Science Media Centre

Hydraulic fracturing — a technology commonly known as “fraccing” or “fracking” — widely used in the oil and gas industry overseas has recently triggered some controversy in New Zealand, with critics raising questions over potential environmental impacts. Though the technology has not long been used in New Zealand, it is expected to be a key [...]

Wrangling over water issues Polluted rivers, dirty dairying, greening the MacKenzie Country, dams for hydro-power and water allocation — these are just some of the big water issues that have been in the headlines in recent months. Although freshwater is relatively abundant in New Zealand, uneven distribution of water resources and increasingly intensive use have [...]

Gerald Piddock writes in the Timaru Herald about groundwater – scientists say that the impact on our groundwater of intensive agriculture might not be known for decades, as it could take that long for any contaminants to reach monitoring sites. While effects on shallow groundwater might be seen fairly rapidly, effects on deep groundwater would [...]

Groundwater is a crucial natural resource — around one third of the water used in New Zealand comes from underground — but it can be easily overlooked in the contentious debates surrounding declining water quality and resource management. With the highly-anticipated recommendations from the Land and Water Forum on freshwater management reform due back to [...]