Abstract
The regional council in Canterbury, Environment Canterbury (ECan) has just voted to declare a regional “nitrate emergency,” citing rising nitrate trends in most monitored groundwater sites (see Appendix 1). The declaration is an official and public acknowledgment that groundwater quality is deteriorating and that faster action is needed to protect drinking water sources and public health.
While the declaration is a step in the right direction, ECan needs a robust path to address the severe nitrate contamination of the region’s drinking water sources to make decisive progress. Indeed, Central Government is removing or weakening many of the policy and regulatory tools councils need to protect drinking water sources from nitrate contamination. Despite this, those who are elected to council in October need to consider the steps outlined in this Briefing if the region is ever going to meaningfully reduce nitrate contamination. More broadly there is an ongoing need for Central and Local Government to do more toward source water protection by addressing the excessively high densities of dairy cows in parts of the country.