Carl Douglas writes:
The rolling hills of NZ are an industrial landscape, of course: the biodiversity of native bush has been removed and replaced with an ultra-simplified ecology centring on grass and cows or sheep. The deforestation process was begun by Maori clearing land for agriculture, and continued apace by European settlers. The industrial waste runoff (mostly cow excrement and fertilisers) entering the streams unfiltered has a highly destructive effect on the health of those waterways. A major challenge in addressing ecological problems like this is the presumption that grass+animals=nature, and the consequent blindness to the industrial nature of agriculture.
Well said. I didn't realize that about the Maori clearing the land—I have a very sketchy picture of how they moved over New Zealand and had thought they had simply ignored this part. Carl's point underscores the slightly disturbing quality of the land there—England blown up to hyperbolic size.
There was quite a hilarious piece of graffiti on some rocks in the valley near to Wedderburn: “After Death” on one, “Judgment” on the next one. I wanted to put up two signs next to them: “After dinner” and “mints.”