Barbara Stuart grew up on a farm around Lyttelton Harbour, the daughter of a pioneering farming family on the Port Hills, with proud associations with the land spanning generations. Today, with husband Ian, who is the current president of Federated Farmers for the Nelson region, they run a family property of close to 2,500 acres at Cable Bay. Describing themselves as sheep and beef farmers, the farm is roughly a third productive land, a third in forestry, with a third being native bush locked up with protective covenants.
Barbara and Ian have been together on the farm since 1975 and despite the large acreage Barbara humourously describes it, "as a rough hard farm, and probably one of the worst in Nelson". They are always looking for ways to diversify their business, and this Labour weekend will see the opening of their new Cable Bay Campground.
"The campground is a good way to utilise the small amount of flat ground that we have, it's got history as the original cable station site and its also got the walkway and a lovely backdrop of native bush, a beach, and we live in a neat place. It's a good low impact way of sharing our property, and making some money along the way."
Barbara also devotes a fair amount of her time and energy to community groups, and is involved with the Nelson North Community Vision Group, the Whakapuaka
River Monitoring Group, and for the last two years has been the Regional co-ordinator of the New Zealand Landcare Trust.
As a rural woman, Barbara believes in caring for the land, and that farmers and landowners are good at caring for the land, with occasionally poor decisions made simply through a lack of understanding. "There is a perception that they are out there to plunder, take and pillage from the land, but rural people love the land, and they care about the way they handle it. Rural people are very good at turning things around if they understand what is going on, they don't like to see toxicity washed down to the estuary for example. They would hate to think that their actions are having a bad effect on the environment. It gives me a sense of well being to be out there, helping fellow rural people to do the best they can, with the knowledge they have."
As the Regional co-ordinator for Landcare, Barbara works with private landowners in sustainable land management issues, protecting and enhancing waterways and planting native plants. She sees the role as facilitating processes by talking to both landowners and the various agencies such as councils, DOC and the scientific and monitoring agencies such as NIWA and the Cawthron Institute. Her involvement with the Sherry River, a catchment of the Motueka River, saw the coming together of the interested parties, both farmers and the councilors, and monitoring water quality, which led to the installation of stock bridges over the river.
"It was a good example to farmers of the benefits of bridges over waterways. They can sleep easy on wet nights knowing the stock can get across the river, it reduces animal health problems with bruised and sore feet, it provides less wear and tear on machinery, and it reduces the risks. Farmers do take risks following cows through rivers on motorbikes, and it's quicker, for some it's a time reduction of at least 20 minutes, it's more efficient all around."
Barbara admits it demonstrates a substantial commitment, and faith in the industry on the farmers' part, particularly with dairy farmers payouts reducing to $3.70 this year, it is much harder for farmers to respond.
"A good strategy for farmers, if they have a problem like that with the waterways is to start planning at least, because there certainly are some good benefits."
