The Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment says the Government's plan for looking after freshwater does not go far enough in protecting water quality.
Jan Wright has released her submission on the Government's proposed National Objectives Framework for Freshwater Management.
Dr Wright says there is little in the proposed framework that would prevent increased pollution as a result of land conversion to dairy farming.
Last year, she said modelling suggests that by 2020, an area the size of Taranaki would have been converted into dairy farms.
Dr Wright says a policy framework that supports efforts to protect rivers and lakes is needed.