Heeding nature’s call to safeguard our future
The Waikato region supports a rich diversity of native plants, animals and unique ecosystems, including wetlands, geothermal areas, forests, rivers, lakes and coastal habitats. Despite this ecological wealth, biodiversity in the region is in decline. Pressures such as land use change, invasive pests and disease, pollution, habitat loss and modification as well as climate change are driving biodiversity loss.
Biodiversity is essential to our wellbeing. It helps clean our water, recycles nutrients, provides food and protects us from flooding. It also strengthens our resilience to climate change and supports our economy and cultural identity. Therefore, protecting and restoring biodiversity is not just about conservation – it’s an investment in our future.
The Waikato Regional Biodiversity Strategy brings people together under a shared vision, with clear goals and coordinated action to protect and restore biodiversity in the region for future generations. By aligning efforts across iwi, communities, councils, government and non-government organisations as well as landowners, we can be more effective in protecting what matters most.
Current status
In September 2026, regional councillors endorsed the Waikato Regional Biodiversity Strategy, subject to minor amendments. The final strategy will be published in early November. In the meantime, you can read the draft version that was submitted to council for endorsement.
What is biodiversity and why does it matter?
Biodiversity is the variety of life that surrounds us, from plants and animals to the ecosystems they live in and the connections that bind them together. It includes everything from forests and oceans to all the different species within these environments and the relationships between them.
When ecosystems are healthy and diverse, they’re more resilient to change and better able to support life. These ecosystem services benefit everyone in the Waikato region, helping us adapt to climate challenges and sustain our way of life.
In te ao Māori, biodiversity is deeply rooted in whakapapa, the genealogy that links people, land, water and all living things. This worldview reminds us that the wellbeing of people and te taiao, or the natural world, are inseparable. So when we care for the environment, we care for ourselves and future generations.
Why develop a biodiversity strategy for the region?
Nature is calling
Indigenous biodiversity in the Waikato region is in a critical state. Native species, habitats and ecosystems – once abundant – are under growing pressure from land use changes, invasive species, waterway modification and climate impacts.
Much of our native vegetation has been lost, especially in lowland areas, and many of our native species are under threat, including those found nowhere else but in our region. Remaining habitats face pressure from pests, weeds and development. Wetlands have been heavily modified and many lowland waterways are struggling to support healthy ecosystems. Native fish movement in some areas have also become restricted and marine environments are feeling the strain with key habitats vulnerable to environmental and human impacts.
National and regional directions
Regional context
The Waikato Regional Policy Statement sets out a series of objectives, policies and methods relating to the protection and enhancement of indigenous biodiversity.
The council has also committed to a range of biodiversity work in its long term plan and strategic direction, which includes the development of a biodiversity accord and to progress a prioritised strategic pathway that protects and restores biodiversity out to 2050 and beyond.
National context
The National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity (NPSIB) is considered an essential part in the Government’s response to biodiversity decline in Aotearoa. It aims to protect, maintain and restore our indigenous biodiversity so that there is at least no overall loss in a way that:
- recognises tangata whenua as kaitiaki, and people and communities as stewards of indigenous biodiversity; and,
- provides for the social, economic and cultural wellbeing of people and communities, now and into the future.
The NPSIB sits in the wider context of the vision and goals for biodiversity as set out in Te Mana o te Taiao – Aotearoa New Zealand Biodiversity Strategy 2020. Te Mana o te Taiao, together with the Resource Management Act (RMA), guides policy and action alongside the NPSIB.
Global context
Aotearoa has committed to protecting its unique biodiversity through international agreements like the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Ramsar Convention (wetlands). These agreements all require local action to halt biodiversity loss and restore ecosystems.
How was the biodiversity strategy developed?
Reversing biodiversity loss isn’t a quick fix and it can’t be solved by any one group alone. It requires long-term commitment and collaboration across communities, iwi and hapū, landowners, agencies and individuals. By working together, we can harness diverse perspectives, knowledge and resources to address shared challenges and create lasting solutions.
In 2025 and early 2026, we sought feedback from communities across the Waikato to shape a biodiversity strategy that reflects iwi Māori and community aspirations, upholds Te Tiriti o Waitangi and responds to the unique needs of our region.
Our goal was simple: develop a shared, unified strategy that protects and restores our natural environment while resonating with the people who live here. By listening, learning and working together, we developed a living strategy that can evolve over time and support a thriving and resilient natural environment for generations to come.
Waikato Biodiversity Accord
Initiated in 2023, the Waikato Biodiversity Accord was the first step toward developing the biodiversity strategy. This high-level, non-statutory agreement brings together iwi and key stakeholders with a shared commitment to develop and implement a regional biodiversity strategy.
Join the Accord and get involved in bringing the biodiversity strategy to life.
Iwi environmental management plans
The environmental management plans of various iwi within the Waikato region highlight a commitment to restoring and protecting indigenous biodiversity through traditional knowledge and modern scientific methods.
The information shared in these plans served as a foundation for kōrero with iwi and hapū as the biodiversity strategy was developed.