Source: Greenpeace
Greenpeace activists are demonstrating outside Environment Southland today, handing out copies of a recent report on Southland groundwater to force councillors to confront the realities of nitrate contamination in the region. Greenpeace says that high levels of nitrate in drinking water in the region warrant immediate action to protect the health of the community.
Environment Southland’s ‘Nitrogen Contamination in Southland Groundwater’ report, published in January 2026, showed that nitrate in Southland’s groundwater and drinking water supplies was ‘both regionally widespread and locally severe in multiple locations.’
Greenpeace Aotearoa agriculture campaigner Sinéad Deighton-O’Flynn says, “The alarm bells are ringing. There is a nitrate emergency in Southland and it’s time for the regional council to take action.
“The report is explicit. There is widespread nitrate contamination throughout the region, and no one who has read the report could deny that Southland is experiencing a nitrate emergency. And yet Environment Southland has done nothing. It would seem some councillors either haven’t read the report, or they’re in denial about the findings.”
“The main cause of this crisis is cow urine and synthetic nitrogen fertiliser from the intensive dairy industry. A number of councillors have a clear connection with Fonterra or fertiliser companies, which means that these councillors have vested interests in turning a blind eye to the nitrate crisis polluting their constituents’ drinking water.”
A third of the Environment Southland councillors declared pecuniary interests in either Fonterra, or fertiliser companies Ballance and Ravensdown.
Environment Southland’s report states that there may be more than 15,000 Southlanders at risk of exposure to high concentrations of nitrate in drinking water.
Drinking water nitrate has been linked to several health risks, including bowel cancer, preterm birth, and Blue Baby syndrome. Recent research also indicates a correlation between high levels of nitrate in drinking water and an increased risk of dementia.
Deighton O’Flynn says, “No one should have to worry that the water from their kitchen tap could be making them sick, and yet for many people here in Southland, that is their reality.
“People’s health should be prioritised ahead of political interests and dirty dairy profits. It’s time for the council to take action and protect their communities from intensive dairy’s nitrate pollution.”
Last year, Environment Canterbury became the first council in Aotearoa to declare a nitrate emergency, following widespread concern from Cantabrians over the safety of their drinking water.
“Declaring a nitrate emergency is just the start, but it is an indication that the council is taking this seriously,” says Deighton-O’Flynn.
“Ultimately, Environment Canterbury and Environment Southland both need to take action to stop the pollution at its source. That means reducing dairy herd sizes, and ending synthetic nitrogen fertiliser use.”