B+LNZ has partnered with the forestry advisory service Te Uru Rākau to deliver 32 Trees Within Farms workshops across the country.
These workshops aim to broaden farmers’ understanding of the value of trees within farms and how to successfully integrate forest carbon into farm business. They are open to farmers across all sectors, not just sheep and beef.
The first workshop kicked off on Monday 12 February, in Fielding and will run in locations across the country until early June.
B+LNZ’s National Programme Manager Olivia Weatherburn says feedback from farmers about these workshops has been overwhelmingly positive.
“Farmers leave these workshops with an improved understanding of the integration of trees into pastoral-based farming systems, the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) and opportunities to offset greenhouse gas emissions, as well as insights into local tree-planting and land-retirement funding programmes.”
B+LNZ’s Senior Environment Policy Analyst Madeline Hall says, “In partnering with Te Uru Rākau, these workshops help our farmers get a handle on the risks and benefits of getting rewarded for the carbon stored on their farms.
“It is fantastic to have Te Uru Rākau support B+LNZ in getting down to the nuts and bolts of carbon forestry within a farming system,” she adds.
Trees are an important part of pastoral-based farming systems, providing shade and shelter for animals, protecting indigenous biodiversity, helping meet environmental goals of improving water quality and erosion control, and opportunities for diversifying income streams.
“Farmers know their land best and we know they are looking to integrate trees on farm – native and exotic. It’s about planting the right tree, in the right place, for the right reason, and the Trees within Farms workshop can help them with that,” says Hall.
While B+LNZ has concerns about the scale and pace of whole sheep and beef farms that have been sold to convert into forestry for carbon credits, we are very supportive of the opportunities for the integration of trees within farms. The integration of trees within farms can go a long way to meeting New Zealand’s international climate change commitments without the need for wholesale landuse change – it’s a win-win.
Learn more about the issue of carbon farming and B+LNZ’s work on this issue here.
Find a workshop near you
To find out about events in your area, check out B+LNZ’s events webpage here or contact your local B+LNZ Extension Manager.