Recreational river users sought for survey

All of New Zealand's recreational river users are being called on to
take part in a major survey exploring river use and motivation for
participation. The survey's findings are expected to aid future
policymaking and planning decisions.

The University of Otago researchers hope to provide the first
comprehensive evidence-based model of the needs and values of all the
country's river user groups, including kayakers, anglers and multi-sporters.

The internet survey will be launched on November 1. The research team
will also travel to selected river recreation events over the next
few months to encourage people to take part.

School of Physical Education Lecturer Dr Shayne Galloway says the
survey will give people who recreate on rivers the opportunity to
clearly set out how and why they use and value them.

"There is a significant gap in knowledge regarding recreational users
and their needs as compared to industry use and needs," Dr. Galloway says.

"If we can gather good empirical evidence from all the river user
groups in the country, we can provide relevant policy makers with an
accurate picture of how important recreational users hold their rivers to be."

The analysis should also allow a comprehensive understanding of the
motivations and barriers to participation among different groups of
users, he says. This would include Maori taking part in traditional
activities such as mahinga kai and waka ama and contemporary
recreational river uses.

The survey will ask participants a range of questions about their
past use of rivers and their motivations for participation. In
addition, the respondents will be asked to make decisions about
participation under particular scenarios.

"From the survey we can develop an in-depth model of why rivers in
New Zealand are valued for particular recreational uses and to what
degree," he says.

"Carefully balancing the needs of recreational and industrial uses of
rivers is becoming increasingly difficult. We hope that this study
can have a significant impact by providing robust data, but that will
depend on participation from the public."

The more people from different activities who participate in the
survey, the more robust its findings will be, he says.

Pre-register for the survey

The researchers are encouraging as many river users as possible to
take the time to fill it out. The survey is located at
www.riversurvey.otago.ac.nz. Those interested may pre-register for
the survey before 1 November.

Funding

The New Zealand Recreational River Use Study: Specialisation,
Motivation and Decision-making is funded by a SPARC Research Grant,
the New Zealand Water Safety Council, and the University of Otago
School of Physical Education.

For more information, contact:

Dr Shayne Galloway
Lecturer
School of Physical Education
University of Otago
Tel: 03 479 8649
Email: shayne.galloway@otago.ac.nz