Challenges for freshwater science in policy development: reflections from the science–policy interface in New Zealand

Rouse, H. L.; Norton, Ned

doi:10.1080/00288330.2016.1264431

Cited by 15 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…LAWF, 2012). Collaborative approaches to catchment planning are now being implemented throughout New Zealand Rouse et al, 2016) with many plans in their second decade of implementation, and giving greater weight to Māori cultural values (Harmsworth et al, 2011). Public concerns over declining water quality in lowland rivers, Māori calls for a greater role in water governance, and calls for resource rentals to be paid especially for water exports have raised water governance to a national political issue (Fenemor, 2017).…”

Section: New Zealand Water Policymentioning

confidence: 99%

OECD Principles on Water Governance in practice: an assessment of existing frameworks in Europe, Asia-Pacific, Africa and South America

Neto

Camkin

Fenemor

et al. 2017

Water International

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Through the lens of the 12 OECD Principles on Water Governance, this paper examines six water resources and water services frameworks in Europe, Asia-Pacific, Africa and South America to understand enhancing and constraining contextual factors. We use qualitative and quantitative methods to analyse each framework against four criteria: alignment; implementation; on-ground results; and policy impact. We identify four main target areas for improving water governance: policy coherence; financing; managing trade-offs; and ensuring integrity and transparency by all decisionmakers and stakeholders. We present suggestions to support practical implementation of the principles through better governmental action and stakeholder involvement.

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Section: New Zealand Water Policymentioning

confidence: 99%

OECD Principles on Water Governance in practice: an assessment of existing frameworks in Europe, Asia-Pacific, Africa and South America

Neto

Camkin

Fenemor

et al. 2017

Water International

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show abstract

“…LAWF 2012). Collaborative approaches to catchment planning are now being implemented throughout New Zealand (Fenemor et al 2011; Rouse et al 2016) and giving greater weight to Māori cultural values (Harmsworth et al 2011).…”

Section: Commentary On Strengths and Weaknessesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Water governance in New Zealand – challenges and future directions

Fenemor¹,

Neilan²,

Allen³

et al. 2017

New Water Policy & Practice

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New Zealand has one of the most devolved water governance regimes in the world. It has been also one of the first countries to give legal recognition to indigenous (Māori) rights for water, and in 2017 the first to give a river legal status as a person. Yet water governance in New Zealand has recently become politically contentious, primarily because of recent declines in water quality of lowland rivers and lakes brought about by land use intensification, especially intensification of dairy farming. This paper reviews water governance arrangements in New Zealand. The legal anchors for water governance are the Resource Management Act 1991 and the Local Government Act 2002. Fresh water is managed by 16 regional councils under a highly devolved statutory planning regime and a system of resource consents for management of land use, water takes and discharges. Regional council boundaries largely follow catchment boundaries which has facilitated integrated catchment management. Central government has in recent years increased the level of national direction for water management. Its National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2014 requires regional councils to set requires regional councils to set objectives for all freshwater bodies, with limits on abstractions and discharges, by December 2025. They are also required to implement methods to address over‐allocation and to ensure that, overall, water quality within a region is maintained or improved. Consensus‐seeking collaborative processes are being implemented in many regions to establish these objectives and limits in legally binding regional plans. In 2017, further proposals also seek to improve water quality to make 90% of New Zealand rivers swimmable by 2040. Māori seek that their indigenous interests in water be better recognized in law, and there are public demands that royalty payments be levied on exports of bottled water. Water governance has become a political issue in a country which is actually well endowed with fresh water resources.

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“…'inputs-based' approach favoured by the European Union). However, much of the decision-making in the early plans under the RMA happened through case-by-case assessments of environmental effects of individual proposed activities, and it has only been in the last decade that it has begun to be applied to manage cumulative effects (Rouse & Norton 2017). Rouse and Norton (2017) describe how the influential, collaborative process called the Land and Water Forum (LAWF, representing 60 stakeholder groups) has contributed to a major shift in how freshwater planning is done in New Zealand and has therefore altered the roles of scientists operating near the science-policy interface.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, much of the decision-making in the early plans under the RMA happened through case-by-case assessments of environmental effects of individual proposed activities, and it has only been in the last decade that it has begun to be applied to manage cumulative effects (Rouse & Norton 2017). Rouse and Norton (2017) describe how the influential, collaborative process called the Land and Water Forum (LAWF, representing 60 stakeholder groups) has contributed to a major shift in how freshwater planning is done in New Zealand and has therefore altered the roles of scientists operating near the science-policy interface. LAWF's early report underpinned the New Zealand Government's National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management (NPS-FM (MFE 2011) and amended in 2014(MFE 2014) that promotes the use of collaborative processes to plan development and includes the mandatory requirement for councils to set objectives and associated limits on resource use, both for water quantity and quality.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%