Piggery effluent polluting stream
Waikato Regional Council has sought an interim Enforcement Order from the Environment Court to stop piggery effluent from entering a waterway north of Te Aroha.
A new heavy-duty, shore-based stirrer from effluent handling specialist Hi-Tech Enviro Solutions can help eliminate the problem of crusts forming on effluent pond or storage towers.
The machine is designed to deal with a pond of 3.5 million litres.
The stirrer, made extensively from high-grade galvanised steel, has a triangular pedestal designed to be bolted to a concrete pad at the edge of the pond.
A deep, square-section support tube, in this case 8m long, can be tailored to individual situations; it has a large propeller surrounded by a shroud not unlike an empty oil drum. The interaction between the propeller and the shroud is designed to increase the velocity of the liquid and to create a vortex that keeps solids in suspension and helps reduce the build-up of silted areas in a pond.
Depth control is achieved by a heavy-duty chain arrangement at the pedestal end, with an integral foot at the business end designed to protect the liner from damage.
Also at this end of the unit, a mechanical linkage can be adjusted to alter the angle of the propeller/shroud to mix thoroughly.
Power comes from a shore-mounted electricity supply from 4 to 7.5kW; gearbox reductions at the propeller end can be tweaked to a range of speeds and power requirements.
The country’s 4200 commercial fruit and vegetable growers will vote from May 14 on a new HortNZ levy.
Meat processor Alliance Group is asking farmer shareholders to inject more capital in order to remain a 100% co-operative.
A vet is calling for all animals to be vaccinated against a new strain of leptospirosis (lepto) discovered on New Zealand dairy farms in recent years.
Dairy
Rural banker Rabobank is partnering with Food Rescue Kitchen on a new TV series which airs this weekend that aims to shine a light on the real and growing issues of food waste, food poverty and social isolation in New Zealand.
Telco infrastructure provider Chorus says that it believes all Kiwis – particularly those in the rural areas – need access to high-speed, reliable broadband.
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