The decision is instructive because the nitrate problem will take decades to solve due. It will need a change of political will.

It is frustrating. Yet the law will remain that no one can discharge of right. Polluting farms will still need to be expressly allowed to do so. The govt is scrapping the limits which this case shows have not been applied. Had they been, a course correction could have been mandated a decade ago.

It is an important development - even if ELI did not win the case overall because the Court found ECan had erred in a core legal obligation regarding the limits to the amount of pollution allowable.

“Even though the rule was made 12 years ago, it remains in force, and it is central to the nitrate crisis people across Canterbury are experiencing today.

The judgment has confirmed ECan’s rule‑making fell short of the law & goes to the heart of Canterbury’s current nitrate crisis.

“ECan's failure to properly apply the law to protect freshwater concerns every Cantabrian working out whether their water is safe to drink or swim in.

The Court found ECan failed to properly consider & apply section 70 of the RMA when it included Rule 5.63, which allowed nutrient discharges in the Canterbury Land & Water Regional Plan.
ECan’s rule cemented the conditions for ongoing intensive farming even as nitrate pollution was already mounting.

The High Court has found that Environment Canterbury (ECan) made an error of law when it allowed nitrate discharges from farming as a region-wide permitted activity in its regional plan.

For this closure to succeed, it must be underpinned by rigorous, transparent ecosystem monitoring and remain in place for as long as science tells us it is necessary. That is likely to mean many years, not just a couple of seasons.

"Meanwhile, charities and some farmers are taking matters into their own hands and trying to rebuild wetlands."
The piece covers much more, it is worth a read!

"It was a clear-cut case of an environmental authority turning a blind eye. Now eyes are on the council to fight for wetlands at a confusing political time when the government is moving to disband regional councils and replace resource management powers.

"In February, Southland’s regional council was hauled through the High Court for letting the destruction happen. The Environmental Law Initiative sought a legal review of the council’s wetland inaction & Justice Harland agreed the council was not fulfilling wetland-protection duties.

Some highlights from the piece:
"Remnant southern wetlands have continued to be lost to paddocks in recent years — far more than anywhere else in New Zealand — and pollution, significantly from farms, has damaged some remaining wetland under the Department of Conservation’s management.

But if you just wanted to say two things, you could say:

- the fishing related mortality limit should be set at ZERO
- protections should cover the entire range of key hoiho habitat

Thank you for speaking up for hoiho 🐧

#hoiho
#yelloweyedpenguin

This paper is one that regulators around the world, including our own EPA, has referenced for evidence of glyphosate’s safety.

#glyphosate
#roundup
#NZEPA

Thank you to all who are speaking up for the magnificent hoiho. Learn more at eli.org.nz

#hoiho
#yelloweyedpenguin

Fisheries NZ’s consultation on the draft options for long term protection closes on Friday 12 December. We encourage you to make a quick submission. (See our website for some key points you might want to include).

The government is taking action because of public pressure — and it’s working.

We are asking for:

* the fishing related mortality limit to be set at zero
* protections in key hoiho habitat to ensure this mortality limit is not exceeded

Hoiho are on the brink. We’ve got to get this right if we want to ensure the future of these remarkable birds on our coasts.

There’s no proposed set-net ban in the places hoiho require it most, and only one option touches on bycatch limits — allowing up to four deaths a year before any regulatory response would even be considered.

Fisheries NZ have laid out three options for long-term measures for the protection of hoiho. Consultation on these options closes on December 12th. All options fall far short of what is needed.