Volume One 15. Resource Quality (Water, Air, Soil) 15. Resource Quality (Water, Air, Soil) Introduction We are fortunate in Marlborough to generally enjoy good water quality 1 in our coastal waters, rivers, lakes, wetlands and aquifers. Monitoring has shown that the quality of water in these waterbodies is sufficient to support a wide range of natural and human use values. These include healthy freshwater and marine ecosystems, comprising native fish, plants, algae and invertebrates, trout and salmon; stock and domestic water supplies; commercial uses of water in industry, agriculture, viticulture, marine farming and commercial fishing; and recreational uses such as swimming, shellfish gathering and fishing, scenic and tourism purposes. Water is of considerable cultural and spiritual importance to Marlborough’s tangata whenua iwi. The contribution that these uses and values make to the community’s social and economic wellbeing and to public health means that maintaining the quality of water in Marlborough’s coastal waters, rivers, lakes, wetlands and aquifers is essential. Any reduction in water quality is therefore a significant issue in Marlborough. Water quality can be adversely affected by discharges of contaminants resulting from human activities on land or water. Contaminants are those things that have the ability to change the physical, chemical or biological condition of the water. There are two types of contaminant discharge that can affect water quality: “point source” discharges (those that enter water at a definable point, often through a pipe or drain) and “non-point source” discharges (those that enter water from a diffuse source, such as land run-off or infiltration through soils). The generally good state of water quality in Marlborough reflects the low number of point source discharges into waterbodies and coastal waters, good land management practices and lack of intensive land uses that can impact on water quality (e.g. dairying). It should also be acknowledged that over time, resource users have also taken action to reduce the impact of discharges on water quality. However, there is always the potential that point source and/or non- point source discharges will occur and adversely affect the life supporting capacity and community use of Marlborough’s rivers, lakes, wetlands, aquifers and coastal waters. Unfortunately, water quality in some rivers has been degraded as a result of point source and non-point source discharges, impacting upon the uses and values that were once supported by the rivers and coastal waters. The management of water quality has a strong regulatory focus. This is because the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA) stipulates that the discharge of contaminants into water, or into or onto land in circumstances where it may enter water, is prohibited unless allowed by resource consent or a rule in a regional plan or a regulation. In addition, the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2014 (NPSFM) sets out objectives and policies that direct the steps that must be taken to manage water in a sustainable manner. In particular, there is a requirement to set objectives for water resources and subsequently to set water quantity and quality limits to achieve those objectives. The NPSFM sets as an objective that the overall state of water quality within any region must be maintained or improved. 1Water quality refers to the physical, chemical and biological characteristics of water that affect its ability to sustain natural and human use values 15 – 1