Westpac Urges Farmers to Prepare Now for El Niño Drought
Westpac NZ is calling on farmers and growers to start preparing now for the possibility of a dry summer, as likely El Niño conditions raise the risk of drought across parts of the country.
The joint initiative with NZ Landcare Trust has seen 24 initiatives that support biodiversity, river health, and wetlands receive funding since the scheme began in 2022.
Dr Nick Edgar, chief executive of NZ Landcare Trust, says the progress made by each of the grants recipients over the years creates a strong legacy of positive action on the ground since 2022.
"Catchment groups have used their grants to achieve meaningful environmental outcomes in their regions," Edgar says.
He says that while each project is different, all of them are designed for the betterment of sustainable land practices and the improvement of water quality across the coluntry.
"Now, it's time for the 2026 grant recipients to embark on their projects and add to the legacy that this fund is creating," Edgar says. "It's strong, positive and meaningful work that we are proud to be a part of."
Westpac NZ head of agribusiness, Richard Anderson, says rural communities and farmers have long been at the forefront of enhancing and protecting the natural environment.
"We're proud that our NZ Landcare Trust partnership enables us to support this important grassroots work," says Anderson.
"We're committed to helping New Zealanders look after their own backyards, and our network of Agri bankers also directly support many of our farmers to enhance their farms through our Sustainable Farm Loan, which provides benefits for the whole catchment area," he says.
As part of the project, Westpac employees throughout the country volunteer their time to work alongside local catchment groups and NZ Landcare Trust’s coordinators.
In 2025, 77 Westpac team members helped with different projects.
“All of Westpac’s 5,000-plus employees receive two volunteer leave days each year, and we’ll once again be encouraging our staff to get their hands dirty alongside other passionate locals on these projects,” Anderson says.
“Last month our Taranaki team used one of their volunteer days to assist Taranaki Catchment Communities on a site in Awatuna, planting more than 100 trees and shrubs to improve water quality.”
The Seven Recipients of 2026 Westpac Water Care Project Grants
- Pōrangahau Catchment Group – Taurekaitai ki Te Paerahi (Hawkes Bay) for a schools-based community planting day, including eco-sourced native plants for riparian and wetland planning and poplar poles for erosion-control slopes.
- Shannon Tokomaru Catchment (Horowhenua) for pest traps, native plants and fencing for wetlands and riparian margins for the 1,600-acre catchment of fenced mature native bush bordering Tararua Forest Park down to the Manawatū River, where there is a rich native fish community.
- Hunters Stream Community Group (Waimakariri) for a riparian corridor along Hunters Stream south of Cust, to ensure a clean stream and thriving wildlife through the mix of lifestyle blocks and larger farms.
- Lower Taieri Wetland Biodiversity Enhancement (Otago) to work with farmers to restore unproductive wet areas on their property through advice and native wetland planting.
- Lindis Catchment Group (Otago/South Canterbury) to continue native planting alongside the Tarras School to stabilise steam banks, suppress invasive crack willow regrowth and build a self-sustaining riparian corridor.
- Waihukatere / Te Kopu (Waikato) to clear noxious weeds along the Mangawhero Steam, plant the exposed areas in natives, and to establish an on-site nursery to grow trees for a longer-term sand dune restoration trial at the river mouth.
- Greater Dipton Catchment Group (Southland), to continue the restoration through shifting fences to enable young kōwhai to grow, riparian planning, and weed and predator control at the regionally and nationally significant, QEII-covenanted site that protects one of the last lowland kōwhai and ribbonwood forests on the Southland plains.
