Water
Southland Water Story
It's a big story, and we're telling it. You can find out about the things you told us are important to you about waterways in Southland. You can also learn more about how our waterways are doing and how you can get involved in helping restore and protect them. We hope you’ll come on this journey with us. Go to http://waterstory.es.govt.nz/
People, Water and Land programme
Find out about the People, Water and Land programme - Te Mana of te Tangata, te Wai, te Whenua and the work being done. You can read more about the things that Southlanders told us were important to them about our waterways (the values) and learn more about the goals (outcomes) we're aiming to achieve by improving, protecting and restoring our waterways. https://waterandland.es.govt.nz/
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Essential Freshwater Package
Find out more about our approach to the Government's Essential Freshwater package, including links to relevant documents.
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Estuaries
Estuaries support a diverse range of life; birds, shellfish, fish, and invertebrates, with many species using estuaries for part, or all of their life cycle.
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Groundwater
Groundwater provides an important source of drinking water for people and livestock in Southland.
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Lakes
We monitor indicators of water quality in several of Southland's lakes.
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Low water levels
Over the summer of 2017/18, many areas in Southland experienced low water levels.
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Mataura River water takes
Find out about water takes from the Mataura River and the impact of a Water Conservation Order on these.
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Rivers & streams
Rivers, lakes and streams are important resources in Southland and are highly valued by people for many reasons.
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Southland Science Programme
We have many years of monitoring data and research information to help us answer some big questions.
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Summer swimming
We are lucky enough to have some wonderful spots in Southland to swim. But we all need to be aware of the bacteria which affect water quality and can make us sick.
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Toxic algae
Toxic algae can be harmful to people and pets.
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Water metering information
Proper management of water resources requires an understanding of how much water we use.
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Water story info sources
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Whitebaiting
Whitebaiting is a popular recreational activity in Southland, with many people looking forward to the whitebait season each year.
