River water quality
Key Points | Report Card | Technical Information | Data
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What is happening in our region
Water quality for ecological health is better in some parts of the region (for example, the Upper Waikato River and the tributaries of Lake Taupo) than in others (for example, Hauraki and the lowland tributaries of the Waikato River). This is mainly because of the greater intensity of land use in the lowland parts of the region.
Environment Waikato routinely monitors water quality at sites across the region. View a map of the ten sites on the Waikato River and the 104 sites on other rivers and streams.
An average ‘pass rate’ for seven water quality measures (dissolved oxygen, pH, turbidity, ammonia, temperature, nitrogen and phosphorus) is determined by comparing results with national and local guidelines for ecological health.
The graph shows the percent of samples from rivers around the region that met or exceeded our guidelines for excellent, satisfactory or unsatisfactory water quality for ecological health.
- View this graph’s data and additional information. The data were collected from 2005-2009.
- Use our maps to check out your local water quality in the Waikato River and in other rivers and streams in the Waikato region.
- Check out water quality trends in the Waikato River.
- Find out more about the physical and chemical characteristics of water quality and why we measure them.
Why river water quality is important
Sensitive aquatic plants and animals cannot live and thrive when water quality is poor.
Some contaminants (like ammonia and heavy metals) are toxic to aquatic organisms; others use up the dissolved oxygen that aquatic organisms need to breathe. Water that is too warm can stress sensitive fish and animals. Nuisance growths of water plants, algal slimes, and phytoplankton blooms can thrive when there are excessive levels of plant nutrients.
What Environment Waikato is doing
- Environment Waikato has classified different waterbodies into different management classes. We have established these classes to manage water use and protect water quality values.
- Environment Waikato manages and requires the monitoring of resource consents to take water or discharge wastewater to rivers, or to dam or divert rivers and streams.
- We track changes in water quality for ecological health to update this indicator and to assist policy making and consent decisions.
- We support voluntary guidelines and codes of practice such as the New Zealand Fertiliser Manufacturers' Research Association's Code of Practice for Fertiliser Use - aimed at minimising fertiliser runoff.
- Environment Waikato's Clean Streams project provides advice and financial support to encourage and support farmer efforts to reduce the impacts of farming on waterways through fencing and planting waterway margins.
- We support care groups in the region that are involved in riparian management such as planting and fencing through staff time and expertise.
- Over 200 River and Us programmes involving more than 100 schools have been run.
Find out more about the water provisions in our Proposed Regional Plan.
What you can do to help
- Fence off streams, rivers, swamps, wetlands and seeps to prevent stock access.
- Plant banks of waterways to help stabilise them, trap contaminants and provide shade for aquatic life.
- Make sure dairy shed effluent irrigators are operating effectively and are moved frequently to prevent ponding and runoff.
- Avoid break-feeding or mob-stocking close to waterways, especially in wet weather.
- Join or form a Landcare group in your area.
- Install stormwater detention areas in new subdivisions to improve water quality. Find out more about activities requiring consents from Environment Waikato.
- Prevent contaminated water going into stormwater drains by washing your car on the grass, not on paved surfaces, fixing oil leaks and being careful not to put paints or solvents down stormwater drains.
More information
More detail on this indicator, including how and where Environment Waikato collects this information, is available in the Technical Information page.
Useful links
Related indicators