Weaker freshwater rules would threaten rural people’s health - Greenpeace

Greenpeace Aotearoa is calling on Christopher Luxon to keep his hands off of freshwater protections in the wake of the Government’s announcement today of plans to replace the National Policy Statement on Freshwater and ‘clarify’ New Zealand’s drinking water standards.

Greenpeace spokesperson Amanda Larsson says, "Access to safe, healthy drinking water is a fundamental human right. Everyone should be able to safely drink the water coming out of their kitchen tap or take a dip in the local river without getting sick, but that is far from reality for much of rural New Zealand.

"While we don’t yet know the details of these latest pieces of legislation, the direction of travel is clear. Christopher Luxon’s government has been working to gut New Zealand’s freshwater protections in favour of allowing the dairy industry to pollute rivers, lakes and drinking water.

"Environmental regulations exist for a reason - to protect the places and creatures we care about and the things we depend on like clean drinking water."

Public health scientists from Otago University warn that nitrate in drinking water could be causing up to 100 cases of bowel cancer a year in New Zealand, resulting in 40 deaths. Rural communities on bore water are the most at risk.

An interactive map of New Zealand produced by Greenpeace has shown the extent of nitrate contamination in rural communities, and the organisation plans to run more of the community testing events that have contributed data to the map this year.

Larsson says "From the smallest towns to the biggest cities, tens of thousands of New Zealanders are calling for stronger freshwater protections."