Environment Canterbury has said it can't revoke a controversial groundwater consent in Belfast, but it can prevent water bottling at the site.

The regional council's comments come after an online petition against the Cloud Water Group proposal received 50,000 signatures in just over three days.

The Chinese-owned group owns the former Kaputone Wool Scour, which comes with a consent to draw up to 4.3 million litres of aquifer water a day.

Cloud Water is yet to get consent to bottle the water, but it's already started building a plant at the site.

ECan CEO Bill Bayfield said the petition against Cloud Water is valuable and important.

"Such petitions are always useful for us to guide us in what public opinion thinks. But when the law is the law, you are kind of restricted in what you can do."

Petitioner Genevieve Robinson started collecting signatures against Cloud Water on Sunday night.

She said something had to be done to show public discontent.

"Oceans are full of plastic, and here we are robbing a pure water source to put into plastic bottles to send overseas."

Robinson believes we need to change our rules to stop water consents being handed straight over with land.

"Permits shouldn't be passed over, there should be some case by case basis."

Meanwhile, WorkSafe's issued eight notices at the bottling plant under construction, after receiving safety complaints.

The Christchurch City Council's also investigating whether the building project has breached the Resource Management Act, and the Building Act.