Friday, 03 March 2023 09:51

Farmers fined $28,000 for effluent discharge

Written by 

Two Bay of Plenty farmers have been slapped with fines totalling $28,000 for effluent management breach.


Farm owner Francis Nettleingham, and his son John Nettleingham, the farm manager, pleaded guilty at the District Court of Tauranga last week to discharging dairy shed effluent to land where it entered a tributary of the Aongatete estuary.


Bay of Plenty Regional Council prosecuted the two men for the effluent discharge of dairy shed effluent that occurred on at their Aongatete farm on 13 October 2021. The farm operates as a small calf-rearing enterprise, milking about thirty cows to feed the calves. Both men were fined $14,000 each.


Judge David Kirkpatrick says in his ruling that a relatively simple system for diverting stormwater and cowshed effluent to appropriate destinations was not operated properly.


“There does not appear to have been any fault or problem with the elements of the system, only with the way in which the defendants used it.”


BoP Council compliance manager, Alex Miller, notes that the Aongatete estuary has high cultural and ecological values.


“Everybody has duties and responsibilities to manage their dairy shed effluent to avoid unwanted pollution entering the environment.


“Regardless of the scale of the farm and the dairy operation, farmers need to put the design, operation, maintenance and inspection of their effluent management systems at the forefront of their work,” Miller says

More like this

$52,500 fine for effluent mismanagement

A Taupiri farming company has been convicted and fined $52,500 in the Hamilton District Court for the unlawful discharge of dairy effluent into the environment.

Fliegl offers effluent solutions

Founded in Germany as recently as 1977, today, the Fliegl Group employs more than 1100 workers, offering an expansive range of transport solutions, from their base in Bavaria.

Featured

Dr Mike Joy says sorry, escapes censure

Academic Dr Mike Joy and his employer, Victoria University of Wellington have apologised for his comments suggesting that dairy industry CEOs should be hanged for contributing towards nitrate poisoning of waterways.

People-first philosophy pays off

The team meeting at the Culverden Hotel was relaxed and open, despite being in the middle of calving when stress levels are at peak levels, especially in bitterly cold and wet conditions like today.

Farmer anger over Joy's social media post

A comment by outspoken academic Dr Mike Joy suggesting that dairy industry leaders should be hanged for nitrate contamination of drinking/groundwater has enraged farmers.

From Nelson to Dairy Research: Amy Toughey’s Journey

Driven by a lifelong passion for animals, Amy Toughey's journey from juggling three jobs with full-time study to working on cutting-edge dairy research trials shows what happens when hard work meets opportunity - and she's only just getting started.

National

Machinery & Products

JDLink Boost for NZ farms

Connectivity is widely recognised as one of the biggest challenges facing farmers, but it is now being overcome through the…

New generation Defender HD11

The all-new 2026 Can-Am Defender HD11 looks likely to raise the bar in the highly competitive side-by-side category.

» Latest Print Issues Online

Milking It

Buttery prize

OPINION: Westland Milk may have won the contract to supply butter to Costco NZ but Open Country Dairy is having…

Gene Bill rumours

OPINION: The Gene Technology Bill has divided the farming community with strong arguments on both the pros and cons of…

» Connect with Dairy News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter