The Greens want to lower nitrate limits in drinking water, tighten wastewater rules and phase out bottom trawling as part of a sweeping new freshwater and oceans policy — but National says it's "reigniting the war on farmers".
The "Drink Swim Fish" package, announced today, sets out eight interventions the party says would deliver clean drinking water, swimmable rivers and beaches.
The policy would set science-based national standards for freshwater, empower the drinking water regulator to enforce protections at source, phase out synthetic nitrogen fertiliser, and protect 30% of moana through reformed marine protection legislation.
It would also review the quota management system and phase out "destructive fishing methods", including bottom trawling on seamounts, set netting and dredging.
Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson said the policy was about protecting the taiao from "corporate greed".
"Clean, healthy water is a human right, and has been a way of life in Aotearoa for many generations," she said in a statement.
"It is madness that in Aotearoa, up to 100,000 people become sick from unsafe drinking water every year, popular beaches and swimming spots are closed every summer, and our once common fish like our iconic tarakihi populations have been fished to the brink of collapse."
The party accused the coalition of dismantling environmental protection.
Co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick said there was "no economy without the environment".
"When the Government fails to protect our environment, we all pay the price in clean-up costs, in our people and animals getting sick, let alone the impact on our economy," she said.
"Safe drinking water, a swim at the local beach, and catching some snapper on the weekend should not be too much to ask in this beautiful country.
"The recent outpouring of love for both public conservation land and our fish – against Luxon government’s plans – have only reaffirmed that New Zealanders want environmental health prioritised over commercial profits. It’s in our nature."
The policy also includes support for kaitiakitanga Māori in marine management and iwi and hapū-led conservation and restoration initiatives.
Reacting to the Greens' policy, National's agriculture spokesperson Todd McClay said a Labour-Green government would "reignite war on farming".
"The Green Party's plan to ban fertilisers and cull cows would gut one of New Zealand's biggest export industries. It would stifle growth and make it harder for our farmers to compete with the rest of the world," he said in a media release.
McClay's "cull cows" claim referred to the Green Party's separate agriculture policy, released in March, which called for "adjusting stocking rates according to the holding capacity of the land" to reduce agricultural emissions.
He argued the environment and the economy could be managed together, pointing to the coalition's plan to replace the Resource Management Act.
"We all want cleaner rivers, healthier freshwater and thriving oceans," he said.
"That is why we are replacing the Resource Management Act with a system that protects the environment while making it easier to build, invest and get things done."
He said "National would build the future through trade, exports and world-leading food production. Labour and the Greens will punish farmers, shrink exports and leave the whole country poorer".
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