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EDS Welcomes Land and Water Forum Report
EDS Welcomes Land and Water Forum
Report
The Environmental Defence Society
has welcomed the release today of the Land and Water Forum's
report A Fresh Start for Freshwater.
Speaking at the launch at the Beehive, EDS Chairman Gary Taylor outlined how the initiative arose out of the Society's 2008 conference where EDS persuaded a number of stakeholders to collaborate to find a better way forward for freshwater management. The process, known as collaborative governance, was a first for New Zealand and was based on Scandinavian models.
"The government liked what it saw, decided to back the initiative, gave us funding and now after more than a year's deliberations, we have finally nailed an agreed set of recommendations," said Gary Taylor.
"These include setting up a new Land and Water Commission to provide oversight of freshwater management, beefing up the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment to provide independent monitoring, pushing forward with audited self-management at the farm level, providing clear national policies, objectives and standards and giving more support to regional councils.
"We have also agreed that regional councils should be required to prepare Water Plans via an inclusive and collaborative process and that there should be a nationally funded effort to clean up degraded water bodies. We want more riparian planting and exclusion of stock from streams.
"The Forum agreed that we urgently need a National Policy Statement to provide overall policy direction and that the one recommended by the Board of Inquiry is a good basis for one.
"In my view it's crucially important that the Minister for the Environment promulgates a National Policy Statement as soon as possible. Any other issues can be dealt with separately and should not slow down getting national guidance in place.
"This is the single most important issue.
"Overall the Land and Water Forum has produced a credible report containing 53 separate recommendations that if implemented will achieve a step-change in the management of New Zealand's valuable freshwater resources. I look forward to the further process of socialising it with the wider community in the series of workshops that are planned around the country," Mr Taylor concluded.
ENDS
Environmental Defence Society
EDS speaks for the environment. It has influence.
Since 1971, EDS has been driving environmental protection in Aotearoa New Zealand
through law and policy change. That's why it's one of this country's most influential non-
profit organisations when it comes to achieving better environmental outcomes.
EDS has expertise in key disciplines including law, planning, landscape and science. It
operates as a policy think-tank, a litigation advocate, and a collaborator – bringing together
the private and public sectors for constructive engagement.
EDS runs conferences and seminars on topical issues, including an annual Environmental
Summit and the Climate Change and Business Conference.
EDS is a registered charity and donations to it are tax-deductible.
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