The Environment Ministry's chief executive, Paul Reynolds, says he is not convinced environmental reporting has to be done by an independent body.
The ministry on Thursday appeared before Parliament's local government and environment select committee for its annual financial review.
Dr Reynolds, asked about the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment's belief that environmental reporting should be independent, said independent functions could be carried out by ministries and the most important thing was that the reporting is robust, reliable and trusted.
The ministry is working with regional councils to ensure better-quality data is collected, he says.
