increase font size
Waikato Feds president Andrew McGiven.
Farmers don't condone their peers knowingly spilling effluent, says Waikato Federated Farmers president Andrew McGiven.
He is disappointed to see a farmer prosecuted again for breaching effluent management rules.
Fernaig Farms (2006) Ltd was fined $33,750 for unlawfully discharging effluent at its Litchfield property.
Waikato Regional Council says a concerning aspect of the case was the “obstructive behaviour” aimed at council staff needing to inspect the property. Police had to be called to escort the inspectors to the farm.
The farm’s effluent pond pump was relocated to another property for a month, leading to the effluent pond overflowing.
The council’s investigations manager Patrick Lynch says it was relatively rare for someone to be prosecuted a second time for an effluent management breach. In his 12 years in the job this was only the second time he had seen police help needed for a property inspection.
“Generally people learn from the first experience and ensure it does not happen again. It is particularly disappointing to [see these breaches] by a leading farming entity that owns a number of farms and should be setting an example of how to do things right,” says Lynch.
McGiven agreed that repeat offending was rare in effluent management breaches.
“And having to call the police so that the inspection could be completed is something I haven’t heard of before; it sounds to me like contempt for the council and the dairy industry as a whole.
“Waikato Federated Farmers cannot condone any farmer who knowing spills effluent, and those who do cast the rest of the industry in a bad light at a time when we are now starting to get back some measure of public trust.”
Justice Craig Thompson held a sentencing indication hearing on July 3; the company pleaded guilty on July 14.
Fernaig Farms (2006) Ltd owns farms in Waikato, including four dairy farms.
A prosecution in 2013 also resulted in convictions and a fine of $30,000 for effluent mismanagement on its Mangakino property.
OPINION: Recent media commentary from Southland Federated Farmers has raised concerns among our rural communities, particularly around Environment Southland’s approach to winter grazing inspections and nitrogen reporting. But let’s be clear, much of what’s been said simply doesn’t reflect reality.
OPINION: Environment Canterbury's (ECan) decision recently to declare a so-called “nitrate emergency” is laughable.
A shameless political stunt is how Federated Farmers is describing the Canterbury Regional Council decision to declare “a nitrate emergency” on the back of its latest annual groundwater quality survey.
Federated Farmers say Environment Canterbury's decision to declare a 'nitrate emergency' is a shameless political stunt that won't help anyone.
Farmers want the Government to scrap controversial freshwater rules that "put river spirits and ideology ahead of practical water use", says Federated Farmers board member Mark Hooper.
Dawn Meats is set to increase its proposed investment in Alliance Group by up to $25 million following stronger than forecast year-end results by Alliance.
A day after the ouster of PGG Wrightson’s chair and his deputy, the listed rural trader’s board has appointed John Nichol as the new independent chair.
Tributes are pouring in from across the political divide for former Prime Minister Jim Bolger who passed away, aged 90.
The iconic services building at National Fieldays' Mystery Creek site will be demolished to make way for a "contemporary replacement that better serves the needs of both the community and event organisers," says board chair Jenni Vernon.
Agri advisor Perrin Ag says its graduate recruitment programme continues to bring new talent into the agricultural sector.
Entries are open for the 2026 New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards (NZDIA).
OPINION: Voting is underway for Fonterra’s divestment proposal, with shareholders deciding whether or not sell its consumer brands business.
OPINION: Politicians and Wellington bureaucrats should take a leaf out of the book of Canterbury District Police Commander Superintendent Tony Hill.
