Waitaki MP Jacqui Dean supports calls for more research into the health of Lake Wanaka but believes "local councils and interest groups must first identify the relevant data and present a case for future management of the lake''.
Mrs Dean was responding to claims made at a public meeting in Wanaka on Friday that the Government was not doing enough to protect the alpine lakes.
More than 200 people attended the meeting titled "Saving our Alpine Lakes - What Can We Do?''.
Two freshwater scientists and a panel of stakeholders spoke about the need for government-funded research and baseline data on the health of the lake and the algae, known as lake snow, affecting Lake Wanaka and recently found in Lake Wakatipu.
"I think it's positive that the community is united in its concern about the water quality of the lake, with groups like Fish and Game, Otago University, the Department of Conservation and the Guardians of Lake Wanaka working together,'' Mrs Dean said.