Farm pollution not an issue here

BY RICHARD WOODD

Dairy farm effluent pollution is not a significant issue in Taranaki, says the regional council.

Yesterday, the Clean Streams Accord report for the last dairying season revealed that effluent discharge "significant non-compliance" had risen to its highest level yet, from 12 to 15 per cent.

But that is a nationwide snapshot.

"We're on top of it in Taranaki," says the TRC director of resource management, Fred McLay.

"We lead the way in stream riparian management plan implementation, which is our key tool for mitigating the effects of farm discharges and runoff into our hundreds of small streams."

Taranaki has 1837 dairy farm discharge consents in operation.

Of those, about 4 per cent (73 farms) are non-compliant and mostly at a minor level. Only about 0.5 per cent (nine farms) are potentially more serious and are on a warning watch, Mr McLay says.

"We have been as high as 98 per cent compliant, but it's 96 per cent currently."

The council's last major pollution prosecution was of an Inglewood farmer, fined $70,000 in February by the Environment Court for repeated offending.

Mr McLay says the farmer has appealed the fine and the appeal will be heard on March 29.

Agriculture Minister David Carter responded angrily to the Accord report: "The data from this year's snapshot tells a totally unacceptable story of effluent management.

"Regardless of whether this is because farmers don't have the right tools, don't know how to comply, or simply don't care, behaviour has to change.

"I am putting non-complying dairy farmers across the country on notice.

"You need to take individual responsibility for this issue and work more effectively with your neighbours, your regional councils and your industry body."

Fonterra is rolling out a major initiative to check every farm's effluent management infrastructure every year in a move to address non-compliance with regional council dairy effluent rules.

It includes doubling the resources applied, to help suppliers achieve sustainable dairying on farm.

It is being piloted in the Waikato and goes national from August.

The goal is to halve significant non-compliance with council dairy effluent rules within 18 months, then trending to zero.

"Fonterra is determined to get on top of this effluent issue," said Gary Romano, Fonterra managing director, trade and operations.

"The New Zealand community expects it, our customers expect it and the vast majority of our complying farmers expect it.

"We will be looking to regional councils to partner with us as we're partnering with our farmers so we get year-on-year consistency in monitoring and a shared effort to lift performance.

"Experience shows the most proactive councils who are working constructively with farmers are getting the best results and we'd like to see this mirrored in every region."

Mr McLay says the TRC, which is legally responsible for monitoring farm discharges, "welcomes anything Fonterra can bring to the table to assist. Fonterra choose to have their own farm monitoring, mainly to check out dairy shed hygiene issues.

"Some of the criticism from significant non-compliers is that there is very little guidance for appropriate system design. That is what Fonterra is responding to.

"In Taranaki, the main issue is around maintenance and management of existing systems, not design."

A new enforceable code for farm dairy effluent design standards is out for pre-implementation consultation now.

The TRC relies on two sources of pollution notification: its officers visit every farm annually to monitor environmental performance and that costs the farmer $115.

The other is complaints from the public, which can be anonymous and from anyone, including neighbours.

"We don't see a need yet in Taranaki for bringing in animal stocking rate controls, although it will be on the agenda for our Regional Freshwater Plan review next year," Mr McLay says.

"Our key tool is riparian management plans and it may be those rules need to be strengthened."

- © Fairfax NZ News