More properly named the Te Waikoropupū Springs, they’re the largest freshwater springs in New Zealand, and the largest cold water springs in the Southern Hemisphere and contain some of the clearest water ever measured this side of Antarctica’s near-frozen Weddell Sea, with a visibility of 63 metres.
Antarctica aside the water clarity is in fact not equalled anywhere in the world, and is the result of natural filtering prior to the water’s emergence at Te Waikoropupu Springs.
What we’ve taken for granted for many years is now under threat, and what it’s all about is allocation of water upstream for agricultural use.
It’s not rocket science to ponder that the issue really comes back to what runs into the source areas e.g. nitrates from farming operations.
Read more about it via the link below to a post published by Radio NZ today:
Race to protect Te Waikoropupū Springs
The guardians of Te Waikoropupū Springs in Golden Bay are urging the Environment Minister to preserve and protect it from commercial ventures.
Source: Race to protect Te Waikoropupū Springs | Radio New Zealand News