The second biennial survey of people’s perceptions of the state of the New Zealand environment was undertaken in February 2002. The survey is based on the Pressure-State-Response model of state of the environment reporting. It tests perceptions of all the main resource areas - air quality, native plants and animals, native forest and bush, soils, beaches and coastal waters, marine fisheries, marine reserves, freshwaters, national parks, wetlands, urban environments, and the natural environment. It also examines preferences for changes in government expenditure between environmental and other government activities. The results from this survey provide a means for individual resources to be analysed in such a way that is useful to regional and district councils, central government agencies, researchers, and consultants. The following analysis of fresh water is an example of this.