Fresh eyes on freshwater plans

• Published date: 19 April 2024
• Publication title: Oamaru Mail

The previous Labour-led government announced the plans as part of the Essential Freshwater package in 2020 in a bid to reduce the harm farming has on fresh water

The plans were to be rolled out region-by-region, for farmers with 20ha or more in arable or pastoral use, 5ha or more in horticultural use, or 20ha or more in combined use.

Work is under way in several regions already, but the government this week announced it will review the plans.

Associate Minister for the Environment Andrew Hoggard — a former Federated Farmers president and life-long farmer — said the current system was too costly and complex and too broadly applied.

‘‘We want to make sure that the cost of completing a farm plan, in both time and money, is matched with the level of risk.

‘‘Using property- and catchment-specific farm plans makes sense because they can be used to identify environmental risks and plan practical on-farm actions to manage those risks.’’

Mr Hoggard said as part of the review, the government might look into whether current requirements to complete a freshwater farm plan could be paused while improvements were developed.

‘‘We want an enduring system that builds on the good work of farmers in these regions while making sure that any improvements to the system don’t...