fbpx
Print this page
Tuesday, 12 June 2018 11:55

Better late than never — Greenpeace

Written by  Nigel Malthus
Some dairy farmers are supporting Greenpeace's campaign against further intensification of dairying. Some dairy farmers are supporting Greenpeace's campaign against further intensification of dairying.

Greenpeace's sustainable agriculture campaigner Gen Toop says even dairy farmers are supporting their campaign against further intensification of dairying.

“Several dairy farmers have contacted us on social media and identified themselves as dairy farmers, and totally agree with our campaign,” said Toop. “We haven’t really had that before, in our work.”

Greenpeace in early May used aerial drone footage of the irrigation pipeline being built for the Simons Pass dairy conversion to launch a petition calling on the government to prohibit all new dairy conversions and further intensification of existing livestock farms.

Toop said the petition was one of their fastest-growing, recently passing 26,000 signatures.

“We are highlighting what’s happening there because obviously the Mackenzie is not cow country. It’s dry, its soils are leaky and its very ecologically sensitive.”

Although neither Greenpeace nor the EDS had been party to the Environment Court appeal giving the Simons Pass development the go-ahead, Greenpeace believes the fight isn’t over.

“Better late than never,” said Toop. “It’s every New Zealander’s right to stand up and try to stop intensive dairying from ruining the Mackenzie and polluting our rivers and lakes.”

Valentine’s claim that he would put only about 5000 dairy cows on the farm “has no standing” as long as the consent for effluent from 15,000 had not been terminated, she said. Nor did he yet have consents for all the planned dairy sheds. 

Greenpeace would also oppose freeholding under tenure review, in the belief that without freehold the project would be financially unviable. 

More like this

False advice

OPINION: Rural communities should take their advice from health professionals, not Greenpeace, says Federated Farmers.

Get back to saving whales!

OPINION: Greenpeace Aotearoa are nothing but an anti-farming lobby group who want to see the end of productive agriculture as we know it in New Zealand.

Greenpeace is wrong!

OPINION: Greenpeace's criticism of the appointment of farmers’ champion Andrew Hoggard as Associate Minister of Agriculture and of the Environment is baffling.

Stick to whales

OPINION: When Fonterra announced its Scope 3 emissions target this month, you might have thought that would please Greenpeace.

Featured

Sheep drench resistance costly

Analysis by Dunedin-based Techion New Zealand shows the cost of undetected drench resistance in sheep has exploded to an estimated $98 million a year.

Dairy sheep and goat turmoil

Dairy sheep and goat farmers are being told to reduce milk supply as processors face a slump in global demand for their products.

Hurry up and slow down!

OPINION: We have good friends from way back who had lived in one of our major cities for many years.

National

Govt urged to reduce ETS units

The Climate Change Commission wants the new Government to reduce NZ Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) auction volumes as son as…

Dairy sheep, goat woes mount

Dairy sheep and goat farmers are being told to reduce milk supply as processors face a slump in global demand…

Machinery & Products

All-terrain fert spreading mode

Effluent specialists the Samson Group have developed a new double unloading system to help optimise uphill and downhill organic fertiliser…

Can-Am showcases range

Based on industry data collected by the Motor Industry Association, Can-Am is the number one side-by-side manufacturer in New Zealand.