04 Water conservation orders
Section summary
- This section outlines the history of water conservation orders (WCOs) and how they came to be the major tool for protecting rivers. It describes how the courts have interpreted key terms, the Iegal effect of a WCO, and the process for applying for a new WCO as well as the steps to amend an existing one.
- WCOs are the main statutory instrument that specifically recognises and provides for the protection of in-stream river values.
- A WCO protects water within a water body in order to protect or preserve its identified outstanding amenity or intrinsic values. These can include: the habitat of terrestrial or freshwater species; fisheries (e.g. whitebait, eels, trout or salmon); wild, scenic or other natural characteristics; scientific and ecological values; recreational, historical, spiritual or cultural values; and characteristics of outstanding significance in accordance with tikanga Māori.
-
Rivers that have been modified may still possess suites of these characteristics deemed worthy of protection; however, these must be "outstanding". Courts have interpreted this to mean "quite out of the ordinary on a national basis".51
- The effect of a WCO is either to protect a water body in its natural state or to restrict or prohibit abstraction or uses that affect water flow, or quality, or the habitat qualities of a water body in order to protect/preserve its outstanding amenity or intrinsic values. A WCO can prohibit or restrict a regional council from issuing new water and discharge permits but cannot annul existing permits.
- Under the ECan Act, assessments of WCOs in Canterbury (c.f. other parts of New Zealand) give less weight to preserving and protecting nationally outstanding water bodies and greater weight to potential abstractive uses of water. However, the ability to impose moratoria on resource consents for water and discharge permits created by the Act provides a useful mechanism to allow the planning regime to 'catch up' with demand.
back to top
51 See: An Application by the Minister of Conservation (Kawarau River) CO 33/96; The Inquiry into a Draft National Conservation (Mataura River) Order CO32/90; and the Mohaka River Water conservation order WO 20/92.