Podcasts Other The Mike Hosking Breakfast Jenny Webster-Brown: Land and Water Director on a report finding that every region needs to reduce contaminants to meet freshwater standards

Jenny Webster-Brown: Land and Water Director on a report finding that every region needs to reduce contaminants to meet freshwater standards

Published: Nov. 29, 2023, 6:53 p.m.

A new report into New Zealand's achievement of water quality targets has provided a sombre read.\xa0

It's evaluated four contaminants \u2014nitrogen, phosphorus, E. coli, and sediment\u2014 in rivers, lakes, and estuaries nationwide.\xa0\xa0

Every region needs to substantially reduce at least one to meet freshwater standards.\xa0

75% of land is contributing more E. coli to water than is allowed.\xa0

Our Land and Water Director, Jenny Webster-Brown told Mike Hosking that the worst areas are those where agricultural production has been most intensive.\xa0

She says it's a combined factor in some cases, with some land's geology favouring sediment and erosion.\xa0

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