What is a catchment group?
A group of landowners, land users, and community members working together to address shared water and land management challenges within a defined catchment area. Catchment groups play a vital role in improving the health of our waterways, protecting biodiversity, and promoting sustainable land use practices. Scroll to the bottom of this page to see all definitions.
Why join a catchment group?
Catchment groups support communities to adopt good land and water management practices, promote sustainability, and drive positive environmental outcomes. They:
- enable people to share knowledge and learn from one another
- showcase innovation and celebrate success
- connect communities with expertise, up-to-date research, and practical tools
- support informed decision-making through relevant, localised information
- provide awareness of regulations, funding opportunities, and the support to advance environmental projects
Catchment Resources
NZ Landcare Trust-Ngā Matapopore Whenua works alongside catchment groups across Aotearoa, supporting them from early ideas and formation through to long-term action. As regions vary greatly in the establishment and maturity of catchment groups, our support is tailored to meet groups where they are at.
Explore the resources below to find what best fits your group’s stage:
Taking the Plunge – for new and start-up catchment groups beginning their journey
Refining Your Plan – for growing groups ready to strengthen their structure and direction
Lasting the Long Game – or established groups focused on sustaining momentum and long-term impact
- Catchment Collectives – a directory of collectives, including background on their strengths and challenges. You’ll also find guidance on forming a collective and clear explanations of the differences between catchment groups, sub-regional collectives, and regional collectives
- Catchment and farm emergency planning — practical tools and templates to help rural communities, landowners, and catchment groups prepare for, respond to, and recover from natural disasters and extreme weather events across Aotearoa.
Taking the Plunge
Thinking about starting a group? We’ve gathered some helpful resources to get you started
Refining your plan
Your group is formed—now it’s time to fine-tune your plan.
Lasting the Long Game
Things are happening... well done! But how do you plan for the future?
Catchment Collectives
What is a Catchment Collective, how can I start one in my region, and where are they located in New Zealand?
Emergency Catchment Management
View resources to help your farm and catchment group manage emergencies
Catchment Terms and Definitions
Catchment Groups
Groups of landowners and land users, collectively addressing shared issues within a specific water hydrological unit/catchment area.
Catchment Collectives
Umbrella organisations that include multiple catchment groups and provide administrative, governance, communications and advocacy functions.
Sub-Regional Catchment Collectives
Sub-regional collectives are umbrella organisations that bring together catchment groups within a defined sub-region, providing coordination, governance, and advocacy. They foster collaboration across neighbouring catchments and represent a unified voice for their member groups. In larger regions, sub-regional collectives are formed to coordinate efforts on a manageable scale. Examples of this structure include the Mid Canterbury Catchment Collective or Rangitikei Rivers Catchment Collective.
Regional Catchment Collectives
Umbrella organisations that unite catchment groups and collectives across an entire region, providing coordination, governance, and advocacy. Operating at a regional scale (for example, Thriving Southland), they represent the collective voice of their member groups.