“I whakapapa back to the Wairarapa, and spent every summer as a child swimming in the Ruamahanga,” Shannon says. “As I got older, however, the river would frequently be too polluted to swim in, partly from farming run-off.”
This experience made Shannon realise the importance of finding ways to make farming more sustainable.
“Growing up around farms, I saw their importance, but I also saw the need to make them more sustainable to protect our environment.”
With this goal in mind, Shannon came to study science at the University. In 2018, a Summer Research Scholarship gave her the perfect opportunity to more forward with her goal, working with Dr Julie Deslippe and Dr Stephanie Tomscha to study wetland restoration on farms in the Wairarapa.
“Wetlands are like the kidneys of the land,” Shannon says. “They suck the pollutants out of the water, they absorb carbon from the atmosphere, help abate floods, and can increase biodiversity.”
However, 90% of wetlands in Aotearoa New Zealand have been lost, so the only way to get the many benefits from wetlands is through wetland restoration.
“Small scale restoration in happening on private property, but until now there hasn’t been much information on how successful this restoration has been,” Shannon says. “My work with Dr Deslippe gave me the chance to investigate how successful these projects have been and share the benefits of wetland restoration on farms in New Zealand.
“I met all sorts of inspirational farmers who are working to improve their land and the environment.”
After completing her Summer Research Scholarship, Shannon continued her work on wetlands through her Master’s degree.
“After spending more time on farms in the Wairarapa, I was able to prove that the small-scale wetland restoration farmers undertake is effective at increasing soil, plant, and microbial wetland restoration indicators,” she says.
Shannon’s Master’s research found that in the areas where farmers practised restoration, plant diversity increased by thirteen plants, soils became more wetland-like, and carbon absorption and microbial diversity increased. She says the wettest locations, particularly those in river-adjacent areas, showed more improvement, suggesting that flowing water may improve the chances of restoring wetland areas.
Shannon plans to continue her research through a PhD in the future, but her current focus is on her role as a policy analyst at the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI). “Through my work at MPI I can now look at ways we can use policy to encourage the sustainability of our farming sector,” Shannon says.
Shannon says both her Summer Research Scholarship and her Master’s were extremely rewarding and worthwhile.
“I spent my time in laboratories and in the field learning all sorts of crazy methods I never thought I would be capable of doing,” Shannon says. “I also learned how to code in R—a computer coding language used to record scientific results—and overcame a fear of statistics to discover it was my favourite part of the research process.”
Unsurprisingly, Shannon recommends trying both a Summer Research Scholarship and postgraduate study.
“It seems scarier than it is—postgraduate studies are very achievable as long as you’re committed enough!”