Dairy farmers in Waitaki and Waimate received a thumbs-up from Environment Canterbury (Ecan) yesterday, after a marked improvement in the number of farmers abiding by effluent regulations.
Figures released in Ecan's Canterbury Dairy Report for the 2011-12 season revealed that more than 69% of the 119 dairy farms in the Lower Waitaki- South Coastal Canterbury Zone achieved full compliance.
Although that number was less than farms in the Orari-Opihi-Pareora zone, which was 77% compliant, it was still in line with the 70% average compliance rate across the whole of Canterbury.
In the previous year, Waitaki and Waimate farms had been assessed separately and achieved only a 50% and 54.4% compliance rate, respectively.
Ecan resource management director Kim Drummond said the improved compliance rate was "encouraging".
"Our monitoring has shown a region-wide steady improvement in overall compliance rates from season to season.
"In most cases where significant non-compliance has been found, this has led to improvements being made on effluent disposal systems and in the management of ponding. We recognise dairy farmers are actively working on storage options to ensure full compliance with conditions.
"The improvement in compliance reflects the work done by Environment Canterbury in collaboration with industry partners and other stakeholders."
Federated Farmers North Otago president Richard Strowger said he expected compliance rates to rise further as farmers became more aware of the need to keep records.
Issues of non-compliance had been more "procedural" around the need to keep records and written information, Mr Strowger said.
"Sometimes farmers aren't all that hot at doing that stuff. It will take a bit of time for them to come up to date with the fact that they have to record that, and if you don't, you're non-compliant."
There had been no cases of dirty dairying, he said.
"To my knowledge no-one has been prosecuted for dumping effluent into a river or anything like that. It's more a procedural-type situation with people.
"As we go along and people become more attuned to what is happening, it [compliance rates] will go up further."
