Land & Water Forum report a first step

BusinessNZ says the report released today by the Land & Water Forum is a first step towards an improved water management system for New Zealand.

But Chief Executive Phil O’Reilly says much more work is needed to get a workable framework for water use.

“Water allocation and quality are crucial issues for the future of the New Zealand economy, and the country needs certainty about how these will be managed.

“Businesses dependent on water need security around usage rights and rules as uncertainty around these discourages investment.

“The ability to trade those rights is also needed to ensure that water moves to its most highly valued uses.

“Now the Forum has identified some of the key issues, work needs to begin on setting up a lasting framework that caters to the needs of all water users.

“Business will be looking for a clear direction from the Minister on how the issues can be addressed in an open and transparent way.”