I had a great time restoring the New Zealand natural habitat at Waiheke Island! I can’t believe how dry and barren the hiking trail used to be. Native plants and forestry are great for flood reduction because shrubbery can absorb water, so this definitely has applications to flash flooding in California. Has anyone seen the LA “river?” It used to be a beautiful landscape full of native fish, plants, and birds, and is now a concrete canal which is used to funnel water during heavy rain. However, then all this water that California plants and wildlife desperately need is being transferred out to sea and not absorbed into the ground. Thus, instead of installing concrete barriers LA should look into restoring the native plants.
I also spotted some sheep along the way! Apparently sheep outnumber people 6:1 in NZ :0
Then we headed off to Mudbrick Vineyard which had a stunning view of Waiheke Island. I enjoyed hearing the speakers talk about their transition towards organic processing, their thoughts on sulfates and sulfides, and other aspects of making wine sustainably and healthily. The food was great too! 
