Toothless Water Rules Will Not Save Waituna
Although expected, the National Policy Statement on Freshwater Management, or clean water rules, that were released yesterday are a real disappointment. They are entirely toothless.
The Government is providing more money to assist with the cleaning of polluted water but surely dealing to the cause of the damage is the most effective strategy. Regional Councils will have no effective way to reduce or manage overstocking that is the main contributor to water degradation.
Those of us who have been desperate to save the Waituna Lagoon from flipping were looking to these rules as the last real possibility of ensuring substantial action. What was released instead was an irrigation handout, that will further intensify stock numbers, and a removal of the requirement to gain a resource consent for land use intensification. As Ali Timms, chair of the Environment Southland Council, has previously claimed, 100% compliance under the previous regulations will not save the lagoon and these new rules will not make a jot of a difference.
What we are lacking in this government is an understanding of what real governance means. They need to maintain a balanced perspective and find a sustainable pathway between economic interests and environmental sustainability. Instead they welcome the lobbyists for farming and business interests and allow them to dominate their thinking.
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