Stock exclusion survey shows good progress in Canterbury
The level of stock exclusion from natural waterways in Canterbury is among the highest in the country, according to a report released today by the Ministry for Agriculture and Forestry (MAF).
The MAF Stock Exclusion Survey was based on an independent assessment of 587 Fonterra dairy supply farms throughout New Zealand. The survey was conducted between March and May 2011.
In Canterbury 65.4 per cent of dairy farms had complete stock exclusion (compared with a national rate of 42.1%), 78.2% of streams had complete stock exclusion (57% nationally), and 93.8% of stream banks had fences or barriers to exclude stock (78.4% nationally).
“There has been a real focus this year in Canterbury on excluding stock from natural waterways in order to improve water quality,” said Environment Canterbury Commissioner Tom Lambie.
“In June this year our Canterbury Natural Resources Regional Plan became operative and included a new set of rules designed to control stock access to waterways.
“In June 2012 additional and more stringent rules will come into force to build on the progress we have made in recent years.
The purpose of the MAF survey was to assess the progress made by dairy farmers towards achieving the stock exclusion targets agreed to in the Dairying and Clean Streams Accord (signed in 2003 by Fonterra, the Minister for the Environment, the Minister of Agriculture, and regional councils including Environment Canterbury).
The Dairying and Clean Streams Accord: Snapshot of Progress (2010/2011) has been released with the Stock Exclusion Report.
“Environment Canterbury has also been working in collaboration with industry partners and other stakeholders over the past few years to improve the levels of environmental performance on dairy farms.
“The Clean Streams Accord is an important part of the ongoing work to encourage and educate farmers about how to continue to lift their environmental performance and to be seen to be doing so.”
Another important initiative is the Canterbury Dairy Effluent Group, set up in 2008 after Environment Canterbury initiated a meeting with industry partners, Fish & Game and Forest & Bird, to discuss ways to improve levels of dairy effluent compliance. The group has met regularly since then and includes industry and education partners along with Environment Canterbury working collaboratively to improve the rate of dairy effluent compliance (which rose to 65% full compliance last season, up from 59% in the previous season).
Dairy effluent statistics for all regions are included in the Clean Streams Accord snapshot with the note that different councils have different rules and the rates are not directly comparably.
“What the stock exclusion and dairy effluent compliance statistics show is that we are making good progress in addressing some of the obvious causes of environmental degradation that can result from poor farm management.
“Stock exclusion can be as simple as a farm manager putting in a temporary fence to keep stock away from a natural waterway.
“Planting of riparian margins – whether natives or just grasses – is also a good way to protect waterways by restricting stock access and providing a nutrient absorption zone.”
“The Stock Exclusion Survey found the average Canterbury dairy farm required 330 metres of fencing to complete stock exclusion.
“As 65% of dairy farms already have achieved complete stock exclusion the remaining 35% of farms have quite a bit of work to do to achieve the target of 100%.”
“Environment Canterbury will continue to work collaboratively to encourage good practice but underpinning this approach are the new rules - backed up by enforcement action where necessary – designed to improve water quality by keeping stock out of waterways,” said Tom Lambie.
View the Stock Exclusion Survey
View the The Dairying and Clean Streams Accord: Snapshot of Progress