.jpg)
The government has welcomed the recommendations of the Land and Water Forum to prioritise action in the most “at-risk” catchments.
Environment Minister David Parker and Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor have sought advice from the Land and Water Forum on a number of issues important to the future of New Zealand’s waterways and the primary sector.
“The government will act on some of the forum’s recommendations immediately, while the remaining recommendations will be considered in more detail as part of our work programme,” Parker said.
Parker said the joint Ministry for the Environment/Ministry of Primary Industries Water Directorate will work with regional councils to pull a coherent national picture of the state of catchments in both urban and rural parts of each region. They will also look closely at the primary sector, Maori and other interested groups.
The forum has recommended some changes to the current regulatory regime, including the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management (NPS-FM) and the Resource Management Act.
“We will give consideration to the forum’s recommendation to set up a Land and Water Commission alongside other options currently being considered for delivering the necessary national direction and actions,” Parker and O’Connor added.
