Environment » Natural Resources » Water » Lakes » Shallow lakes of the Waikato region » Peat lakes » Guidelines for landowners in peat lake catchments:
The aim of the Guidelines is to provide landowners farming in peat lake catchments with a range of current ‘Best Management Practices’ (BMPs) to reduce environmental impacts on the region’s peat lakes. The BMPs centre on sustainable land managment and
protecting important natural resources. To provide a context for the BMPs, information on peat lake values with an emphasis on the benefits of the lakes to farms are also included.
The BMPs highlight how to:
Rules drawn from the Regional and District Council Plans which relate to the BMPs are also included.
Guidelines for landowners in peat lake catchments
(1101 kb, 157 seconds to download, 56k modem)
| 1 | Introduction | 2 |
| 1.1 | What are peat lakes? | 2 |
| 1.1.1 | Peat lake information | 2 |
| 1.1.2 | Peat facts | 2 |
| 1.2 | Why are the Waikato peat lakes so important? | 3 |
| 1.2.1 | Waikato District peat lakes map | 5 |
| 1.2.2 | Waipa District peat lakes map | 6 |
| 1.3 | Wetlands and farming | 7 |
| 2 | Peat lake management | 8 |
| 3 | The changing landscape | 9 |
| 4 | Farming in peat lake catchments | 10 |
| 4.1 | The effects of farm nutrients on peat lake health | 10 |
| 4.1.1 | Nitrogen (N) | 10 |
| 4.1.2 | Phosphorus (P) | 11 |
| 4.2 | Farm nutrient and sediment hot spots | 11 |
| 4.2.1 | Current BMPs for minimising excess nutrient and sediment loss | 12 |
| 4.2.2 | Other relevant rules | 15 |
| 4.3 | Peat shrinkage | 16 |
| 4.3.1 | How fast does peat shrink? | 16 |
| 4.3.2 | Current BMPs for slowing peat shrinkage | 17 |
| 5 | The future of the peat lakes | 18 |
| 6 | Appendices | 19 |
| 6.1 | Peat lakes of the Waikato district | 19 |
| 6.2 | Peat lakes of the Waipa district | 20 |
| 6.3 | Getting good advice | 21 |
