Horizons councillors have set the goal of having the region's rivers 90 per cent swimmable in the summer bathing season of 2040.
Leading up to that they want rivers 70 per cent swimmable by 2030, and 80 per cent swimmable by 2040, with the peak of 90 per cent swimmability in summer.
A motion to aspire to 90 per cent across all seasons in 2040 - New Zealand's national target - was narrowly lost at the regional council's strategy and policy committee meeting on November 13, Whanganui councillor Nicola Patrick said.
She voted for it, along with Rachel Keedwell, David Cotton, Jono Naylor and Wiremu Te Awe Awe. Against were John Barrow, Lindsay Burnell, Gordon McKellar, Bruce Rollinson, Paul Rieger and Colleen Sheldon.
The targets are a response to government's 2017 amendment to the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management. It directs all regional councils to set targets. The targets are only for larger lakes and rivers.