To make the Waitara river safe for swimming again, the Green Party will:
- Upgrade and invest in sewerage systems that dispose sewage onto land rather than water, where appropriate.
- Require as a minimum that all water bodies be safe for swimming in the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management, rather than the current ‘safe for wading and boating’ standard.
- Develop national standards to limit the amount of pollution going into water.
- Put a levy on pollution going into rivers. We’ll use this money to support sustainable land and water management programmes like freshwater habitat restoration.
- Ensure Māori are recognised and supported in their role as kaitiaki of their taonga and tikanga.
- Put a hold on all new conversions of land to dairy farms.
- Require resource consents in cases where the proposed land use is more intensive than the current land use.
- Introduce rules that require all farms to be fenced from rivers and creeks, and for riverbanks to be planted so that excess run-off is absorbed.
Read more about our solutions to the freshwater crisis