Freshwater Policy Review

Water is the source of life | He puna ora, he wai ora

Water means something to everyone. It provides us with food and recreational opportunities, gives us our drinking supplies, generates power and keeps businesses moving.

How we manage our environment so the fresh waterbodies of the Waikato can be enjoyed for generations to come is the focus of Waikato Regional Council’s Freshwater Policy Review. This policy review is just one of the requirements under central government’s Essential Freshwater package, which is about stopping further degradation of New Zealand’s fresh water and improving its quality and ecosystem health.

It involves making changes to our Waikato Regional Policy Statement (RPS) and developing a new Waikato Regional Plan to bring them into line with this direction. To do this, we’ll be seeking input from tangata whenua, the community and sector groups throughout the review process to ensure many voices are heard and considered in helping us to determine the best solution to managing our region’s fresh water.

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Have your say on fresh water | He mana tō reo

Last year, we spoke with tangata whenua, the community and sector groups about the issues, values and aspirations they have for fresh water in the Waikato and have some early policy direction based on the things people told us.

We now want to test with you what we’ve come up with, to make sure we’re on the right track. The feedback you share will be used to inform the changes that will apply to certain land and water use activities.

We'd like you to help us find the best way forward for freshwater and ensure our waterways can be enjoyed for generations to come.

The opportunity to share your feedback on this phase of the Freshwater Policy Review closed on 7 August 2023. Make sure to keep an eye out for further opportunities to provide feedback as the review progresses.