What a Trip! New Zealand and Back. Gary Deetz New Zealand has always been at the top of my list for places to visit but when I got involved in permaculture it became even more important. Along with Australia, New Zealand is one of the most well known areas of the world for permaculture activity. The two men who coined the word “permaculture”, Bill Mollison and David Holmgren, are Australians. As it turns out, David Holmgren was going to be in New Zealand at the same time as I was, speaking at the New Zealand Eco Show. I was anxious to meet him & hear him speak. The trip started with a 20-hour plus trip from Colorado Springs. We left at 6:00 AM and arrived in Auckland, New Zealand at 11:30 PM, the next day due to the crossing of the International Date Line. Thirteen hours on one plane is an arduous trip, but it was as good as it could be on Air New Zealand. The service was great and the food was above average for an airline. After arriving in Auckland, we went through a rigorous customs check, mostly to make sure that no invasive species of plants or animals were being brought into the country. New Zealand is very protective of its native environment, as it should be; because their environment is exceptional. The next day we found our way to Manakau City, Otara, home to the Eco Show. We arrived about 2 hours before David Holmgren’s talk on permaculture design principles, so we cruised the show. The most memorable moment of our cruising was meeting a couple from England traveling the world in a homemade caravan bus. They took a very old 1940’s truck and built a house onto the frame of it. It looks like one of those gypsy caravans from the old movies. The inside is all handcrafted and unique. By the way, a caravan in New Zealand refers to a motor-less RV, what we would call a trailer. On the bottom of the caravan is a chicken pen. The chickens go where they go providing a constant supply of fresh eggs and meat. David Holmgren spoke on the 12 Principles of Permaculture Design written about in his new book, Permaculture, Principles & Pathways Beyond Sustainability. These principles are: 1) Observe & Interact 2) Catch & Store Energy 3) Obtain a Yield 4) Apply Self-Regulation & Accept Feedback 5) Use & Value Renewable Resources & Services (at this point he gently blasted environmentalists for their attacks on the continued use of oil, explaining that it is still a necessity to get us to where we want to go) 6) Produce No Waste 7) Design From Patterns & Details 8) Integrate Rather Than Segregate 9) Use Small & Slow Solutions 10) Use & Value Diversity 11) Use Edges & Value The Marginal 12) Creatively Use & Respond To Change All of these principles are explained in detail in his book. After his talk, we met and had a pleasant conversation about his future plans, one of which is a visit to the U.S. in 2005 to promote his new book. We hope to see him again at that time. We continued our tour of the Eco Show visiting exhibits of alternative energy products and demonstrations of alternative building techniques. It was nice to see that we haven’t missed the boat here in the U.S. Many of us are on the same track as these New Zealanders to make the world a more sustainable place to live. After the show, we left in search of the Auckland harbor and a place to stay for the night. We ended up at the Quest hotel in downtown Auckland. This is a story in itself. The energy efficient design of this hotel was amazing. It was designed to be an apartment hotel primarily to be used by business travelers. The rooms are all equipped with washers and dryers, microwaves, stoves, dishwashers, and computer hookups. When you check in you are given the usual credit card type key but this is where the similarity ends. After you unlock the door and enter the room, you have to insert this key card into an electronic slot by the door inside to activate the power. In the same respect, when you remove the key to leave, the electricity in the room shuts down. There is no power to anything. I made the mistake of starting some laundry before I left the room, only to return and find it still sitting unwashed in the washer. When I left, I pulled the key, thus turning off the power to the room. In addition, the lights in the hallway didn’t go on until someone entered it. This is smart, efficient design. We enjoyed our stay at this hotel very much but had to move on the next day. We headed north for a town called Whangarei. A cyclone was closing in on us so we couldn’t go as far north as we wanted to. The trip up was educational. One thing that caught my eye was the roof of all the houses. They were all made of either metal or ceramic tile. I could not find an asphalt roof anywhere. Why is this so significant? Because metal and tile roofs are permanent, long lasting roofs that provide clean rainwater runoff, unlike asphalt roofs that leach contaminants into the runoff. This is important because next to most of these houses were large 30,000 gallon plus tanks that were were being used to catch and hold rainwater. These houses were not dependent on a city water system. That is commonplace in New Zealand. This is first source drinking water to the max! One of main principles of permaculture is to catch and hold water runoff. This is also a basic survival concept but in the state of Colorado and a few other states, it is against the law to catch water from your roof. After a nice stay overnight in Whangarei and wonderful walk in a rainforest we headed back south and west to Waitakere, home of Earth Song, a permaculture co-housing community being developed west of Auckland. We had been invited to an open house by one of the residents we met at the Eco Show. We had a beautiful ride down the western coast, arriving just a little late to the open house. After a brief introduction to the community, we were treated to a tour of the area and one of the homes. Alongside the sidewalks between the homes, there were swales built to catch and divert water runoff. They had come in handy, as a big rainstorm had just passed through the area. Every home at Earth Song is built with rammed earth construction. The walls are about a foot or more thick and very dense. This makes for great thermal holding properties. These houses have no mechanical heating or cooling. They do have lots of windows to allow plenty of light and fresh air. Inside, the floors are made of colored slab concrete again for heat retention. The wood beams are made from a sustainable wood grown in New Zealand called macracarpa. On top of each roof there is a solar hot water heating unit. Outside each block of houses, there is a large water tank, which holds the rainwater runoff from the roofs. Each tank provides drinking water to a group of eight homes. No need for a city water system here. The house had a warm earthy feel to it and was very cozy. I could easily call this home. Earth Song was built on land that was once an orchard so there is an abundance of mature fruit trees throughout the community. Many of the residents have also built small kitchen gardens outside their homes to provide for fresh vegetables. There are no streets running through the community and there is a common parking area for all cars, which makes the community very comfortable for strolling around. You never have to watch out for traffic. After a cup of tea with Lynette, one of the local residents, we headed east for the Coromandel Peninsula, our home for the rest of the trip. Before heading down south though, we made a pit stop at the Aratake Forest Preserve in the Waitakere Ranges. We walked the nature trail through the “bush” (rainforest) to a grove of protected Kauri (pronounced “cowry”) trees. These are to New Zealanders what redwoods are to Americans. They are the largest and oldest trees in New Zealand with some living to 4000 years. Most were flattened and buried in swamps by a huge natural disaster thousands of years ago. Now, only a small number exist and are currently protected. They are not only remarkable in their size but in their presence. Their massive branches are homes to species of ferns and bromeliads. It is a beautiful example of a symbiotic relationship between different plant species and makes for an impressive sight. On the way back, Bonnie, my partner, decided to try out some fresh New Zealand water flowing from a small water fall on the trail. We had heard that New Zealand’s streams were unpolluted and drinkable. This would be the first test. We needed gas so we pulled into a gas station. An attendant greeted us at the door of the car. We were so surprised we asked him what he wanted, forgetting about a time in America when attendants filled up your tank for you. One of the things we noticed at the station was the oil dispensers. If you need oil for your car, instead of buying a quart container, you dispense and pay for only the amount you need. This eliminates the waste of a container. How many oil containers do you suppose are buried in our landfills here in America, not decomposing! We continued on our trip to Tairua on the Coromandel Peninsula. The trip to Tairua was about 2 hours. Most of the drive was through farmland. It seems that most of New Zealand is comprised of farmland and forests or bush, as the natives call it. We have not seen much over-development on our trip except in the Auckland area, which is where almost half of the country’s population lives. During most of our travels we have been in open country full of sheep, cows, and domestic deer. We saw thousands of sheep and almost as many cows. All were grazing naturally in wide-open meadows or on grassy hillsides. Not much corn fed beef around here, just healthy, naturally raised cows. We reached Tairua and settled in for the next 10 days in a house right on the beach. At this point in the trip it was mostly fun time, including boogie-boarding, surfing, sea kayaking, and walks on the beach. It seems that people live simpler lives in New Zealand. They seem to be less materialistic. This may be because of their relative distance from the U.S. and Europe. It may be because stuff like computers, electronics, and cars are more expensive there. There are also far fewer stores to choose from. We never did see a mall anywhere, although I am sure there must be one somewhere in New Zealand. We didn’t watch much TV, but when we did, we didn’t see an overwhelming amount of advertisements to buy stuff like we have here in the U.S. I can’t say for sure what made New Zealand feel so good and special. If I had to guess, I would say it was the New Zealanders, or Kiwis, as the natives are called. We’ll be keeping in touch with some of these Kiwis and one day, it won’t be long distance.
For more about New Zealand, go to
www.about-new-zealand.com