Farmers warned over lack of instructions

Most agricultural contractors tasked with spreading effluent on Waikato farms are doing so with no detailed instructions from dairy farmers.

An estimated 1 to 2 per cent of dairy farmers give contractors detailed instructions about the job, with the other 98 or 99 per cent simply ringing contractors and saying: "I need to get my paddocks sprayed, when can you come," according to Environment Waikato sustainable agriculture co-ordinator Gabriele Kaufler.

The lack of instructions, or anything in writing, is putting farmers in a precarious position when it comes to over-application as the regional council holds the farmer and contractor responsible for any of the contractor's actions if prosecution is necessary.

"There are quite a few pieces of information the farmer needs to give the contractor and if the contractor has not got any directions the consequences can be dire for the farmer," Kaufler said.

"The contractor needs to be fully aware of the on-farm situation, including soil type and the location of waterways, in terms of setting up.

"What is the right piece of equipment for the job and what piece might not be able to achieve it? The farmer is the only person communicating that stuff to the farmer. This is stuff the contractor needs to know."

Such information, Kaufler said, should be shared with contractors in the initial phone call so that they could bring the right equipment. "At the moment one size fits all," she said. "If you put on a lot of effluent in a very short time with a clay soil or that has a compacted surface due to pugging you will end up with run off."  See Thursday's Waikato Times Farmer supplement for more on this issue.

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