The booklets and infosheets below provide information and advice to help you make choices about managing our natural resources.

All these booklets are available in hardcopy, free of charge, from our customer services team.

We are working to make all booklets available online. Currently the titles in related documents can be downloaded as pdf files to read on-screen or to print.

Use the links below to view those that are also available as web pages:

• Wetlands: what are they?

What is a wetland?

'Wetland' is the collective term for the wet margins of streams, rivers, ponds, lakes, lagoons, estuaries, bogs and swamps.  A wetland may be large or small, natural or man-made, permanently or intermittently wet. Often a wetland on a farm will just be a low-lying, boggy area – the spot that grows rushes or cutty-grass that you avoid driving the ute through!  Other wetlands may be quite large and have permanently standing water with raupo, sedges, flax, cabbage trees and other wetland vegetation growing amongst them.

Why should wetlands be protected?

Wetlands have important functions for nutrient filtering, flood control, wildlife habitat, plant habitat and sediment control. Wetlands often provide specialised nesting, breeding, and/or feeding sites for local and migratory birds and a range of other fauna.  Many wetlands also have significant cultural and/or recreational values.

A big issue for Canterbury is the serious decline in total area of wetlands in the region.  Large areas of wetlands have disappeared to make way for productive farmland.  Only about 10 % of Canterbury's wetlands remain, making it more important to protect any existing wetlands.  Most wetlands occur on private land, where the landholder may have plans to drain and develop the area into productive pasture or other non-wetland uses.

Managing wetlands

Avoid draining wetlands

If you intend to drain a wetland, please contact Environment Canterbury for advice – you may require Resource Consent.

Prevent stock access to wetlands

Heavy stock such as cattle and deer can quickly damage a wetland through pugging and wallowing.  You can apply for funding assistance through the Environment Enhancement Fund to fence off wetlands – contact Environment Canterbury for more information.

Appropriate planting around the margins of a wetland can improve water quality and habitat.  Locally sourced native wetland species such as flax, toetoe, sedges and cabbage trees are usually suitable.  Talk to your nursery for further advice or contact Resource Care at Environment Canterbury for a free planting guide.

To permanently protect a significant wetland, you may wish to consider getting a QEII covenant.

Rules about wetlands

Wetlands are water bodies just as equally as streams, rivers or lakes.  You cannot take, use, dam or divert water on any of these water bodies unless allowed by a resource consent or a rule in a regional plan.

Any activities affecting water quantity and/or flows in a wetland are regulated according to RMA rules.  Also you cannot discharge any contaminants where they may enter a water body, including a wetland.