The regional council had an operative air plan, which it changed in 2007 to meet the national environmental standards.
It also adopted a "clean heat, clean air" programme to support the changes, with the aim of achieving compliance by 2013.
Recently, the Government released proposed amendments to the National Standards for Air Quality, including increasing permitted "exceedences" of the standard from one to three, excluding exceptional events, extending compliance to 2018 and introducing mandatory off-sets for new industry consents breaching air sheds.
Cr Butcher said at a council meeting this week it needed to get the message out its regional air plan was "still in place, still operative".
The fact standards might be changing at a national level should not be an "imposition" on this council, he said.
"It's not a ticket to get out of jail on this issue. We've attacked this issue ... while other councils have sat on their hands and done nothing."
The changes did allow councils to have more "stringent" standards than the national standard.
Cr Gretchen Robertson said she would like to see Otago be stricter and was proud of what the council had achieved with its air plan.
Industry and residents, especially those in air shed one (those areas with the worst air quality), had done a lot of work to improve their emissions.
"We are on this pathway already."
