The pollution of lakes and river is the top concern for Kiwis at the start of 2019.
A new poll commissioned by Fish and Game shows it to be a burning issue for 82 per cent of New Zealanders – up 7 per cent on last year.
Other concerns like the cost of living, the health system, child poverty and housing lagged behind.
“We know It’s been a big issue – last year it was issue No. 3 at the election,” Martin Taylor of Fish and Game tells 1 NEWS. “It’s just going up in the Kiwis’ estimation.
“Kiwis expect to be able to swim and fish and collect kai in their local streams without getting sick.”
The poll result is also no surprise for farmers in North Canterbury.
“I think it’s pretty high up there on most farmers’ interest, too,” says Federated Farmers’ Cameron Henderson. “Particularly when you’re talking summer. Everyone wants to get near the water, so it makes sense.”
Around 70 per cent of New Zealand’s rivers are deemed safe to swim in, and the Government has a give-year plan to improve that rate. But Fish and Game says the problem’s getting worse and there’s an obvious solution.
“When you’ve got millions of cows you’ve got billions of litres of manure, and that’s going to create environment issues,” Mr Taylor says. “The problem is we’ve got too many cows and we’ve got an industry that needs more regulation.”
Farmers acknowledge they need to do more.
“We probably do need the social pressure – you know, encourage us to keep going and not to say, ‘Right, we’ve made a few token steps and that’s enough’,” says Mr Henderson.
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