Ashburton district farmers face cost blowouts if they delay the installation of water
measuring systems as required by the government’s National Regulations.
From 10 November 2012 water consent holders with takes of more than 20 litres per
second need to have installed a water measuring and reporting system.
John Young, Environment Canterbury’s Team Leader Water Metering, said consent
holders must comply with the Government’s regulations and need to act soon to
avoid the expected rush for equipment and installations. (Read on …)

Farmers have been given a clear message to use water efficiently, with the release this week of the first Environment Canterbury resource consent decision on water use in the upper Waitaki catchment.

Large capital investment may be required by farmers and irrigation companies to meet efficiency targets.

Six resource consents have been granted to the Upper Waitaki Community Irrigation Company for an unusually short period of five years.

The company had asked for 35 years. (Read on …)

Local Government New Zealand says a suggestion that there be government appointees on local bodies to tackle water pollution would require a major law change, and much less drastic action would be preferable.

The comments follow a report from the office of the Auditor-General that says regional councils are not doing enough to prevent the degradation of fresh water by dairy farms, and councillors are getting in the way of prosecutions taking place.

Environment Minister Nick Smith says the Government will consider a suggestion by the Land and Water Forum to appoint goverment representatives. (Read on …)

Environmental objections to fossil fuel extraction are mounting, with the Royal Forest & Bird Protection Society and Greenpeace separately lodging appeals against coal-mining and oil exploration consents.

The Forest & Bird appeal against resource consents issued to the first opencast coal mine in Bathurst Resources’s Buller Coal Project was widely anticipated, and brings to three the number of appeals now received against the Escarpment mine project.

Unexpected was the announcement by Greenpeace that it will seek a judicial review of the oil exploration licences granted to the Brazilian oil and gas giant, Petrobras, to seek hydrocarbons in the Raukumara Basin in waters off East Cape, beyond the 12 mile nautical limit in New Zealand’s Exclusive Economic Zone. (Read on …)

Nearly 100 Otago resource consents involving effluent and odour discharge and water takes have been found to be non-compliant, with potential effects on the environment.

The Otago Regional Council’s compliance team carried out 810 audits of 718 activities and reviewed 2335 consent conditions for performance monitoring relating to 697 consents in the 12 months to June.

The audits revealed two areas of concern – water meter installation and discharge and water takes.

Environmental services manager Martin King said in a report to the council’s regulatory committee the level of compliance found with discharge and water take consents was “of concern”.

Of the 358 consents monitored, only 38.3% fully complied with their consent conditions. (Read on …)

Roil Contracting Ltd (RCL) and Patrick Roil have been convicted and fined $60,000 for stream reclamation works in the Pauatahanui Inlet.

Mr Roil and RCL earlier pleaded guilty to charges laid by Greater Wellington under the Resource Management Act 1991.

GW laid three charges against each party in December 2010 alleging that approximately 60 metres of the stream had been reclaimed and smothered with cleanfill and non-cleanfill material causing it to be diverted and become laden with sediment. (Read on …)