Neighbourhood catchments: a new approach for achieving ownership and change in catchment and stream management

The Neighbourhood Catchment approach integrates land and stream management practices at a property and through to a local catchment scale, links production and environmental goals, and is a building block to achieve ownership and change at a sub-catchment scale and larger. Research conducted in two 'focus' Neighbourhood Catchments has shown that land management practices that retain >30% soil cover reduce sediment movement to streams. The Neighbourhood Catchment approach engages both early and cautious adopters, and enables continuous improvement of resource management to take place, and be recorded at an individual property and local catchment scale.