7. Drinking-water Supplies—Bottled Water ExportsCATHERINE DELAHUNTY (Green) to the Minister for the EnvironmentDrinking-water Supplies—Bottled Water Exports7. CATHERINE DELAHUNTY (Green) to the Minister for the Environment: Will he put a moratorium on bottled water exports in response to a 15000 strong petition and nationwide rallies on water issues taking place today?Hon Dr NICK SMITH (Minister for the Environment): No. Bottled water exports last year totalled 9 million litres out of New Zealand's annual water resource of 500 trillion litres. It amounts to 1 litre being exported in over 50 million or 0.000002 percent. A moratorium on bottled water exports to address water shortages makes about as much sense as a moratorium on tricycles to solve New Zealand's traffic problems.Catherine Delahunty: Thank you for mansplaining. Is there a contradiction in areas such as Hawke's Bay—Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order! I did not hear the start but there clearly was one that caused my right-hand side to then erupt. The member will start the question again.Catherine Delahunty: Certainly Mr Speaker. Is there a contradiction in areas such as Hawke's Bay and Canterbury where people have had to buy bottled water to ensure what they give their children is safe essentially paying a private company for what should be free and available to them?Hon Dr NICK SMITH: Whether you look at the water issues in Canterbury or Hawke's Bay the amount of water that is taken for bottled water exports is so minuscule that it is absolutely irrelevant to any sensible discussion about improving New Zealand's water management. There are issues of infrastructure for some councils which is at the core of the inquiry in Hawke's Bay and shows that the Green Party is exactly on the wrong track to address the issues.Catherine Delahunty: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I did appreciate the Minister's answer but he did not address the question about whether people should have to pay for this water. He talked about a lot of other important issues.Mr SPEAKER: No the question was very definitely around whether there was a contradiction. You did not ask whether people should have to pay. The Minister definitely addressed the question that was asked.Richard Prosser: Why has this Government not yet adopted New Zealand First's policy announced over a year ago of imposing a royalty—Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order! The member will resume his seat. I have spoken very severely to some members to my left. I am now giving exactly the same warning to members on my right. If I see a continued interjection coming from any member whom I identify that person will also be leaving the Chamber. Richard Prosser is to start his question again.Richard Prosser: Why has this Government not yet adopted New Zealand First's policy announced over a year ago of imposing a royalty on every litre of water exported from this country with at least 25 percent of that royalty being returned to the region from where the water was sourced?Hon Dr NICK SMITH: Yes I did see a proposal from the New Zealand First Party to charge all water users 10c per litre. Noting that it takes 400 litres to produce a litre of milk—Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. [Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order! Dr Smith will resume his seat.Rt Hon Winston Peters: The Minister is not permitted to outline another party's policy particularly when he just said that policy was deceitful—not a fact—and he cannot show me one piece of evidence.Mr SPEAKER: Order! No the question was very definitely: why has the Government not adopted a New Zealand First policy? That was the question that was asked. [Interruption] Order! That was the question that was asked and that is the question I now want to hear the answer to.Hon Dr NICK SMITH: A cost of 10c a litre would amount to a $40-a-litre charge for our dairy industry and no this Government does not want to wipe out New Zealand's most important export sector.Scott Simpson: What steps has this Government taken to ensure better management of New Zealand's fresh water and what advice has he seen on its main uses?Hon Dr NICK SMITH: The two significant steps our Government has taken are to require all councils to set minimum flow rates in our waterways and we also introduced compulsory metering. This has seen the volume of water taken and measured increase from 25 percent to now over 85 percent. We now also have a significant number of red-zone catchments where no further extractions are allowed. Three-quarters of the water taken in New Zealand is used for irrigation about another 10 percent by industry and municipal supplies 3 percent is taken for stock water and the portion taken for bottled water is less than a thousandth of 1 percent. Catherine Delahunty: Does the Minister understand the frustration many New Zealanders feel as water in rivers lakes and aquifers is being siphoned away for commercial use including irrigation and water bottling at no actual cost to the user but at massive cost to communities and the environment which also depends upon it?Hon Dr NICK SMITH: Every New Zealand household all 1.6 million of them has access to water for their own use for which they pay for only the cost of the reticulation not the use and if parties opposite want to start imposing new taxes on the use of water where are they going to stop? Will air be charged for next? Catherine Delahunty: Does the Minister understand that not taking action to prevent profiteering from our water is the final straw for many New Zealanders who have put up with water restrictions polluted swimming holes dried-up over-allocated rivers and boil water" notices?Hon Dr NICK SMITH: This Government does want to see issues like the problems in Hawke's Bay which the member associated with intensive dairying. Actually the evidence before the inquiry has shown that it was in fact sheep and secondly non-intensive and more likely to be caused by poor maintenance by the council of its well. I think that member owes the dairy industry an apology. [Interruption] Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order!Catherine Delahunty: How will the Government support the rights of iwi and hapū such as Ngāti Tama to protect Waikoropupū Springs if the Government insists on allowing our water to be given away for free to private industry?Hon Dr NICK SMITH: In respect of those springs I am considering a water conservation order because it is my view that that particular world-renowned spring is one that does need to be protected and I have meetings on Friday with local iwi in that respect. It may be interesting that the bill to be debated when question time finishes actually ensures that Māori have a more effective role and say in springs like those in Waikoropupū Springs supported and advocated for by the Māori Party but I note opposed by every other party in the Parliament.Catherine Delahunty: Will the Minister support the Green Party position that those making a profit from water should have to pay for the right to use it and prove that their commercial use is actually sustainable?Hon Dr NICK SMITH: Through the Government's water reforms we have a technical advisory group that is looking at the questions of both allocation and charging. We do think there is potential for improvement but I point out to the member that say in my own constituency where you have got a bottled water plant established by a couple of guys who were made redundant from Solid Energy next door to Coca-Cola which makes soft drink just along the road from a beer plant that both the Coca-Cola plant and the beer plant use a lot more water than the water bottling company. We need to be sure that any steps we take are fair to all users."