Tuesday, 21 May 2013 15:08

Editorial - Trust us – yeah right

Written by 

LAST WEEK’S meeting in Dannevirke about the impacts of One Plan on dairy farmers was scary for a number of reasons.

 

The presenters at the event showed that 30% of dairy farmers in the Tararua district could be in serious trouble, that $60 million could be wiped off dairy farmers’ incomes and that at least 300 jobs could be lost if something isn’t done soon. They predicted a trickle-down effect on the local community.

The perpetrators of One Plan – Horizons Regional Council – are in a right old pickle. Their latest cries are that it’s the fault of the Environment Court for the plan they now have, that farmers “misunderstand them” and that they should “trust” them. Interestingly the Tui brewery with its ‘yeah right’ bill boards is based in that district. From last week’s meeting they could make at least three more new billboards.

Horizons is now scrambling around offering discretionary resource consents as a way of mitigating the effects of its plan. We’ve been told 90% of farms in the district will need these, making a mockery of the word ‘discretion’. 10% yes; 90% – yeah right!

The Tararua community is now caught in a time warp of uncertainty and that is leading to stress. It’s a fact that more suicides occur in rural than urban areas. Right now farmers in many parts of the country are in a fragile state as a result of the drought. One Plan is adding to that stress.

Given these latest revelations it’s clear the time has come for the government to do what they did in Canterbury: sack the council, appoint commissioners and put in place a sensible plan, such as the original decision plan with no appeal rights. This will give certainty, stop the temporary solutions and most importantly remove the stress from farmers. Unless they act immediately lives could be at risk, not to mention the economic viability of an important primary producing region of the country.

At the moment it could be argued One Plan favours a lot of exotic and a few native fish in the region’s rivers ahead of hard-working stressed farmers. 

More like this

Editorial: Getting RMA settings right

OPINION: The Government has been seeking industry feedback on its proposed amendments to a range of Resource Management Act (RMA) national direction instruments.

Editorial: Agri's mojo is back

OPINION: Good times are coming back for the primary industries. From sentiment expressed at Fieldays to the latest rural confidence survey results, all indicate farmer confidence at a near-record high.

Editorial: Sense at last

OPINION: For the first time in many years, a commonsense approach is emerging to balance environmental issues with the need for the nation's primary producers to be able to operate effectively.

Featured

Editorial: Right call

OPINION: Public pressure has led to Canterbury Police rightly rolling back its proposed restructure that would have seen several rural police stations closed in favour of centralised hubs.

National

Machinery & Products

New McHale terra drive axle option

Well-known for its Fusion baler wrapper combination, Irish manufacturer McHale has launched an interesting option at the recent Irish Ploughing…

Amazone unveils flagship spreader

With the price of fertiliser still significantly higher than 2024, there is an increased onus on ensuring its spread accurately at…

» Latest Print Issues Online

Milking It

Fonterra vote

OPINION: Voting is underway for Fonterra’s divestment proposal, with shareholders deciding whether or not sell its consumer brands business.

Follow the police beat

OPINION: Politicians and Wellington bureaucrats should take a leaf out of the book of Canterbury District Police Commander Superintendent Tony Hill.

» Connect with Dairy News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter