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April 2019This report summarises analysis methods and outcomes for state and trends across New Zealand’s river water quality monitoring network. Read more -
April 2019This report summaries the published literature on land-use impacts on New Zealand's freshwater and coastal environments. Read more -
April 2019This report summarises analysis methods and outcomes for modelling nitrate-nitrogen leaching from livestock in New Zealand, from 1990 to 2017. Read more -
December 2018Ministry for the Environment, in partnership with Bay of Plenty Regional Council, commissioned Perrin Ag Consultants Ltd and Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research to develop mitigation bundles for use in evaluating the cost of improving water quality in the Kaituna-Pongakawa-Waitahanui and Rangitāiki Water Management Areas. Read more -
December 2018Ministry for the Environment, in partnership with Bay of Plenty Regional Council, commissioned Perrin Ag Consultants Ltd and Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research to assess the farm/orchard-gate economic impact of applying a range of mitigation practices to reduce losses of nitrogen, phosphorus, E. coli and sediment. Read more -
December 2018This report summarises the findings of the Ministry’s review of the National Environmental Standard for Source of Human Drinking Water. Read more -
December 2018Ministry for the Environment, in partnership with Bay of Plenty Regional Council, commissioned a literature review to get an accessible summary of relevant research carried out in New Zealand on methods to manage sediment and their economic assessment. Read more -
November 2018This document provides a summary of the submissions received on the Proposed mandatory phase out of single-use plastic shopping bags consultation document. Read more -
September 2018This report has two sections: Section 1, facilitated by Te Ātiawa Manawhenua Ki Te Tau Ihu Trust, describes the history and cultural values associated with the Waitohi and Waikawa streams. Section 2, an interim report by the Marlborough District Council, addresses Water Quality in the Waitohi and Waikawa catchments. This work will be used to inform future work that both parties can undertake in these catchments. Read more -
September 2018The Ministry for the Environment commissioned this research to identify perceived barriers to the adoption of any of the three mechanisms proposed in the draft plan change for the Tutaekuri, Ahuriri, Ngaruroro and Karamu catchments (known as ‘TANK’). Read more -
September 2018This report offers preliminary guidance to water management groups(WMGs), regional councils and other interested parties on how WMGs can be structured and what regional council plans should contain to improve the likelihood that groups will achieve the freshwater outcomes desired by their communities. Read more -
August 2018The Government is proposing to phase out single-use plastic shopping bags in New Zealand and would like to hear your views. Submissions closed at 5.00 pm on Friday 14 September 2018. Read more -
August 2018Trend analyses performed on many sites are regularly aggregated by water quality variable and summarised in tabular, graphical or map format as part of environmental reporting. Read more -
May 2018This report outlines the establishment of reference conditions and trigger values. Reference conditions are defined as the chemical, physical or biological conditions that can be expected in streams and rivers with minimal or no anthropogenic influence. Read more -
May 2018This document provides a summary of the submissions received during public consultation on a proposed National Environmental Standard for the Outdoor Storage of Tyres. Read more -
May 2018Phormidium is a potentially toxic, mat-forming benthic cyanobacterium found in an increasing number of New Zealand rivers. This report outlines a study which assessed Phormidium toxin levels in the Cardrona (Otago), Mataura (Southland) and Hutt (Wellington) Rivers in 2017. Read more -
May 2018The Managing Upstream project aims to help inform management decisions when establishing freshwater objectives under the Freshwater NPS and increase knowledge on the state of different estuary types in New Zealand. Read more -
May 2018The Managing Upstream project aims to help inform management decisions when establishing freshwater objectives under the Freshwater NPS and increase knowledge on the state of different estuary types in New Zealand. Read more -
May 2018Phormidium is a potentially toxic, mat-forming benthic cyanobacterium found in an increasing number of New Zealand rivers. This report outlines a study which investigated drivers of Phormidium blooms in New Zealand rivers to predict risk of blooms. Read more -
May 2018This report provides an environmental classification system for a potential deposited sediment indicator in the National Objectives Framework. The system classifies streams according to their modelled reference state. This report is an interim deliverable for an ongoing research programme that builds on and refines its findings and will conclude in June 2018. Read more -
May 2018This research assesses the applicability of environmental classification systems for a potential suspended sediment indicator in the National Objectives Framework. It evaluated the relationship between modelled suspended sediment indicator values and observed values, land cover, and River Environment Classification typologies. This report is an interim deliverable for an ongoing research programme that builds on and refines its findings and will conclude in June 2018. Read more -
May 2018This report proposes updated guideline values for copper and zinc in marine and freshwaters. Read more -
April 2018This report provides an analysis of New Zealand’s wetland loss for the period summer 2001/2 through to summer 2015/2016. Read more -
April 2018The Ministry for the Environment, Department of Conservation, and the Biological Heritage National Science Challenge co-funded research to look at contemporary losses of wetland extent in New Zealand. This report provides recommendations and a suggested path forward to improve our ability to monitor and report on national wetland extent. Read more -
March 2018This working paper produced by NIWA for the Ministry for the Environment in 2016 proposes a methodology for calculating over-allocation of fresh water. Read more -
March 2018This report has regional summaries of the work planned or underway to improve water quality in rivers and lakes in terms of human health. Read more -
February 2018An independent report has shown that water quality for sediment and E. coli have improved over the past 7-10 years in the Horizons Region. There are encouraging signs that local scale interventions are collectively contributing to regional scale water quality improvements. The case study, conducted by Land Water People Ltd and reviewed by NIWA and StatsNZ, was commissioned jointly by the Ministry for the Environment and Horizons Regional Council as a way to understand improving water quality trends in the Manawatū-Whanganui Region. Read more -
December 2017This report analyses the state of freshwater quality for the past 25 years based on a national scale model. Read more -
December 2017This report summarises the state and trends of groundwater quality between 2005 and 2014 Read more -
December 2017This report estimates the net amount of surface water available in New Zealand and in each region between 1995 and 2014. Read more -
November 2017This material is incorporated by reference in the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2020. Read more -
October 2017This report compares nutrient measurements in Wellington rivers by national recommended protocols versus Greater Wellington Regional Council’s historical protocols. Read more -
August 2017This report provides recommendations to the Minister for the Environment and Minister for Primary Industries on proposed amendments to the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2014. Read more -
August 2017This is an evaluation under s32AA of the Resource Management Act 1991, and further evaluates any changes to amendments proposed in the Clean Water discussion document since the initial s32 evaluation (published February 2017). Read more -
August 2017This document summaries the submissions recieved on the Government's proposal to ban on the sale and manufacture of plastic microbeads in personal care products in New Zealand. Read more -
July 2017The 2017 review of the effectiveness of the waste disposal levy reports on the success of the waste levy for the period of July 2013 to June 2016. Read more -
July 2017The Ministry for the Environment commissioned MWH, now part of Stantec, to carry out a National Waste Disposal Survey to gather data. Read more -
July 2017This project was aimed at developing Bay of Plenty Regional Council’s (BOPRC) staff capability to apply tools and frameworks to support freshwater policy development. It introduced tools, frameworks, processes and disciplines that will strengthen the policy process. Read more -
July 2017Since 2015, Gisborne District Council (GDC) and Beef and Lamb New Zealand have been engaging with Rere farmers to try and raise water quality together to a swimmable standard. Farmer interest and participation in the project has been high and this report tells the story of the Rere Project to date, including lessons, next steps and strategic implications. Read more -
June 2017The Government is seeking views on a proposed National Environmental Standard (NES) for the Outdoor Storage of Tyres. The proposed NES will provide a national rule to enable local authorities to appropriately manage the risks that can arise from outdoor tyre storage. Read more -
June 2017The Chief Economist Unit (CEU) at the Auckland Council commissioned this study on behalf of the Ministry for Environment to look at the feasibility of developing a Computational General Equilibrium (CGE) model to analyse the economic impacts of implementing the National Policy Statement on Freshwater Management. Read more -
June 2017GDC approached AgResearch to develop a model of the cost-effectiveness of appropriate mitigation options that could be implemented on farm to address the issue of faecal contamination (as indicated by the presence of E. coli) of the river. Read more -
June 2017Otago Regional Council (ORC) requested a programme of experimentation that would deliver quantitative measurements of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentrations and fluxes in leachate reported for pasture, forage crop and native bush sites in the West Matukituki Valley, located west of Lake Wanaka. Read more -
June 2017The regional/unitary councils for Waikato, Auckland, and Northland require a model to predict the annual delivery and sources of sediment across their regions for the purposes of environmental reporting and to inform strategy, policy, and sediment management operations. This study addresses this requirement in two tasks. Read more -
June 2017In 2014 Gisborne District Council received funding from the Ministry for the Environment to undertake a community-based pilot project the Lower Waipaoa and Te Arai catchment areas to identify, protect and enhance inanga spawning sites. Read more -
May 2017This report provides information on the categories used in the swimming maps, proposed targets, and proposed amendments to the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management released as part of the Government’s Clean Water package in February 2017. Read more -
May 2017This report talks about a national-level study that used a catchment model to explore where there may be capacity or ‘headroom’ for land-use intensification, taking into account constraints on contaminant loss from land due to freshwater bottom lines, and requirements for water quality to be maintained or improved. Read more -
May 2017This report outlines recommendations for a guideline for sedimentation in estuaries. Read more -
April 2017This report presents a case study of cultural assessments for fresh water in the Waitaki catchment in Canterbury. Read more -
April 2017This report provides an overview of the He Pātaka Wai Ora project, which integrated scientific and matauranga māori monitoring methods to establish the state of freshwater species’ biodiversity and water quality in the Waikouaiti catchment in North Otago. Read more