Mostly just stuff I am doing to help the planet
Whilst trapping is still fun I find the data entry boring and unrewarding. So I have started designing an app for that. I have learnt heaps from talking about it with lots of great people. But I am still trying to understand the whole bio-security business.
Whilst planting about 500 trees and plants at Johnstons Reserve this morning we kept finding these very green earthworms. They bunched up instead of wriggling around like regular earthworms. I hope to get a good ID on NatureWatch
Fist tree out of my Nursary is a Karaka that accidentally sprouted in my Garden a few years ago. I planted it on this little ‘Island’ near Wai o Taiki Bay. Hopefully it helps hold it together.
Nurdles are pre-production microplastic pellets about the size of peas. Plastics companies melt them down to make stuff and sometimes they flush them away. Because they are Hydrophobic nasty chemicals like PCBs and DDE latch on to them, which would be cool but unforuntately they look like food and animals eat them and die. (details). I am collecting these ones in Pakuranga Creek to send to Japan for Analysis via www.pelletwatch.org
These Nurdles are likely from a local plastic manufacturing company. I will take some photos and let them know. 
Update: I checked the storm water pipes that the plastics company uses and I found no Nurdles at all! They must be coming from somewhere else. Other storm water pipes in the area seem clean, there is something suspicious about the original outlet, there are too many different kinds of pallet for them to come from one spill.
Found this trash pile here whilst exploring the Pakuranga creek. Will let the Watercare Harbour Clean-Up Trust guys know about it and offer to help.
UPDATE We did, 11 Garbage bags of trash. It will be interesting to see what it looks like in a month or so to see how fast stuff is building up.
Today I went out on the Watercare Harbour Clean-Up Trust boat. We set off at a leisurely pace from downtown auckland in a rugged little boat (they are getting a new one next month) and headed under the Harbour Bridge out to the entrance to the Whau river. We kayaked over to Pollen Island and in just a few hours filled 9 bags with plastic before heading back. Amongst the expected bottles, bags and wrappers we also found:
These guys have been doing this for 10 years and made a huge difference to the health of the Harbour. There is still a lot of historical waste to remove but we desperately need better source control. Interestingly they would prefer plastic to break down slower so it is easier to collect and remove. I left a lot of toxic little bits in the sand and rushes. I am looking forward to heading out again with Skipper Ben and hopefully the organiser Hayden Smith who are both awesome guys.
After being trained to do pest control for Auckland Council. I have joined the Selwyn Bush roster (only 14 traps sites). The people at Conservation Volunteers seem to do a lot to help but I should help them make a web app as the data entry is pretty painful.
In trying to understand why the estuary is so sick I have been exploring it, mostly on foot but some areas are easier to get to by Kayak.
I found this wastewater pipe leaking into the Otara creek this morning. I have reported it to Watercare.
UPDATE: A contractor called me to help him find the pipe. No idea if he did.
UPDATE: Not leaking anymore