Tuesday, 25 July 2023 14:55

Further convictions for Reporoa farming business

Written by  Staff Reporters
Waikato Regional Council officer taking sample of effluent flow path. Waikato Regional Council officer taking sample of effluent flow path.

Farming company JB Thomas and Sons Limited has been convicted and fined $71,250 for unlawfully discharging dairy effluent into the environment at its Reporoa farm in November 2021.

The sentence was imposed by Chief Environment Court Judge David Kirkpatrick in the Rotorua District Court last week.

This is the company’s third such prosecution following similar convictions for pollution in 2001 and 2020.

The case was taken by Waikato Regional Council, under the Resource Management Act, following an inspection where officers found the effluent storage pond on the property was full and had been overflowing.

The overflow had run into a farm drain that discharged into the Kopuhurihuri Stream, a tributary to the Waiotapu Stream.

This discharge also breached an abatement notice previously issued to the company by the council in 2019 directing the company to manage its effluent lawfully.

In sentencing the company, Judge Kirkpatrick referred to “poor management” and commented that “the gravity of the offending and the culpability of the defendant are moderately serious in this case”.

He added that “while not deliberate, I consider the defendant was clearly careless” and “the breach of an abatement notice is a significant offence in itself as the process of issuing abatement notices has the purpose of avoiding repeat offending”.

More like this

Crush death triggers on-farm traffic alert

Following a sentencing for a death at a South Canterbury agribusiness, WorkSafe New Zealand is calling on farmers to consider how vehicles move inside their barns and sheds.

Director ordered to pay $48,000 in penalties

A Hawke’s Bay horticulture company and its owner, who is banned from acting as a director or manager of any company until 2028, have been ordered to pay penalties of $48,000 by the Employment Relations Authority.

Featured

Pāmu farm opens gate to urban visitors

For many urban New Zealanders, stepping into Pāmu’s Pinta dairy farm near Taupo last month was the first time they had had the chance to experience farm life up close.

Afimilk appoints new general manager

Afimilk, a global dairy farm management solutions provider, has appointed Justin Miller as the new general manager for New Zealand and Australia.

National

Machinery & Products

Alpego eyes electric power harrow

Distributed by OriginAg in New Zealand, Italian manufacturer Alpego recently showed its three metre Alysium electric power harrow at the…

» Latest Print Issues Online

The Hound

Dodgy!

OPINION: If you believe Maori Party president John Tamihere’s claim that “nothing dodgy” occurred at Manurewa Marae during the last…

» Connect with Rural News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter