To implement its Essential Freshwater package, the government has gazetted new freshwater standards and regulations to protect and restore New Zealand’s freshwater. These are the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2020, National Environmental Standards for Freshwater, and section 360 regulations on stock exclusion and real-time reporting for water takes data.

These are supplemented by recent amendments to the Resource Management Act 1991, to provide for a new freshwater planning process, freshwater farm plans, and reporting on the sale, purchase and intended use of nitrogenous fertiliser.

The Government’s overall Essential Freshwater objectives are to:

• stop further degradationof New Zealand’s freshwater resources and start making immediate improvements so that water quality is materially improving within five years
• reverse past damageto bring New Zealand’s freshwater resources, waterways and ecosystems to a healthy state within a generation.

A Freshwater Implementation Group will oversee the implementation of the new requirements.  More information here. Contact: freshwater@mfe.govt.nz

You can find factsheets on:

• An overview of the Essential Freshwater package
• Te Mana o te Wai
• Wetlands
• Rivers
• Fish passage
• Agricultural intensification
• Intensive winter grazing
• Stockholding and feedlots
• Stock exclusion
• Essential Freshwater milestones

Photo: Ministry for the Environment