Expo shows the benefit of communication
Released 07 Apr 2011
Stew Wadey is the Waikato Provincial President for Federated Farmers
I think some congratulations are in order. Dairy NZ and Waikato Regional Council put on a real show at their Effluent Expo which was held at Mystery Creek, Tuesday 29 March. As always, the easiest way to measure the success of the day is by the numbers attending and there was a great farmer turnout, often with staff joining them. This kind of event has been a long time coming and it's great to see Environment Waikato getting involved in a meaningful dialogue on this topic, especially with a key part of the Waikato constituency, farmers. For the most part, Farmers respect the regional council and understand the need for some kind of regulation; our farmers want to comply with best practice for farm effluent treatment and disposal.
So what is certainly is not sexy issue, but an important one nonetheless, saw a decent turnout. These kinds of Expos work a lot better and explain the issues a lot better than a council simply reaching for the regulatory revolver in the first instance. Clearing up the difference between significant non-compliance and minor non-compliance has become key issue, not just for farmers and their regulators, but for the public as a whole. Much of the media coverage does not make the distinction, thus giving the appearance of a problem getting worse rather than better. The vast majority of farmers lead the way for good practice and have been unfairly represented by the fourth estate here.
The event itself showed there is some good will between the levy body and the regulator, which I believe ensured excellent support from the many accredited manufacturers and suppliers of effluent disposal and irrigation machinery. The expo timetable consisted of several 45 minute seminars across two separate meeting rooms from 9.30am onwards. The first room's presentation was done by Environment Waikato's Kate Ody, whose topic ‘using the pond storage calculator' partnered with Shaun Hodson from Opus, who discussed ‘storage systems at work'.
The second room had Doug Edmeades from agKnowledge covering ‘effluent for crop and pasture management'. Environment Waikato's Bill Vant spoke on the ‘environmental risks of effluent'. Such was the popularity of the first four concurrent seminars that they were standing room only. These covered some essential topics and were well presented in easy to understand format - something we could see a lot more of. There was very little to criticise except there was a noticeable request that the ‘the pond storage calculator' be made more readily accessible for farmers. As the actual aim is the on-going reduction of nutrient leaching into water bodies, I would have liked to have seen some speakers representing aerial and ground fertiliser spreaders. Most of these companies embrace new technologies which is always welcomed, which prevents them from spreading into waterways and other sensitive areas. This Expo was a huge step forward in promoting on farm practice of nutrient management. So good job all. I am sure the debrief of the expo by Environment Waikato and DairyNZ personnel will be a backslapping affair. We hope to see more positive team work here to drive the Waikato regional economy. Let me know what you think at Stew.wadey@xtra.co.nz
