National wants a long-term plan for water storage to tackle the ongoing water crisis that sees severe drought and restrictions hitting parts of the country.
The party is steering clear of placing a price on bottled water or Māori water rights, however.
"National believes that water belongs to everyone, but is owned by no-one," the policy states
Instead, the party is pledging to create a "model that allows us to unlock our economic potential and safeguard our communities from increasing drought".
"National will support the local government sector to develop the three waters infrastructure, which will include clean water infrastructure and storage."
National, if elected, would give $600 million to develop a long-term plan for water storage, develop a national policy statement on water storage so there was certainty around the use of water with minimum environmental standards.
It also wants to guarantee common ownership of water and treat water as a prime strategic resource.
Last year, the tax working group recommended a tax on water extraction , however it said the issue of Māori rights for water needed to be addressed first.
National's policy statement said, "Auckland has had to endure restrictions on water for much of this year, while small towns like Kaikohe have come close to running out of drinking water".
"The severe drought in Northland, Waikato and Hawke’s Bay have led to significant stockfeed shortages, production losses and risks to animal welfare," the policy document reads.
"Under climate change predictions, these situations are likely to increase in frequency and severity for many of New Zealand’s towns, cities, and regions."
National's environment spokesperson Scott Simpson said New Zealand "has water, we’re just not using it".
Their agriculture spokesperson David Bennett said there was a "commitment from farmers with access to water to farm within existing limits and meet the highest environmental standards possible".
"We can’t keep letting our water flow out to sea while our towns run out of water and our farms dry up. National will provide water storage that delivers for your business, delivers for your environment and delivers for your community."
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