Opinion: Fish & Game should stop blaming farmers

Federated Farmers Environment spokesperson Chris Allen. Photo / Supplied

Fish & Game needs to work with farmers when it comes to water quality, writes Federated Farmers Environment spokesperson Chris Allen.

The Fish & Game blame game has started in earnest in 2019.

The national organisation is seeking to raise its profile by apportioning most, if not all, the blame for water quality problems on farmers.

We know this rhetoric is neither true nor supported by many of the regional Fish & Game councils.

The stance of Fish & Game's national body is arguably contrary to its purpose to represent the interests of anglers and hunters and provide co-ordination of the management, enhancement and maintenance of sports fish and game.

Read more from Federated Farmers here.

It's also contrary to their public stance that they are "NOT anti-farming".

Farmers are over the constant and destructive claims New Zealand has terrible water quality when in fact the majority of New Zealand's waterways are stable or improving.

A recent example is Fish & Game implying the worst water-borne diseases present in Canterbury rivers are the fault of dairy farming when the official reports say otherwise.

Almost a year ago, the Federated Farmers National President, Katie Milne wrote to Lindsay Lyons, the Chair of the National Fish and Game Council, offering an olive branch, Lindsay replied by napalming our offering.

All communities, across rural and urban, need to step-up and, where there is a water quality problem of their making, own it and become part of the solution.

Ask Auckland ratepayers who are now stepping up by paying $1.7 billion to reduce sewage overflows by 80 per cent so they can safely swim in their own back yard more of the time.

Farmers take huge pride in protecting and restoring waterways and habitat and in many cases often in partnership with their local Fish & Game folk.

Strong friendships have been established between hunters/anglers and landowners despite what the head of Fish & Game thinks.

Farmers understand more needs to be done and are doing it with the help of their local community members.

Federated Farmers will continue to try and get cut through with Fish & Game to have constructive dialogue given our mutual interests of land, water and sports animals.