HOW TO GUIDE
Mapping your fencelines and planting areas
Have a go at using this guide. If you’re still not confident, please contact Jennifer Lawn 021 651 939 to get some help.
Considerations when planning a fenceline:
Leave at least a 5m strip on either side of a waterway. The bigger the better!
Aim to have straight lines. More corners = more strainer posts and more $.
You can mark out your fence with pegs, wooden stakes or similar so you can get a good idea of the shape of your fence line. This will help the fencing contractor too.
Set the fence further back where the land is unstable or steep.
Where there are seeps or shallow depressions adjacent to waterways, these should be fenced off (these areas can provide a disproportionate input of contaminants entering a waterway).
Include a gate or a section of removable board/ railing if there is a location where you may need to free stock if they get in.
Importantly, are there any flood-prone areas? Take the fence as wide of the waterway as you can in these locations.
Considerations when mapping your planting area:
Remember to leave a 2m space from any fences so that stock don’t push on the fence to graze vegetation, and so that vegetation doesn’t damage your fences.
If there is existing native vegetation, estimate this area and deduct it from your total.
If there are waterways or access lanes through the planting, estimate this area and deduct it from your total.
Now you’re ready to do the mapping! You have two options:
Instructions for Google Earth Online:
1. Go to https://earth.google.com
2. Find your property by clicking the magnifying glass on the left-hand side of the page and entering your address. Zoom in on your property using either the scroll wheel on your mouse, by double-clicking or by using the + and – buttons at the bottom right.
3. Click on the ‘Draw line or shape’ button at the bottom left. This is the same tool for fencelines and planting areas.
4. Click along the boundary, using as many points as you need. If you make a mistake, press Ctrl-Z to undo. Press enter to finish your fenceline, or click back on the first point to close your shape (for planting areas).
5. You will be prompted to save the drawing to a project. If you don’t already have one, select ‘New project’ and give it a name that identifies your property such as ‘Your name_Restoration project’.
6. A window will pop up on the left side. Give the shape you just created an appropriate name such as ‘Fencing_Your name’ or ‘Planting area_Your name’. If you have multiple areas, you can give them a meaningful name like ‘Planting area1_Your name_Top paddock’.
7. Click the back arrow (top left) once you’ve finished. The shape will now appear.
8. If you want to alter the shape at any stage, hover your mouse over its name under your project then click the pencil (Edit feature) button. You can then click and drag to move any of the points, or click on the smaller circles to add additional points. Again, click the back arrow when done.
9. Repeat this process for any other fences or planting areas that you want to sketch.
10. To find the m² of your planting area, click the ruler tool on the left, follow the same outline as your planting area – the box that appears will give you the ‘Area’ in m². The same applies to measuring fencelines. Make a note of the planting areas in m2 and the length of fencing as you will need this later to finish the application form.
11. Once you’ve sketched and measured everything, click on the three dots (More actions) at the top of your project the select ‘Export as KML file’. This will save your project to your downloads folder on your computer.
12. Locate the file and email to jennifer@haloproject.org.nz as an attachment. Well done!
Instructions for Google Earth Pro
1. Download Google Earth Pro here (it’s free). Install it on your computer then open it.
2. Enter your address into the search bar. Zoom in on your property using either the scroll wheel on your mouse, by double-clicking or by using the zoom slider on the right side of the window. If you need a better birds eye view, you can use the compasses on the top right hand side of the page.
3. The buttons on the top toolbar will let you draw paths/lines (for fences) or polygons/areas (for planting areas).
4. Click the appropriate tool for what you will draw. A window will appear. Give it a meaningful name such as ‘Fencing_Your name’ or ‘Planting area_Your name’. If you have multiple areas, you can give them a meaningful name like ‘Planting area1_Your name_Top paddock’. Keep the window open.
5. Simply click along the boundary, using as many points as you need. If you want to reposition any points, click and drag to move them or click to select and press the delete key to remove. You might find that when creating polygons, the solid colour obstructs your view and makes it hard to draw. If this is the case, go to the ‘Style, Color’ tab and change ‘Filled+Outlined’ to ‘Outlined’.
6. The measurement tab in this window will give you the length of paths/lines (fences) and the area m2 of polygons (planting areas). You can change the units to metres for fences; and square metres for planting areas. Make a note of the planting areas in m2 and the length of fencing as you will need this later to finish the application form.
7. When you’re happy with your drawing, click OK to close the window. Your new feature will appear in the ‘Places’ panel at left. If you want to alter the shape or see the measurements again, simply right-click it and go to ‘Properties’. The window will appear as before.
8. Repeat this process for any other fences or planting areas that you want to sketch. Once you’ve done this, right-click ‘My Places’ at the top of the ‘Places’ panel then ‘Add’ > ‘Folder’. Give the folder a name such as ‘Your name_Restoration project’
9. Click on the names of the fences and planting areas under ‘My Spaces’ and hold down the mouse button to drag these into the new folder.
10. To package your files for emailing to the Halo Project, right-click on your folder you created, then click ‘Save Place As’. Keep .kmz as the file type. Save it to somewhere on your computer where you can find it easily.
11. Email the file to jennifer@haloproject.org.nz as an attachment. Have a cup of tea, you’ve earned it.
Halo Project Source to Sea is supported by Te Uru Rākau, Kānoa and DOC Community Fund. Special thanks to Restoring the Moutere for help with this guide.