One Landscape, One Plan: Shaping the Future of the Mackenzie Basin
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By the Mackenzie Basin Catchment Collective (MBCC)
The Mackenzie Basin is a place like no other—defined by vast open landscapes, braided rivers, and unique ecosystems. It’s also home to a range of people and livelihoods, from farmers and fishers to conservationists and researchers. With so many values tied to the land and water, it’s essential we take a coordinated approach to managing this special environment. That’s where Integrated Catchment Plans (ICPs) come in.
What is an Integrated Catchment Plan?
An Integrated Catchment Plan brings together the different threads of land, water, biodiversity, and community to guide how we manage natural resources across a whole catchment area. Rather than focusing on one issue or sector at a time, ICPs look at the big picture—what’s happening upstream and downstream, across property boundaries, and between communities, mana whenua, and agencies.
In short, an ICP is:
Collaborative: Developed with input from landowners, iwi, community groups, scientists, and councils.
Place-based: Tailored to the local environment, values, and challenges of a specific catchment.
Action-focused: Outlines practical steps and priorities for improving water quality, soil health, biodiversity, and climate resilience.
Why Does the Mackenzie Basin Need One?
The Mackenzie Basin faces unique pressures—dryland ecosystems under threat, invasive pests, changes in land use, and increasing climate variability. Many of us are already doing great work to look after our land and water, but a shared plan helps make sure those efforts are connected, complementary, and more impactful.
An Integrated Catchment Plan for the Mackenzie Basin can:
Identify shared goals: From rabbit control to native planting, we can align our priorities.
Target investment: Funding and support can be directed where it will make the most difference.
Support innovation: Trial new practices, technologies, or monitoring methods.
Strengthen partnerships: Bring together mana whenua, landowners, government, and the wider community to work with a common purpose.
What’s MBCC Doing?
The Mackenzie Basin Catchment Collective is working toward building an ICP that reflects the needs, knowledge, and aspirations of our catchment. Over the past year, we’ve been:
Hosting workshops and field days to gather ideas and build relationships.
Mapping environmental values and challenges across the catchment.
Exploring ways to blend mātauranga Māori and science.
Identifying practical actions that could be supported collectively—like pest control, wetland protection, and better water use.
We see this as a living document: something that grows and adapts with the land and the people who care for it.
What’s Next—and How You Can Get Involved
The MBCC Integrated Catchment Plan is still taking shape, and your voice matters. Whether you’re farming in the Basin, managing a block of native scrub, or simply love this landscape, we want to hear from you.
Keep an eye on our website and social media for upcoming workshops, surveys, and opportunities to share your thoughts.
Together, we can build a plan that reflects the best of what the Mackenzie Basin is—and can be.
