Kia ora
The Government has passed into law new regulations to restore and protect our rivers, lakes, streams, aquifers and wetlands for future generations.
This is the outcome of a major work programme led by the Ministry for the Environment with support from the Ministry for Primary Industries over the past two years.
The new National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2020 (NPS-FM 2020), National Environmental Standards for Freshwater 2020 (NES-FW), stock exclusion regulations, and measurement and reporting of water takes regulations were gazetted today, and will take effect on 3 September 2020.
You can read about them on our website:
This new national direction, part of the Essential Freshwater reforms, contributes to the Government’s commitment to stop further degradation, make immediate improvements, and restore waterways within a generation.
You can read the announcement on the Beehive website.
Preliminary guidance for farmers, horticulturalists, and regional councils and others directly affected by the regulations is available on our website. This includes information for what people need to do and when.
We are developing further comprehensive guidance and implementation support, and we will let you know as this becomes available progressively over coming weeks and months.
Background information about the decision-making and legislative process is available on the Ministry’s website. This includes the cabinet papers, a summary of submissions report, the Independent Advisory Panel’s and advisory groups’ final reports, and the impact assessment reports. Economic, scientific and social impact analysis was commissioned post-consultation and this work was peer reviewed. These reports are available too.
We are still finalising a report that summarises the Environment Minister’s decisions on the Independent Advisory Panel’s recommendations and the reasons for those decisions. We will send out a link to the report when it is completed.
I would like to thank and acknowledge again the many people who have worked tirelessly alongside us and helped to make these regulations as effective as possible. We look forward to working with you to implement the regulations.
Ngā mihi nui
Martin Workman
Acting Deputy Secretary for Sustainable Land Use Delivery
Ministry for the Environment
Mana Ake