Hon Jim Anderton
Minister of Agriculture
Hon Trevor Mallard
Minister for the Environment
26 February 2008
Media Statement
Embargoed until 10am
Call for action on nutrients management
Current management of nutrient inputs and outputs at farm level is simply not enough to reverse decline in water
quality, Environment Minister Trevor Mallard and Agriculture Minister Jim Anderton said today.
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.
Trevor Mallard today released the fourth progress report on the Dairying and Clean Streams Accord at Fonterra’s head
office in Auckland. 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 aims to achieve clean,
healthy water in dairying areas, including streams, rivers, lakes, groundwater and wetlands.
"This report shows steady progress is being made towards the Accord’s targets in most areas. Some regions are performing
really well, but others continue to let down the majority who are working hard to safeguard New Zealand’s clean, green
image. This has got to change," said Trevor Mallard.
"The Environment New Zealand 2007 report and other recent data show that the quality of our fresh water is under
increasing pressure from intensifying land use, particularly in rural areas.
"Water is one of our most important natural assets and protecting it is essential for our future 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."
"Ministers are pleased to see non-compliant farmers being penalised by local authorities and the courts and we urge more
of it – that’s what the regulations are there for," Trevor Mallard said.
Jim Anderton said that while it was good most Fonterra farmers now had nutrient budgets in place, it was time to reach
for the top of the nutrient management ladder, that is, an active nutrient management plan, 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 wants to avoid regulation then it must take concerted action before the rest of the community demands
government intervention. You also need to have a strategy to deal with free-riders who let the side down."
Later this year, accord partners will review the accord to assess opportunities for improvement and leverage off new
initiatives, such as the Dairy Industry Strategy for Sustainable Environmental Management and the Sustainable Water
Programme of Action.
"When this review is undertaken, the farming industry needs to know that ministers will in particular be focusing on how
to secure far better compliance with regulations and environmental standards across all regions, with the support of
accord partners," Jim Anderton said.
Trevor Mallard also signaled that the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management, currently under development,
would address some of these issues.
"While the accord is a good industry initiative, it does not and will not preclude our government developing national
policies and regulatory instruments in areas considered as national priorities, such as safeguarding fresh water
quality," said Trevor Mallard.
The Ministry for the Environment is consulting with stakeholders on National Environmental Standards (which will set
regulations) and the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management.
The snapshot report is available at
dairying-clean-streams-accord-snapshot-feb08/index.html
ENDS