Key points
This indicator measures the area of different types of land use. Land use provides information on where development pressures are likely to be the greatest on soil, water and indigenous vegetation resources. Changing land use can be compared with indicators of water and air quality, and the changing extent of land cover as a contributor to these changes. Measuring land cover goes a long way to determining land use.
- The major commercial land uses in our region are pastoral farming (58 percent) and plantation forestry (12 percent).
- Indigenous vegetation (including forests, wetlands and grasslands) covers 28 percent.
- Urban areas make up one percent of the region.
- Horticulture and cropping also account for less than one percent.
- According to 2007 regional data from the Statistics New Zealand Agricultural Production Census (using a different framework from that above), the main types of land use in the Waikato Region are grassland (71%), plantations of exotic trees intended for harvest (18%), mature native bush (4%) and native scrub and regenerating native bush (3%). Land use types differ between the territorial authority areas within the region.
Source: Environment Waikato/ Terralink International
What agencies are doing
- Environment Waikato tracks changes in land use to update this indicator and to assist with policy making and resource consent decisions.
- We are working to improve soil conservation, flood control and implement river management work programmes, through Project Watershed, within the greater Waikato catchment area.
- We support voluntary guidelines and codes of practice such as the NZ Fertiliser Manufacturer’s Research Association’s Code of Practice for Fertiliser Use (code of practice).
- We provide staff time and expertise to support Landcare groups in the region that are involved in riparian management such as planting and fencing. Find out more about Care groups in our region.
- We provide environmental information including reports on practical land management guidelines. Check out our publications on Land and Soil, including For Peat's Sake - good management practices for Waikato peat farmers, and Trees on Farms.
- We support the Franklin Sustainability Project.
What you can do to help
There are many things we can do to improve and maintain soils, such as:
- Planting vegetation on hills and near streams.
- Using fertilisers and pesticides carefully and only when necessary.
- Retiring land from unsuitable uses or changing to more suitable land uses.
- Keeping stock out of waterways and stopping them from trampling banks.
- Reducing cultivation.
- Managing water tables to avoid excessive drainage.
- Joining or forming a Landcare group in your area.
More information
More detail on this indicator, including how and where this information is collected, is available here.
What we want to achieve
The community outcomes we are seeking to achieve by monitoring land use are:
- The iconic landscapes and natural features of our environment define and sustain us. We respect and celebrate them as taonga.
- Our natural environment is protected and respected. Its ecological balance is restored, its air, soil and water quality is improved and its native biodiversity is enhanced.
- The traditional role of iwi and hapu as kaitiaki is acknowledged, respected and enabled.
- Our region’s waterways have consistently high water quality.