He is suing the council for $40,000 for damage incurred to his farm after flooding in 2010, which, he believes, was because of the failure of the council to raise a flood bank on the Meggatburn to its design height.
This belief led him to raise the bank himself and bill the council for the work. As a result the council took him to the district court earlier this year, where he was found guilty of breaching the council's water plan for doing the work without a resource consent.
Mr Lyders was discharged without conviction and ordered to pay about $7000.
He was determined to continue with the civil action, despite the earlier court result, because of the principles involved, he said.
''It comes a time you have to stick up for your principles.''
Court-ordered mediation with the regional council's representatives had failed and the case would be heard in court later this year, he said.
This week Mr Lyders sent each regional councillor information on the background to the Waipori and Meggatburn flood schemes dating back to early last century, including the controversy in 1977 when the Lyders also ended up in court for raising floodbank heights.
Councillors should be fully informed of both sides of the issue, Mr Lyders said.
''I don't think they're getting the right information. They should be keeping an eye on what staff are doing,'' he said.
Council chairman Stephen Woodhead said the council had delegated responsibility for legal proceedings to the chief executive and, as the case was before the courts, it was ''inappropriate to comment further''.
