Hawke's Bay Regional Council accused of broken promises

A feedlot near the Tukitiki River. Photo / Supplied

As it faces a reported threat of court action, Hawke's Bay Regional Council denies it broke promises to stop cow muck polluting the region.

Hawke's Bay businessman Simon Lusk yesterday told Radio NZ he would file evidence with the Environment Court from a feedlot situated between Cape Sanctuary and Ocean Beach, as an example of how cows and their effluent were damaging the soil.

However, Fish and Game pointed out the council could have avoided any legal action if it had fulfilled its 2016 promise to tackle the issue.

Fish and Game New Zealand chief executive Martin Taylor said instead, the council had broken its promises.

"At the time, the council said the farmers responsible were driven by greed and had made it look like idiots. Nothing has changed and his council still looks that way because of its failure to act.

"The way feedlots are being operated is environmentally unacceptable – the sediment and effluent runoff is damaging the environment, let alone the animal welfare issues feedlot operations raise.

"Kiwis want swimmable waterways and a cleaner environment. They have every right to be fed up with such blatant abuse and broken promises by those who are meant to enforce the rules."

A feedlot is an area which animals are kept on for 15 days out of 30.

HBRC chief executive James Palmer said the council had not been notified of any legal action, adding he was not aware of any non-compliant properties.

"Hawke's Bay Regional Council uses a combination of the rules and non-regulatory approaches.

"We have seen increased awareness of good management practices for wintering as a result of targeted communication efforts, and the development of farm plans in the Tukituki catchment to address nutrient loss in critical source areas on farm.

"There are cases we are aware of where this greater awareness has led to changed practices.

"The council's compliance team has previously done a flyover of the region and believe they have identified all the properties that are operating as feedlots and need a resource consent.

"The council is aware of a growing practice of winter-feeding operations that are not feedlots under current rules but where pasture cover is absent for a period and supplementary feed is brought on to site.

"Some farmers use this approach to reduce the impact of cattle in winter from more extensively damaging soils by concentrating stock to certain areas."

HBRC was considering whether it needed to review the rules.

"There are a number of intensive farming operations where the farmer is technically compliant and moving the stock on within 14 days so it is not coming under our regulation as a feedlot.

"One of the challenges we face is that there will hardly be a farm in the country that doesn't lose nutrients and soil to the environment in winter.

"So drawing a line between what's acceptable and what's not in terms of how many stock should be allowed in one place for any length of time, including in a fodder crop paddock, is a difficult judgement."

Hawke's Bay Today was unable to reach Lusk for comment.