Rewarding farmers who embrace sustainability
Winners of DairyNZ’s Sustainability and Stewardship awards in the Ballance Farm Environment Awards have their eyes firmly fixed on progressing a positive future for New Zealand dairy.
Civil engineer Rex Corlett has won a prestigious engineering award for his work on effluent pond design and construction, reports IPENZ–Engineers New Zealand.
Corlett’s work has influenced regional council rules on dairy farm effluent storage, IPENZ says. It won him the Angus Award which recognises engineering excellence in waste, water and amenities.
A chance visit to a dairy farm 10 years ago sparked his interest in effluent ponds.
“I was horrified,” he says. “There were damp patches around the outside of the pond and its downstream slope was leaking into a nearby creek.”
Given the farmer had used his own excavator for the works and only track-rolled the surface, Corlett says the leakage wasn’t surprising. But he was surprised to discover this kind of practice was commonplace.
The key to improving farm systems, he says, is talking to farmers, building respect and trust, and convincing them that good design isn’t overkill but sound, sensible practice.
“Farmers naturally want to do as much work onfarm as they can and choosing to employ an engineering consultant often doesn’t come easily.”
But producing a low-maintenance, long-term solution makes their lives easier, he says.
Doing it once and doing it right means no costly fix-ups of mistakes, or replacement two years down the track.
“It’s actually just good asset management principles.”
Currently principal engineer (rural) in Opus’ Christchurch office, Corlett is drafting the third revision of IPENZ Practice Note 21, and continues to work with DairyNZ and regional councils.
He has recently been seconded to the North Canterbury transport infrastructure recovery team to manage reconstruction and upgrading of the Picton-Christchurch rural highway following the Kaikoura earthquakes.
The Angus Award was one of two supreme technical awards presented at the IPENZ Fellows and Achievers Awards on April 7 in Wellington.
An educational programme, set up by Beef + Land New Zealand, to connect farmers virtually with primary and intermediate school students has reported the successful completion of its second year.
The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) has welcomed a resolution adopted by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly to declare 2026 International Year of the Woman Farmer.
Waikato herd health veterinarian Katrina Roberts is the 2024 Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year.
Trade Minister Todd McClay says New Zealand has no intention of backing down in a trade dispute with Canada over dairy products.
There have been leadership changes at the Hamilton-based Dairy Goat Co-operative, which has been struggling financially in recent years.
Horticulture NZ chief executive Nadine Tunley will step down in August.
OPINION: Canterbury milk processor Synlait is showing no sign of bouncing back from its financial doldrums.
OPINION: It seems every bugger in this country can get an award these days.