority species and populations where it will provide the greatest protection.

We thank the public for their vigilance and many notifications of unwell or dead birds in the past week.

What you can do to help
• If you see three or more sick or dead wild birds in a group, report it immediately to the exotic pest and disease hotline on 0800 80 99 66 from anywhere in New Zealand or online at report.mpi.govt.nz
• If you report online, select the ‘dead or dying wild birds’ option from the dropdown list and then the type of bird you have found.
• Don’t handle or move the birds. Go to www.mpi.govt.nz/bird-flu to find out more.

Provide as much detail as you can, including:
• common name or species of sick or dead bird if known
• how many are sick or freshly dead, and the total number of birds present
• a GPS reading or other precise location information
• photographs and videos of sick and dead birds

MPI will contact notifiers if more information is required.

More information about H5 bird flu and the work New Zealand is doing to prepare is available at mpi.govt.nz/hpai

16/07/2026

Well that was a big shake!!

Remember to be prepared for your home and your farm!

Checklist for farm preparations below:

Not even our detector dogs could track it down.

11/07/2026

Another step towards protecting our water catchments. A huge thanks to Central Otago Wilding Conifers Control Group and the locals living in the Styx. This is a cause we all need to be well over and committed to keeping the foot on the pedal. If you need advice or support on your property for wilding control visit the COWCC website.

06/07/2026

Hopefully this is postponed rather than cancelled. We’ll keep you updated.

18/06/2026

Save the date!

The Tiaki Maniototo 2026 roadshow is coming up on Friday 14th August which will showcase the many projects, achievements, and partnerships delivered through our Ministry for the Environment funding programme.

The roadshow will also provide an opportunity to look ahead to the future of Tiaki Maniototo and the Upper Taieri Catchment.

It is sure to be a great day celebrating all of the awesome work that has been going on in our catchment. More details to come soon!

12/06/2026

A reminder to take some time this weekend to take part in this short survey related to the Taiari/Taieri Catchment Action Plan before midnight Sunday!

The Taiari/Taieri Catchment Action Plan will be a 10-year, non-regulatory plan to protect and enhance freshwater and biodiversity across the catchment. This project is currently at the half way stage and is seeking feedback on what has been developed so far. Caitlin Daley, Janine Smith, Renee Weir, and Jeremy Anderson have been representing Upper Taieri throughout this process and we are thankful for all their hard work and dedication to this project.

You can fill in the survey here: https://forms.cloud.microsoft/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=l72a8vODJk-vGgTH0IRDS6Hu2pn30nxKuo-7bRGnreFURUxKS1lNR0k3M0tSOThNVUUwUUZWTzFTRS4u&fbclid=IwY2xjawSYgZhleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETF0em1QTXZwWFQ4NDhyeHJDc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHmINcwgUn1ZQmMuY5JWPO3kyR_qNXhQ9RGZH81YAwwjeu8i44Q1qrntB_Lqy_aem_ufx0Ae_Tvu5xQTxz3SwJtg

08/06/2026

Many thanks to Otago Fish & Game for showing us Takitakitoa wetland; what an incredible example of nature working for nature.

Special thanks to John Highton (council member) and Jayde Couper (staff member) for hosting Upper Taieri Wai and Tiaki Maniototo committee members at their new purpose built facility near Mosgiel.

Both John & Jayde have been on this Tiaki Maniototo journey with us providing their experience and expertise since the beginning.

29/05/2026

We encourage you all to complete this short survey to provide your thoughts on the work that has been carried out to date for this plan. The voices from those working the land in the Upper Taieri is super important to getting meaningful outcomes for this plan. Please spend some time over the long weekend to have your say.