KEY POINTS:
Environment Minister Trevor Mallard wants to see more legal action taken against farmers who breach requirements to keep waterways clean.
Mr Mallard said yesterday farmers were not making fast enough progress in their efforts to improve water quality in the regions.
"Water is one of our most important
natural assets, and protecting it is essential for our development and our goal of becoming a sustainable nation.
"I challenge the dairy sector to take greater responsibility in managing nutrient inputs and outputs and ensure farmers comply with the effluent discharge regulations that are set out in the resource consents and regional plans."
Mr Mallard said the Government was pleased to see non-compliant farmers being penalised by local authorities and the courts and urged more of it.
"That's what the regulations are there for," he said.
His comments followed the release of the fourth progress report on the Dairying and Clean Streams Accord.
The accord is an agreement between the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, the Ministry for the Environment, Fonterra Co-operative Group and Local Government New Zealand.
Signed in May 2003, it aimed to achieve clean, healthy water in dairying areas. It covers streams, rivers, lakes, groundwater and wetlands.
Mr Mallard said the management of nutrient inputs and outputs on farms was not enough to reverse decline in water quality.
"The levels of nutrients in our rivers have increased over the last two decades and agricultural land use has intensified at a rate greater than some of the sensitive catchments can handle."
The report showed steady progress was being made towards the accord's targets in most areas, but some farmers were letting the side down.
Mr Mallard said the Environment New Zealand 2007 report and other data showed the quality of fresh water was under increasing pressure from intensifying land use, particularly in rural areas.
Agriculture Minister Jim Anderton said although it was good that most Fonterra farmers now had nutrient budgets in place, it was time to have active nutrient management plans in place as required by the accord.
"All New Zealand industries have to realise that the voluntary approach does not mean you have the luxury of doing nothing."
If an industry wanted to avoid regulation then it must take concerted action before the rest of the community demanded government intervention, he said.
The chairman of Fonterra's sustainability leadership team, Barry Harris, said dairy farmers were demonstrating that on-farm environmental management was firmly on their agendas.
Mr Harris said 83 per cent of rivers, lakes and streams had been fenced off by farmers to exclude dairy cattle and 97 per cent of regular race crossing points now had bridges or culverts.
"This puts us well ahead on both of these targets for the 2006/07 season."
Mr Harris said there had been a considerable improvement in the management of nutrients on-farm, with 97 per cent of suppliers now having adopted a nutrient budget.
"While this falls short of our 100 per cent target, it is a positive step in reducing the environmental impact of fertiliser on-farm."
He said dairy effluent compliance was still the single largest challenge in the accord for farmers and the industry.
The Green Party yesterday challenged Fonterra to demonstrate its disappointment over the milk suppliers who were still breaking the law and polluting waterways by refusing to pick up their milk.
Co-leader Russel Norman said that after nearly five years it was time for Fonterra to show some spine and tell its milk tankers not to stop at those farms which continued to illegally pollute rivers and streams.
THE TARGETS
Accord targets for farmers to have met by 2007 year and 2012:
* Dairy cattle to be excluded from 50 per cent of streams, rivers and lakes by 2007, rising to 90 per cent by 2012.
* By 2007 at least half of all regular crossing points should have bridges or culverts, rising to 90 per cent by 2012.
* All dairy farm effluent discharges must comply with resource consents and regional plans.
* All dairy farms must have systems to manage nutrient inputs and outputs by 2007.
* Half of regionally significant wetlands should have been fenced by 2005, rising to 90 per cent by 2007.