National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2020 Amended December 2025

The National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2020 (NPS-FM) sets out the objectives and policies for freshwater management under the Resource Management Act 1991.

The NPS-FM came into effect on 3 September 2020 and replaced the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2014 (amended 2017).

This version incorporates:

• amendments made by section 30 of the Resource Management (Freshwater and Other Matters) Amendment Act 2024
• the Court of Appeal in Muaūpoko Tribal Authority Incorporated v Minister for the Environment and Te Rūnanga o Raukawa Incorporated [2023] NZCA 641 quashed Clause 3.33 and Appendix 5 of the NPS-FM (Specified vegetable growing areas)
• minor amendments made by the Minister for the Environment under section 53(2)(a) of the Resource Management Act 1991, on 23 February 2023
• amendments made by the Minister for the Environment under section 53(1) of the Resource Management Act 1991 and notified in the New Zealand Gazette on 8 December 2022 as the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2020 Amendment No 1.
• amendments made by the Minister for RMA Reform Acting for the Minister for the Environment under section 53(1) of the Resource Management Act 1991 and notified in the New Zealand Gazette on 18 December 2025 as the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management Amendment 2025.

The amendments take effect from 15 January 2026.

Find out more about the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management.