Plenty of water, says Bazley

Canterbury has "plenty of water" and people worried about rapid changes in its regulation need to be educated, says Environment Canterbury (ECan) head commissioner Dame Margaret Bazley.

"I acknowledge things have happened that shouldn't have, but I've now talked to enough farmers and seen enough farms to know that they are as concerned to have quality performance as any of us," she said.

"I'm confident that between their leadership and the work being done in here [at ECan] that we're well on the track to changing the farming practices of the few that still believe they don't have to change."

The Government sacked ECan's councillors in March and appointed seven commissioners because of botched water management in the region.

Many Cantabrians were shocked at the removal of democracy and were afraid that if the commissioners moved too quickly, that could further threaten the region's already degraded waterways.

Bazley said it was a "tragedy" people were frightened, but they needed to be educated.

"There'll be some waterways that can't be touched because they're salmon spawning grounds or because they're nesting areas for birds, but there are other areas that may be able to look at water storage," she said.

"The other issue I'm quite clear about is that there's plenty of water ... and there is, I'm told, some of the best-quality water in the country in Christchurch and there is the goodwill to protect that."

- © Fairfax NZ News