“I think of something that happened to me in 2019, when I was still living in Northland NZ. I used to love going to the Mermaid Pools in Northland, which was this stunning, massive rockpool. But unfortunately, due to ongoing pollution, Iwi made the tough decision to put a rāhui over these mermaid pools; and my initial response was: ‘This isn’t fair, I’ve never gone to the Mermaid Pools and littered, not once, and I even take away other peoples rubbish.’ But then I thought about it, and I realised that if a minority are going to continue to pollute and degrade the environment then it is ruined for the majority; because you have to close down the area so it can be restored. If you continue to degrade something, even if it’s just a minority doing so, then that environment becomes more degraded and more degraded until it’s no longer serviceable.” – Sian Mair
Please help us to prevent a similar situation happening in The Catlins, by restricting vehicles on beaches to protect endemic, endangered wildlife. Make a submission to the Clutha District Council about their ‘Vehicles on Beaches Bylaw’ at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/67CFBH5. Submissions close on the 20/06/22. Ngā mihi nui!
Photo: Sian in the Mermaid Pools by Luke Suen.