15. Resource Quality (Water, Air, Soil) Volume One safely in coastal waters, rivers, lakes and wetlands. This policy assists to give effect to Policy A1, CA2 and D1 of the NPSFM and Policy 8 of the New Zealand Coastal Policy Statement 2010 (NZCPS). [RPS, R, C] Policy 15.1.2 – Apply water quality classifications (and water quality standards) to all surface water, groundwater and coastal water resources, which reflect: (a) the management purposes specified in Policy 15.1.1; and (b) other uses and values supported by the waterbody or coastal waters; or (c) where water quality has already been degraded, the uses and values that are to be restored. Water quality classifications will be applied through the MEP to all water and coastal waters. The classifications will, as a minimum, reflect the management purposes set out in Policy 15.1.1. However, particular waterbodies and coastal waters may support other natural and human use values and it is appropriate for these values to be reflected in any classification. This means that many waterbodies and coastal waters will have multiple classifications. For those waterbodies or coastal water experiencing degraded water quality, the classifications will reflect the natural and human use values that are to be restored. Water quality standards will apply to each classification. The classifications and standards will be described in a manner consistent with the Third Schedule of the RMA, although the standards may exceed those in the Third Schedule. Classifications may include NS (natural state), AE (aquatic ecosystem), F (fisheries), FS (fish spawning), CR (contact recreation), SG (shellfish gathering), A (aesthetic), WS (water supply), I (irrigation), IA (industrial abstraction) and C (cultural). This policy assists to give effect to Policy A1 and D1 of the NPSFM. [RPS, R] Policy 15.1.3 – To investigate the capacity of fresh waterbodies to receive contaminants from all sources, having regard to the management purposes established by Policy 15.1.1 in order to establish cumulative contaminant limits by 2024. Policy A1 of the NPSFM requires the Council to set water quality limits for all waterbodies. “Limit” is defined in the NPSFM as “…the maximum amount of resource use available, which allows a freshwater objective to be met” and includes cumulative limits for contaminants. Although the provisions of the MEP establish water quality standards that are to be complied with in the event of the point source discharge of contaminants, these are not cumulative limits. The establishment of cumulative contaminant limits is a complex task. It requires a good understanding of the relationship between land use and water quality. That relationship is influenced by the nature of the contaminants produced by different land uses, the way in which those contaminants pass through the environment and the susceptibility of natural and human use values supported by waterbodies to total contaminant loads. At the time of notification of the MEP, the Council did not hold the resource use and environmental data required to set the cumulative contaminant limits. For this reason, the Council adopted a programme of progressive implementation that was publicly notified on 8 November 2012. That programme sets a date of 2024 as a target for implementing cumulative contaminant limits. This policy establishes a commitment to commence collecting and analysing resource use and environmental data required to establish cumulative contaminant limits. The use of limits could constrain the land uses that could occur in a catchment (existing and potential) or at least the way in which those land uses are managed. For these reasons, care needs to be exercised in establishing cumulative contaminant limits in respect of water quality. It is also important that the 15 – 10