State of the Environment freshwater monitoring programme

Freshwater Ecology Programme

On this page:

• What is the Freshwater Ecology Programme?
• How does it work?

What is the Freshwater Ecology Programme?

Our State of the Environment (SoE) Freshwater Ecology programme began in 2000 and monitors the numbers and types of macroinvertebrates (bugs) in more than 60 rivers and streams throughout the Auckland region. This gives us a good idea of the biological health of these streams. Another programme, the Rivers & Streams Water Quality Programme, monitors the amount of contaminants in some of these streams to assess the water quality.

The results from both programmes combined show the overall health of each stream and its physical, chemical, and biological condition.

This knowledge helps us to identify any short-term changes and long-term trends in the quality of the water and the condition of the stream so that, if necessary, we can try and fix any problems.

This programme is part of our responsibility under Section 35 of the Resource Management Act.

How Does It Work?

Each stream provides a variety of natural physical habitats that suit different types of aquatic insects, macroinvertebrates, fish, and plants.

Some macroinvertebrate species are far more sensitive than others to the quality of water and the physical condition of the stream. These are known as indicator species and include the larvae of various insects, crayfish, worms, and snails.

The Freshwater Ecology programme surveys the numbers and variety of these indicator species at a number of sites across the Auckland region  (see the map below), using a Macroinvertebrate Community Index (MCI-sb) to assess the biological quality of the stream.