Region's dairy record tops most

BLAIR ENSOR AND FAIRFAX

Marlborough dairy farmers are frontrunners when it comes to dairy effluent compliance, but an increasing number of dairy farmers from other regions are failing to properly treat the toxic run-off from their land.

Marlborough has one of the best records in the country, with 88 per cent of farms fully compliant. Only Tasman, with 89 per cent, and Taranaki, with 96 per cent, are better.

Northland, Canterbury and Waikato, three of New Zealand's biggest dairying regions, are the worst offenders with compliance levels below 45 per cent.

Of 59 dairy farms assessed in the Marlborough in 2008-09, 52 farms met rules or resource consents. However, 16 of those 52 properties were identified as "compliance marginal", which meant their systems or management needed to be improved.

Seven properties, which were a threat to the environment, were found to be in non-compliance, with one considered to be a major offender.

Marlborough District Council environmental protection officer Justine Hughes said the results for the region were pleasing, but farmers needed to continue to strive for 100 per cent compliance throughout the district.

"Everyone wants to comply and do a good job."

The average level of significant non-compliance – which increases the risk of environmental harm – of effluent treatment rose from 12 per cent to 15 per cent in the past year. Compliance also dropped four points to 60 per cent.

Dirty dairying is an issue which continues to blight New Zealand's clean green image, the ability to swim in streams, and potentially the tourism markets. Dairy farming earned $9.9 billion in exports for the year to March 2008. Tourism earned $9.3b.

Mr Carter, Fonterra and Federated Farmers have branded the national results as "totally unacceptable", "completely unacceptable" and "disappointing".

Mr Carter put polluting dairy farmers on notice and called on regional councils to work harder at identifying farmers breaking the rules. He warned of stronger regulations "to target those remaining farmers who blatantly pollute"."You can argue the merits of dairy to our economy until the cows come home but until every farmer takes responsibility for improving effluent management, the environment and dairying's reputation will suffer."

Dairy giant Fonterra said it will spend up to $3m and provide five more specialist staff double-check every farm every year to force non-compliant farms to meet standards.

Fonterra's trade and operations managing director, Gary Romano, said there were reasons for the decline in performance but no excuses.

Increased monitoring meant more rule-breakers were being identified, and monitoring had been extended to feed pads and stock underpasses.

Last year, embattled Waikato dairy farmers Allan and Elizabeth Crafar and Allan's brother, Frank, were hit with several prosecutions and record fines for failures to manage effluent at more than one of their farms.

Massey University scientist Mike Joy, the director of the Centre for Freshwater Ecosystem Management and Modelling, said the failings in the report underestimated the real and growing impacts from dairying on the environment.

Federated Farmers dairy chairman Lachlan McKenzie insisted the report, while disappointing, showed the industry was open and accountable.

"We mustn't lose sight of the fact that 85 per cent of New Zealand's dairy farmers are either fully compliant or guilty of no more than an administrative breach."

- The Marlborough Express