PHA’s public health position statement on Freshwater and Health w/ Marnie Prickett from the University of Otago in Wellington and the Public Health Association: 23 July, 2025

Freshwater quality across Aotearoa has been in decline for some time, with almost 70% of monitored groundwater sites failing to meet drinking water standards for E. coli and almost half of the country’s rivers being unsuitable for recreational activities like swimming due to bacterial contamination.

Many concerns about the future of Aotearoa’s freshwater have been exacerbated by the government’s recent changes to Freshwater National Direction, with experts speculating that many of the proposed policy changes would favour commercial activity and lead to the further contamination and pollution of freshwater sources.

Oto spoke with Marnie Prickett - A research fellow at the department of public health at the University of Otago in Wellington and a member of the Public Health Association about a freshwater policy statement put out by the Public Health Association calling for urgent action to protect freshwater in Aotearoa and outlining freshwater protection as a critical public health priority.