New regulations to protect wetlands were introduced in the National Environmental Standards for Freshwater 2020 (NES-F) as part of the Government’s Essential Freshwater reforms.
For decades, protecting wetlands’ water quality and biodiversity values has been a priority for the Council and we have worked with Taranaki landowners to protect and enhance the region’s precious wetlands through our riparian and biodiversity programmes.
Wetlands – swamps, marshes, bogs and the like – are the meeting ground of land and freshwater. Those in Taranaki support a diverse array of plants and animals, some of them rare and threatened.
As well as being important for biodiversity, wetlands act as the ‘kidneys of the land’ and bring land management benefits. They store water during rainfall, helping to reduce flood levels. In dry periods, they release water to help maintain farm supplies.
The new rules: what you need to know
The NES-F came into force on 3 September 2020, setting out the consent pathways for certain activities in and around wetlands.
Since the regulations were announced, concerns were raised by Councils and sector groups about their workability. The Ministry for the Environment (MfE) sought views in 2021 on proposals to amend the definition of a ‘natural wetland’, consent pathways for additional sectors (eg quarries) and refinements to the restoration polices, recognition of maintenance and biosecurity activities.
The result of this was a report(external link) by MfE on the 262 individual submissions, including a submission from the Council. The recommendations include an amendment to the definition of a natural wetland to exclude any area that has ground cover comprising more than 50% exotic pasture species as identified in the National List of Exotic Pasture Species.
The MfE has now drafted changes to the NES-F and the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management. The proposed changes are much more workable than the original proposals and the Council has sent another submission on the proposals as we continue to advocate for our region to ensure we are protecting our environment through robust but workable regulations. The updated regulations were due to go into effect by the end of 2022.
In the meantime, the strict regulations in the NES-F regarding what you can do in or near natural wetlands continue to apply. This includes:
- Vegetation clearance within, or within a 10-metre setback of, a natural wetland
- Earthworks or land disturbance within, or within a 10-metre setback of, a natural wetland (or 100m if it is likely that the works will result in any drainage of a natural wetland)
- The taking, use, damming, diversion, or discharge of water within, or within a 100-metre setback of, a natural wetland
- Sphagnum moss harvesting within a natural wetland
- Intensive winter grazing within five metres of a waterbody
If you wish to undertake any activities in or near a wetland we recommend you first contact the Council for advice.
Got a wetland on your property?
Contact our Land Management Officers about the best way to take care of it. Call the Council on 0800 736 222 or email info@trc.govt.nz