Gareth Morgan adds signature to Green Party rivers campaign

Over 1000 New Zealanders including Gareth Morgan and Maisey Rika have signed on to the campaign to ensure New Zealand’s rivers are clean and safe for swimming, the Green Party said today.

“We know that New Zealanders love our rivers and want to be able to swim in them,” said Green Party water spokesperson Eugenie Sage.

“The Environment Minister is currently considering the submissions of thousands of New Zealanders who called for our rivers to be swimmable. The decision should be easy,” said Ms Sage.

“Over 6,400 of the approximately 7,000 New Zealanders who submitted on the Government’s proposed water quality rules called for rivers that were swimmable. The Government is proposing weak bottom lines that mean our rivers can be polluted with faecal matter so they are only clean enough for wading, but are not clean enough for safe swimming.

Gareth Morgan added “I’ve taken this personal stand because there are some things that shouldn’t be sacrificed - swimmable rivers is one of those things. I just don’t subscribe to the view that economic development and environmental nurturing are opposites. We have to look at economic development options that are compatible with the environment. The truth is that we can’t get all our waterways back to that condition, but that should certainly be our aspiration. For rivers that are currently swimmable we absolutely have to make sure we keep them that way."

“Many New Zealanders hold fond memories of a day at a river in the summer heat, skimming stones with the family, having kai on the banks or plunging into a deep pool. We need to look after our rivers, lakes and streams so that all New Zealanders can treasure memories of a hot summer’s day down at their swimming hole,” said Ms Sage.

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