Two-thirds of more than 160 monitored river swimming sites in NZ have been deemed unsafe for a dip. Where are the worst spots?

The Green Party has dismissed the new bottom lines as "weak" and argues the measures mean rivers will only have to be clean enough for wading or boating.

This winter was not a good one for farmers in the Fertile Crescent.

Severe rain and wind warnings and a drop in temperatures have been issued for parts of the South Island and lower North Island this weekend.

The death of a talented Australian tennis coach, who disappeared in Hamilton late last year and was found drowned in the Waikato River, was accidental, a coroner has ruled.

People are being warned to stay away from Otago's Dart River, as a lake grows behind a large landslip which blocked the river at the weekend.

Australia was battling weather extremes yesterday with South Australia hit by its first tropical storm for 15 years, just as the state's north faced a catastrophic bushfire risk.

Kiwis are being encouraged to become citizen scientists to check the health of their own lakes, rivers and streams.

NZ rivers and swimming spots will increasingly be polluted by algae and contain fewer fish as the dairy boom continues, an environmental watchdog has warned.

A pair of US tourists had to be rescued by a police search and rescue team after becoming stranded on the banks of the Haast River yesterday afternoon.

British news website Daily Mail Online says New Zealand's claims to be clean and green are "pure manure".

The RMA exists to help work out the right conditions, as well as manage effects, which under O'Reilly's approach would not occur, writes Claire Browning.

Up close, after it has travelled more than 300km, the Waikato River is so muddy that you cannot see your feet if you are standing just knee-deep beside its banks.

The melodic Irish brogue is the soundtrack to Geraldine O'Sullivan Beere's visit to Avoca County, Ireland.

Editorial: Two recent events ought to have injected some urgency into the quest for cleaner, fairer and better use of New Zealand's most valuable resource, water.

The drought is a timely reminder of how much the New Zealand economy depends on rainfall, writes Brian Fallow.

Tamati Patuwai (Ngati Whatua) tells Elisabeth Easther what he loves about living in Glen Innes, and how much the area has changed since he was a boy