B-2 – Area 2 - Assessment of Environmental Effects 92 the Willows Access Tunnel. As concluded by GWS (2022a), tunnel dewatering will not result in any consequential change in groundwater quality due to the water take. With respect to the Ohinemuri River water abstraction, there are a number of water and discharge permits required upstream of site, as described in Section 4 (rules) of this AEE. As concluded by GHD (2022), such activities are predicted to have minimal effect on receiving water quality within the Mataura Stream (which discharges into the Ohinemuri River upstream of the abstraction point). Based on the above conclusions, it can be inferred that granting of water and discharge permits for activities upstream of the water abstraction points will not introduce or increase the concentration of determinands in the drinking water at the abstraction point. Accordingly, Clauses 7 and 8 of the NES Drinking Water do not pose an impediment to the granting of water and discharge permits within Area 2. There are a number of activities occurring within Area 2 which, if in the highly unlikely event that a system failure, could result in significant adverse effects on the quality of water at the abstraction points specified in the HDC water permits. In the highly unlikely scenario that such an event will occur, OGNZL will, as a matter of priority, advise HDC as the consent holder and WRC as the consent authority that such an event has occurred. This requirement will be secured by way of condition on the resource consents and is therefore consistent with Clause 12 of the NES Drinking Water. 7.4 NATIONAL POLICY STATEMENTS 7.4.1 National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management Central to the NPSFM is the concept of Te Mana o Te Wai. Te Mana o Te Wai encompasses six principles relating to the roles of tangata whenua and other New Zealanders. These are discussed in detail in Section 9 of the Overarching AEE. Aligned to these principles is a hierarchy of obligations that prioritises: First, the health and well-being of water bodies and freshwater ecosystems; Second, the health needs of people (such as drinking water); and Third, the ability of people and communities to provide for their social, economic, and cultural wellbeing, now and in the future. The sole objective of the NPSFM reflects this hierarchy of obligations and states: …to ensure that natural and physical resources are managed in a way that prioritises: (a) first, the health and well-being of water bodies and freshwater ecosystems (b) second, the health needs of people (such as drinking water)
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