Southland farmers have been given an extra 18 months to complete and submit their farm environment plans, following a government decision to extend the deadline to November 2027.
The change, announced by Environment Southland, replaced the previous May 27, 2026, cut-off.
Chairman Jeremy McPhail said the extension gave farmers more time to prepare practical, well-informed plans while national policy settings were finalised. The plans were a key tool for identifying environmental risks, supporting on-farm improvements and lifting water quality across the region.
"Farm plans remain an important part of improving freshwater outcomes and this extension gives farmers extra time to continue developing plans that are practical, well-informed and tailored to their property and catchment."
He believed farm plans would remain a key requirement for most agricultural operations in Southland as they were a key tool to help identify environmental risks on individual properties and set out practical steps to reduce those risks.
The council had long supported the use of farm plans as a tool for both environmental accountability and encouraging the uptake of on-farm mitigations, Mr McPhail said.
"These are one of the key tools in Southland for improving water quality across our catchments." — Allied Media
