Ruminating on the harm cows do

OVER THE FENCE - BY JON MORGAN

OPINION: I can't help it. When I see a big herd of cows grazing in a field I can't help but think about all their poos and wees. I didn't used to think like this, but, now, instead of admiring such a tranquil rural scene, I am reminded of the harm these beasts can cause.

I'm sure I'm not alone. The outcry against farm pollution has become a roar. It can no longer be dismissed as the ravings of some environmental activists or self- interested fishing enthusiasts.

Several events have contributed to this. Some are issues that have been fizzing away for a few years, others have only just surfaced. But this is the year they have all come together.

Behind the emotion this issue generates are some disturbing facts and in the past I have relied on the assurances of farmer organisations, such as Federated Farmers and Fonterra, that dairying was being unfairly picked on and that farmers were doing all they could to be environmentally sound.

Now I have my doubts. It's the science. Tests of the Manawatu River show poor ecosystem health, caused, the scientists say, primarily by dairy runoff. Sure, there's other factors - town sewage pollution is a disgrace and regional councils should be more diligent about curbing it - but the scientific finger is pointing at those cows calmly ruminating in their fields.

That's just one river. Others around the country are also affected, maybe not so badly, but it cannot be a coincidence that the worst are in dairy regions. Hill country farmers don't escape blame, either. Sediment from slips on denuded hills is given as a reason for low native fish populations.

Now, a lot of this science has been around for years and environmentalists have not been slow in pointing it out. But many of them are so shrill and vindictive that they turn off many fair-minded people.

My inclination has been to give farmers the benefit of the doubt. And I'm sure they believe they are doing all they can. It is true that 98 per cent of dairy farmers have a nutrient budget - a plan that is supposed to make sure their fertiliser use and effluent disposal does not harm the environment. Streams are being fenced and bridged and riparian strips grown to trap runoff.

But is it enough? The science seems to show that in some places it is not. In sensitive areas, such as high rainfall zones and on free- draining sand country, the only alternative may be to reduce cow numbers.

It comes down to where you draw the line. How clean do you want our rivers to be? I think, if asked, most people would say they would like to see the natural habitat of native fish restored. But if they were given a choice between that and not being able to afford the latest technological gadget, would they be so keen? Because that is the real issue. Fewer cows produce less milk and our export earnings fall. Dairy farmers have less money to spread around the economy and our living standards slip.

On the other hand, if we have dirty rivers our clean green image is harmed and tourism and the sales of products that depend on that image suffer then we also lose.

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A way around this dilemma - and I can't quite believe I am agreeing with the Greens - is to go organic.

Organic dairy farms have fewer cows and produce less milk, but they earn a premium that makes up for this. I have been to an organic farm that produces 10 per cent less milk than its best season when farmed conventionally but makes $70,000 more. Half of that came from Fonterra's $1.05 a kilogram premium and the rest from savings on vet bills and reduced feed.

Of course, this raises further questions about whether organics is good for the soil's long-term health; whether it is just mining the years of conventional fertiliser use. There's science that backs that view.

But weighed against that in this argument is the science on water quality. What do we do? The pressure is building on farmers and their support organisations to come up with an answer. Assurances are no longer enough. I want to look those cows in the eye again.

- © Fairfax NZ News