Pollution

I WOULD like to thank Environment Southland for alerting us to possible health risks when swimming in water at 13 sites around Southland’s coast and 10 popular freshwater recreation spots over the summer (January 25).

Could they please tell us what is being done to clean up the polluted sites? Doetie Keizer, Riverton Environment Southland chief executive Ciaran Keogh replied.

Council recognises the issues arising from the intensification of land use across Southland. We do not only focus on dairying as any activity that requires discharge of nutrient, diversion of water or disturbance to the soil can have significant impact on the region’s environment and the quality of surface and ground water.

Council spent the first weekend of this month in a strategic planning workshop where the future implications of current trends in climate, changes in land use and the implications of future trends in energy supply and water demand were discussed. The council acknowledges that its commitment of resources in planning, compliance and land use management have not kept up with the growth in our rural economy. Council is addressing these issues.

We have just completed a new water plan and we are about to commence a review of our regional policy statement in partnership with Southland District Council as it prepares a new district plan.

A concurrent review of the discharge plan will enable land use intensification effects to be addressed. Everything we do in response to issues in our environment needs to be managed through policy documents prepared under the Resource Management Act. These take years to prepare, so sometimes process causes us to lag behind in our response to issues.

Southland’s waterways have their problems but they are not in a crisis situation. Our environment is experiencing rapid change and it is important that the situation not be allowed to deteriorate further and that we start to reverse negative trends.

Council is currently discussing the need to increase resources and to undertake a comprehensive review of how our waterways and aquifers are used and managed, building on the recently completed plans. We intend to put more staff on the ground, both providing advice and enforcing our rules and consent conditions.

Our rules ensure that dairy farms generally use good practice with effluent management. The increasing intensification of farming, however, requires that we are constantly vigilant.

Specific replies to Mrs Hall’s questions are as follows: Points 1 and 2: Dairy farms do not need consent but any discharge of dairy effluent does. We have very specific controls on this activity and a right to review conditions. Stock water supplies are generally not a problem, the take of water for irrigation and general farm use can be. Consents granted for water takes include conditions with cut off points when irrigation must cease. These are actively enforced.

Point 3: Environment Southland has nine staff in its compliance section. They are more than busy enough at present and councillors agreed at the workshop to consider raising this number by another five over the next two years as we have been so focussed on dairy conversions that other compliance work has been suffering.

Point 4: Dairy farmers generally are actively interested in minimising the impact on waterways. Environment Southland is also increasing the stringency of its controls as demand for access to the region’s water resources grows. Your correspondents’ concerns are reflected across the farming community as well. No one can afford to let the rivers deteriorate as they are the indicator of how well we are all looking after the golden goose — our environment.

(c) 2008 Southland Times, The. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.