While Freshwater Environments NZ (FENZ) has been a core knowledge source for lake resource management for some time, it is rapidly becoming outdated. Environmental data exists for fewer than 5% of our lakes, and of those, datasets are limited. The lack of knowledge in its current state makes it very difficult to effectively manage lakes as a natural resource and to monitor ecosystems and indigenous biodiversity. During recent work to analyse and update lake records, it was discovered that in some regions, up to 22% of recorded lakes in the FENZ database were non-existent or misclassified.
This project addressed this issue by utilising new techniques to develop an updated nationally consistent lakes database.
See updated map.
While Freshwater Environments NZ (FENZ) has been a core knowledge source for lake resource management for some time, it is rapidly becoming outdated. Environmental data exists for fewer than 5% of our lakes, and of those, datasets are limited. The lack of knowledge in its current state makes it very difficult to effectively manage lakes as a natural resource and to monitor ecosystems and indigenous biodiversity. During recent work to analyse and update lake records, it was discovered that in some regions, up to 22% of recorded lakes in the FENZ database were non-existent or misclassified.
This project addressed this issue by utilising new techniques to develop an updated nationally consistent lakes database.
See updated map.