If New Zealand needed another timely reminder about the opportunity to sell our natural resources to the increasingly wealthy Chinese, it came this week from The Economist, which took note of the country’s water crisis.

According to the magazine, water scarcity means the average person in China only uses about 400 cubic metres a year, approximately a quarter of what the average American uses, and well under the international definition of water stress.

The article paints a far bleaker picture by digging below the headline numbers, noting that although 80 per cent of China’s water is in the south of the country, half the population and two-thirds of farmland are in the more arid North.

What water there is to be found is rapidly disappearing due to diversions as well as industrial, agricultural, and domestic use.

The remaining water is so heavily polluted that globalisation editor for The Economist John Parker, said the question over many water sources is not “is it safe to drink?” but “is it safe to touch?”

Quite plainly, China is going to struggle to produce goods that are reliant on an abundance of clean water.

Luckily in New Zealand we are blessed with heaps of the stuff (even if it tends to fall in seasonal clumps).

It is, quite clearly, our single biggest strategic advantage. It has allowed us to claim the top spot in the global dairy industry, but let us not forget we are also significant meat and wood producers. In fact, of our top eight export commodities, six are directly linked to primary industries, and hence water.

This creates a clear imperative.

Firstly, as we look to grow the economy, we need to steer it towards our strengths and the market’s needs. It is fantastic to see a greater emphasis on innovation and technology in our society, but let us see it in the agricultural and primary industries space.

This is where economies of scale exist (to borrow from the University of Auckland’s Professor Anthony Endres). Yes, our chests fill with pride when we see a Xero, LanzaTech or Martin Aviation Services succeed, but their overall contribution to the country will only ever be at the margin.

Secondly, it highlights the importance of managing our greatest resource well, and the trade-offs that are involved when trying to leverage this into economic growth. One only has look at the Ruataniwha Dam debacle to see just how difficult this process can be.

However, if we get both right, we will be well on the way to a prosperous and sustainable future.