Luxon strips local governments’ power to protect fresh water – Greenpeace

Greenpeace says the Government’s move to remove local government power to protect fresh water is an underhanded overreach that undermines democracy and puts vital fresh water at risk.

The Government has signalled that it will introduce an amendment to the Resource Management (Freshwater and Other Matters) Amendment Bill to prevent local councils from notifying their freshwater plans until the Government replaces the National Policy Statement on Freshwater Management.

Greenpeace spokesperson Sinead Deighton-O’Flynn says, “The anti-nature Luxon Government is stripping control from local and district councils who want to protect lakes, rivers, and drinking water for generations to come.

“Christopher Luxon’s government has declared war on nature, but that should not stop responsible local governments from putting in place their own protections to safeguard their constituents’ access to safe, healthy drinking water.

“Rural communities are suffering the consequences of nitrate-contaminated drinking water, lakes and rivers across Aotearoa are unswimmable, and the state of freshwater is getting worse. We need more protection of fresh water, not less,” says Deighton-O’Flynn.

“We know that everyone, no matter where they live or who they voted for, wants and deserves access to safe, healthy drinking water, but right now, central government is stripping away the rules that ensure drinking water quality through this bill – and now they’ve gone one step further.

“It’s clear that this amendment is a reaction to regional and district councils pushing for more effective freshwater policies rather than bowing down to Luxon’s push to strip back water protections.”

The Otago Regional Council has been in the news recently over criticism from Luxon’s government due to plans to continue with notifying their freshwater plan, with farming industry lobby group Federated Farmers calling on the Government to stop this from happening.

“Luxon must keep his hands off the freshwater protections and allow local councils to set strong and ambitious freshwater protections that safeguard lakes, rivers, and drinking water,” says Deighton-O’Flynn.

A Greenpeace petition calling on Luxon to keep his hands off freshwater protections has been signed by more than twenty thousand people. The Resource Management (Freshwater and Other Matters) Amendment Bill passed its second reading in Parliament last week, and is set to go through the Committee of the Whole House later today.