PCE's report on water quality - experts respond
|
EMBARGOED UNTIL 8.30am (NZT) THURS NOVEMBER 21
New Zealand is undergoing major changes in land use and decision makers need to be aware of the consequences for the future, says the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment, Dr Jan Wright.
The conclusion comes in her latest report, Water quality in New Zealand: Land use and nutrient pollution, to be released Thursday 21 November at 8.30am.
The report examines how New Zealanders are changing the way they use land and what this means for water quality.For a copy of the report, please contact Dan Ormond: dan@ideasshop.co.nz ; 027 251 9849. The SMC collected the following expert commentary. Feel free to use these quotes in your reporting. If you would like to contact a New Zealand expert, please contact the SMC (04 499 5476; smc@sciencemediacentre.co.nz). These comments are abridged, log into the SMC Resource Library for full comments.Assoc Prof Russell Death, Institute of Agriculture and Environment, Massey University, comments:"As the son of a retired dairy farmer and a country lad at heart I would love to see the win-win for the economy and environment that Jan Wright alluded to in her report on the effects of land use on water quality in New Zealand. However, her report clearly illustrates what many scientists and economists already know, if we continue with increasing dairy intensification, without some drastic changes in how we farm, the most likely outcome is lose-lose. Many of our waterways are already badly degraded, agriculture creates pollutants (nitrogen, phosphorous and sediment) and thus increasing agriculture even with the best mitigation practices (none of which are even close to perfect) will still result in more pollutants entering our waterways. More pollutants, lower water quality, it's not rocket science. "The National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management was a good start, but without the appropriate bottom lines (or even the correct parameters) the National Objectives Framework in its current form will not help. Furthermore, focusing on just one pollutant (e.g., phosphorous) is also unlikely to work; ecosystems are too complex to manage in such a simplistic way. If we want the win-win we need to get serious about the discussion instead of hiding it with the current smoke screen promulgated by much of the industry and government supported "science". This report goes some way towards some real science for that conversation."Assoc Prof Death is not available for interview.Dr Mike Scarsbrook, Environment Policy Manager for DairyNZ, comments: "The latest water quality report from the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment presents one possible future for New Zealand. It looks ahead to 2020 and predicts changes in nutrient loads in rivers resulting from land use change. Market drivers (e.g. commodity prices) and land availability drive predictions of land use change. It assumes there are no regulated limits on nutrients in our waterways and no limits on the availability of water and other resources for our farms. It also assumes that farming systems will not change other than to meet current good practice targets, with gains offsetting intensification on existing farms. Is this realistic? Not really. The NPS for Freshwater Management, released in 2011, has fundamentally changed how we manage freshwater resources. The days of unconstrained growth in dairy farming are over."The value in the report from the PCE is in providing a very clear picture of the link between land use intensity and nitrogen loads. It is inescapable and undeniable that as more and more land shifts from low nitrogen loss activities to high nitrogen loss activities the load in rivers and other receiving waters will increase. "The dilemma facing New Zealand is not a choice between economy and environment. To a large extent that decision was made generations ago when the land was cleared for agriculture. The challenge we face is in determining what levels of nitrogen and phosphorus are acceptable in our waterways."For some waterways in the country, communities have already determined that the acceptable loads of nutrients have been exceeded (e.g. Manawatu River). For others there may be potential for further load increases, so long as the water quality objectives set by the community are achieved (e.g Tukituki River). A long process of setting water quality limits around the country is only just beginning."David Hamilton, President, New Zealand Freshwater Sciences Society, comments:"The PCE has again provided a report that enables the public to gain knowledge of water quality issues in New Zealand and to be engaged in debate around this topic. This report follows on from an excellent report on 'Water Quality in New Zealand: Understanding the Science' published earlier in 2013, which provides a valuable introduction to the subject matter of the present report."The new report clearly highlights the enormous challenge that we face as a nation: how to meet the government's goals of doubling the value of agricultural exports by 2025 whilst meeting the 2011 National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management (the NPS) which requires that the "overall quality of fresh water" in all regions of the country be maintained or improved. It is clear from the report that 'business as usual' will not get us over the line and that a step change and solution-focused approach are required, mostly in environmental management in the agricultural industry, to meet the NPS objectives."The PCE report shows how major gains in productivity from large-scale land conversions to more intensive agricultural land use (e.g. dairy farming) and fertiliser applications have not been matched by capacity to mitigate these effects over the past decade. It hints at the need to both regulate land conversions as well as adopting best management practices to address nutrient runoff from farming."
|
More information
For more information, or to follow up with relevant experts, please contact the Science Media Centre on (04) 499 5476, or smc@sciencemediacentre.co.nz
Note to editors
The Science Media Centre (NZ) is an independent source of expert comment and information for journalists covering science and technology in New Zealand. Our aim is to promote accurate, evidence-based reporting on science and technology by helping the media work more closely with the scientific community. The SMC (NZ) is an independent centre established by the Royal Society of New Zealand with funding from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment. The views expressed in this Science Alert are those of the individuals and organisations indicated and do not reflect the views of the SMC or its employees. For further information about the centre, or to offer feedback, please email us at smc@sciencemediacentre.co.nz.
|
|
