Farmers near a Southland wetland are likely to be asked to re-evaluate their farming practices because effluent and nutrient runoff is polluting it.
Southland Regional Council is meeting on Wednesday to discuss what it can do to clean up Waituna Lagoon southeast of Invercargill.
The lagoon is considered a wetland of international significance and an important habitat for native fish, birds and plants.
Council chair Ali Timms says Waituna Lagoon is being degraded by farm runoff and the council is making its clean-up a high priority.
She says the area is quite low lying and a lot of small creeks run into it.
She says there has been quite a change in land use and a lot of development over the last 10-15 years.
