| 29 RURAL PEOPLE » Paroa Station Most productive land was underwater Rather than strip it back, Brendon’s approach has been to work with what is there, replanting in grass, chicory and lucerne, and rebuilding fertility over time. Kim Bowden Farm manager Brendon Ewart arrived on the East Coast’s Paroa Station just as Cyclone Gabrielle hit - and by the next morning 1,000 hectares of its most productive land was underwater. Several seasons on, the story is less about the cyclone itself and more about what has been rebuilt since. Paroa Station is owned by a Maori incorporation that is governed by a management board, and Brendon is employed to run the day-to-day operation. It sits 45 minutes north of Gisborne, spanning roughly 1,250 effective hectares. Of that, 1,000 hectares – and that is unique for the area – are river flats. “It’s a good thing because flats are significantly more productive than hill country generally,” Brendon says. “But, because it’s got rivers running all around it, it’s basically a giant floodplain, so we are always very much at risk of the whole thing going underwater.” The flats, once used for cropping, were left covered in silt after the flood. Rather than strip it back, Brendon’s approach has been to work with what is there, replanting in grass, chicory and lucerne, and rebuilding fertility over time. Cropping has largely been replaced with a focus on finishing stock. “We’ve just been slowly chipping away at it and building numbers as we’ve created more effective hectares,” he says. The station is now wintering 1,000 bulls, alongside a breeding flock of 2,500 ewes and 800 hoggets. Each year, between 10,000 and 12,000 lambs are traded and finished, and 300 R2 steers. Numbers are trending upward as more of the flats return to production. There have been other “commonsense” changes too post-cyclone. Brendon has consciously reconsidered some infrastructure rather than simply leaping to replace it. “You can see visually what the problem is, so it’s just about finding solutions,” he says. Before the cyclone, stock water was pumped straight from the river, with pumps sitting close to the water’s edge. Now, most of the pumping has been shifted to dams on higher ground, where the infrastructure is less exposed in a flood. Fencing near the river has changed too. Rather than heavy, expensive sheep fences that can be wiped out in one event, the team now tends to use simpler cattle fences with fewer wires and wider spacings, accepting they may lose some gear but reducing the cost when they do. “It’s just about trying to be resilient going forward,” Brendon says. The role has forced Brendon to adapt too. His background is in hill country farming around the Gisborne district, so relying on the flats has required a steep learning curve - not just for him, but for the wider team. Staff have taken on new roles, from operating tractors to managing regrassing programmes, often learning on the job as the farm rebuilds. For Brendon, that transition, and the long game, is part of the appeal. “It’s something you get to leave your mark on. You’re not just taking over a farm that’s already operating at a very high level,” he says. “Hopefully, we’re going to take something that’s damaged and underperforming and get it to a point where it is a high-performing operation.” PAROA STATION PROUD TO BE WORKING WITH Cartage of livestock, fertiliser, and general farm supplies For all your bulk Lime/Fertiliser Spreading Needs Onslow027 231 5650
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