Time	Speaker	Topics
8.45	Arrive	Coffee & tea available from 8.30
9.00	Introduction and overview	Kōrero; History & purpose of workshop;  Overview of programmeHousekeeping matters; Introduction to TAG & BRaid
	SESSION 1: Overview of trends, current issues & programmes – Frances Schmechel, chair
9.10	Dr. Colin O’Donnell, DOC	Braided river overview: significance, trends, issues and threats
9.25	Dr. Rachel McClellan, Senior Ecologist, Wildlands Consultants	BBG overview – trends, threats, and key needs
9.35	Dr. Mark Sanders, Senior Ecologist, Boffa Miskell	A synthesis of progress over recent years – advances in understanding and management
9.45	Ken Taylor, Director Investigations & Monitoring, ECan	Water management in Canterbury – current process, Land and Water Forum, Water Management Strategy, where to in future, risks & opportunities
10:10	David Horn, Director – Canterbury Water Executive	Canterbury Water Management Strategy – Zone committees
10.15	Nick Ledgard, Acting Chair BRaid	BRaid (Braided River Aid) – what it’s about
10.25	Kerry Brown, TAG Team Leader, DOC	Technical Advisory Group (TAG) for Braided River Threatened Species Recovery – overview
10.35	MORNING TEA
	SESSION 2: Flows, new research, & global perspective – Nick Ledgard, chair
11.00	Dr. Murray Hicks, NIWA	How floods, bed movement, and weeds affect braided river morphology – results from recent modelling and field studies
11.15	Georgina Pickerell, PhD candidate, Otago Univ.	Mammalian predators on the Rangitata – factors linked to their presence on islands (preliminary results)
11.30	Peter Langlands, contract researcher to DOC	Wrybill monitoring results from the upper Rangitata
11.45	Dr. John Dowding	Threats to braided river birds
12.00	Kate Steffens, Ranger – biodiversity assets, DOC	Identification of predators at black-fronted tern nests on the Wairau River & harrier management 2009
12.15	Andrew Crossland, Park Ranger and Ornithologist, CCC	Braided rivers and braided river birds – not just ‘world famous’ in New Zealand. Braided river systems overseas and the bird communities found on them
12.30	LUNCH
	SESSION 3: Updates and management – who’d doing what, what’s working, what’s not, & opportunitiesKerry Brown, Chair
1.30	Chris Woolmore, DOC	Project River Recovery
1.45	Dean Nelson, Programme Manager, Biodiversity Assets and Kaki Recovery Programme, DOC	Tasman Valley project update
2.00	Mark Parker & Dr. Frances Schmechel	ECan management & monitoring projects – weed coverage changes in rivers of Canterbury, Waimakariri BBG management, river-bird surveys
2.15	Wendy Sullivan, Project Coordinator O Tu Wharekai Wetlands, DOC	O Tu Wharekai – overview of key projects, resources, and results
2.30	Jim Jolly, director & principal ecologist, Jolly Consulting	An ornithologist\’s experience in consulting on resource consent applications and water conservation orders on braided rivers
2.45	Dr Eric Spurr, Ashley- Rakahuri Rivercare Group	Bird surveys in the Ashley River: historical surveys, methods and results of the last 10 years annual surveys
3.00	Nick Ledgard, Ashley-Rakahuri Rivercare Group	Ashley Rivercare Group – key management programmes, successes, & lessons learnt
3.15	Dr. Mark Sanders, Senior Ecologist, Boffa Miskell	Creating islands / flood protection opportunities – case study, where to for more info, opportunities
3.25	AFTERNOON TEA
	SESSION 4: Going forward – resources, gaps / needs
3.55	Info sharing – allChris Woolmore, DOC (facilitator)	Projects, posters, groups, websites, signs, references/papers, etc., photos, Meridian website (Waitaki), environment count docs info
	Gaps & needs discussion
4.15	Andy Grant, Conservancy Advisory Scientist, DOC (facilitator)	River surveys – what’s been learned – survey techniques (Anita Spencer), sources of survey information, protocols, gaps, future direction
4.35	Dr. Mark Sanders, Senior Ecologist, Boffa Miskell (facilitator)	Other gaps, what do managers, policy makers, and rivercare groups need, ways forward
4.55	WRAP-UP & CLOSE

 

About some of the speakers

Ken Taylor

Ken has been employed at Environment Canterbury since its inception (Oct 1989). Initially he worked as a water quality scientist, but has been in management since 1993, initially as section manager environmental quality, and then the surface water resources and ecosystems section. Since late 2007 he has been director investigations and monitoring. Ken has degrees in history and zoology and a master of applied science in microbiology. Currently he represents regional councils on the Land and water forum. His main professional interests include – State of environment monitoring and reporting, standards setting, and understanding the links between science, policy development and environmental decision making

David Horn

David has an Agricultural Science Degree from Lincoln.  He has been involved in resource management (initially called soil conservation) throughout the South Island in diverse places such as Mackenzie Country, North Otago, Nelson, Marlborough, and West Coast.  David has seen major private sector projects through their consenting processes as well as participating in policy/plan submissions and evidence on land water and air issues.  His professional roles have ranged from field officer to chief executive.

Murray Hicks

Murray is Principal Scientist, Sediment Processes, at NIWA Christchurch. His work includes river sediment loads and the geomorphic effects of dams and flow regime change. This has recently been focused in braided rivers, particularly the Waimakariri and Lower Waitaki where he did consent investigations for the Project Aqua and North Bank Tunnel proposals.

Peter Langlands

Peter has been interested in braided river birds since 1985. In 2008 he was employed for DOC under the Awawai Kakariki wetland fund to monitor wrybills in the Upper Rangitata. In addition to wrybills he has also been involved with a research project on Bittern.   He also spends time in the outdoors of Canterbury as a photographer and fly fisher. For Peter braided rivers are a challenging yet very dynamic and rewarding environment to work in.

John Dowding

John has 25 years experience surveying and monitoring New Zealand birds, particularly riverbed and coastal species. He is involved in research, management and consultancy contracts. John is also interested in promoting community involvement in conservation management programmes; is a member of the Ashley/Rakahuri Rivercare Group, Inc., and a founding trustee of the Omaha Shorebird Protection Trust.

Andrew Crossland

Andrew is a Park ranger and ornithologist for CCC. He has been researching and monitoring riverbed and wetland birds since the mid 1980s, and since 1995 have been periodically escaping to SE Asia and studying shorebirds there.

Frances Schmechel

Frances is an ecologist with Environment Canterbury in the Investigations and Monitoring Group. She came to New Zealand in 1992; and has done postgraduate work at Lincoln University in both Natural Resource Management and Ecology. She has been involved in shorebird surveys, monitoring and research for about 18 years. Additional interests include working with community groups and information sharing. Frances is a member of the Technical Advisory Group for Braided Rivers and BRaid.

Jim Jolly

Jim is the director and principal ecologist of Jolly Consulting Ltd. He has worked as a scientist for the Forest Research Institute (now Landcare Research) (possums) and the Wildlife Service/DOC (kiwis), as a writer and researcher for the Natural Heritage Foundation (Massey University) and as a lecturer in ornithology in Continuing Education (VUW). For the last ten years he has worked as a consultant primarily on the braided river birds of the Rangitata, Ashburton, Waimakariri, and Wairau Rivers.

Eric Spurr

Eric is a semi-retired wildlife researcher, and member of Ashley/Rakahuri Rivercare Group.