Farmers continue protest momentum with group, petition

Tractor rally organisers Bryce McKenzie, of Pomahaka, (left) and Laurie Paterson. Photo / Sandy Eggleston

A group of farmers is planning its next move - including a petition to Parliament and a farmer meeting in Gore - in a bid to seek changes to the national policy statement (NPS) for freshwater management.

Groundswell NZ stemmed from last month's tractor trek in Gore, which was organised by farmers Laurie Paterson, of Greenvale, and Bryce McKenzie, of Pomahaka.

Yesterday, Paterson said the group was looking at what it could do to "make our voice heard" and it was buoyed by the support already received.

There had been an overwhelming response to the tractor trek and he and McKenzie felt they could not leave it there.

"We're just a group of concerned farmers really. We see that as a bit of an advantage, we're not tied to any group, we're not political in any way."

The group believed there were "far superior solutions" to those in the new NPS; it was striving for sensible, sustainable and practical ones.

"Groundswell NZ is a platform for any New Zealander to register with and support, with the aim of bringing the necessary attention to the fact that these laws have been passed with little or no consultation with industry bodies.

"Science has not been looked at or even considered and it seems the policy writers have a complete lack of understanding of agricultural farming in New Zealand and, to that effect, have behaved immorally and unprofessionally," it said.

The laws would not only affect the immediate rural communities they were aimed at but also urban New Zealand. As the pressure was felt, there would be job losses, higher food costs and limited capital spending, it said.

The group believed the freshwater regulations must be rebuilt from the ground up, rather than tweaked, working with industry bodies to achieve workable rules.

Paterson said a petition to Parliament was under way, calling for "common sense" changes.

A meeting was planned at the Southern Field Days site at Waimumu, near Gore, on February 12.

Following that, further options would be looked at, including not applying for any consents, and potentially withholding regional council rates until the group's objective was reached.

Agriculture Minister Damien O'Connor has previously said the intent of the regulations was clear: to clean up the country's waterways. Where the regulations were impractical or unclear, adjustments would continue to be made.