Farm fined $35,000 for dirty dairying | Rotorua News | Local News in Rotorua

One of the Central North Island's largest corporate farms has been fined $35,000 for "dirty dairying".

Raw effluent from the Reporoa farm was being discharged on to the land where it could leach into waterways, prompting Environment Waikato to take court action against the farm sharemilkers, a worker and the company that owns it, Plateau Farms Ltd.

Yesterday, following a three-day Environment Court hearing in Rotorua, the company was fined $35,000 plus $130 court costs. Plateau Farms Ltd director Alan Crafar appeared for the company and told the Daily Post that since the breach in late 2004, the company had taken steps to ensure its farms complied with the regulations regarding effluent discharge.

Crafar pleaded guilty on behalf of the company in the Taupo District Court last June to one count of discharging dairy shed effluent in breach of the Resource Management Act. At the time one of his sharemilkers was fined $500 and another worker was discharged by the court.

The sharemilker and worker claimed they notified Mr Crafar about the problems but he rejected that.

The charge related to offending in late 2004 on a 400ha Short Rd property - owned by Crafar, his wife Elizabeth and brother Frank Crafar.

At the time Crafar told the Daily Post he accepted liability but blamed his staff. This week's hearing related to his disputing of the summary of facts put forward by Environment Waikato, which placed most of the responsibility for complying with the Resource Management Act on the farm owners, rather than the employees.

Following this week's hearing Judge Craig Thompson said the onus was on farm owners to ensure effluent was being managed properly and met Resource Management Act requirements, which meant they were more to blame than their workers.



He gave the company credit for making changes necessary to comply after being notified of the problems but noted the breach was a long term offence with a serious effluent problem.

He said a corporate farm "should have done much better".

Crafar refused to comment on the sentencing but confirmed his company had, since the breach, worked hard to meet its legal requirements to comply.

"We are continually checking it and spending money on it to make sure it is right."

It is not the first time a company belonging Mr Crafar has been taken to task over farming practices.

In 2001, Valley View Ltd, of which Mr Crafar is a director, was fined $13,000 for disposing effluent where it could enter waterways.

Another of his companies, Te Pohue Ltd, was fined $10,000 late last year after MAF laid charges under the Animal Welfare Act of ill-treatment of stock.

It is understood Mr Crafar owns 18 farms between Hamilton and Te Pohue, with more than 20,000 stock units and Government valuations of more than $30 million.

Environment Waikato senior investigator Patrick Lynch, said the result of the case was significant and sent the message that bad management practices would not be ignored.

" If people aren't complying we will take action."

Earlier this week Environment Waikato revealed it was set to prosecute individuals and companies involved in 15 farms in the region, including Tokoroa, for dirty dairying.