North and East Otago farmers are the first in Otago required to have a freshwater farm plan in place.

From tomorrow (February 1) regulations require properties of certain sizes to have a certified and audited freshwater farm plan in place, starting with the more than 500 North and East Otago farmers.

Local farmers have 18 months to have their freshwater farms plans created and certified.

Freshwater farm plans are a practical way for farmers and growers to identify, manage and reduce the impact of farming on the freshwater environment, Otago Regional Council Environmental Implementation manager Libby Caldwell said.

All pastoral or arable land of more than 20 hectares will require a freshwater farm plan, as will all horticultural land of 5 hectares or more. 

Libby said the council has already fielded a number of questions already from the farming community.

“It’s great to see such interest in an area where we can see so much potential to focus on freshwater while helping farmers and growers plan for the future.”

ORC staff have contacted landowners in North Otago that will potentially require a freshwater farm plan and offered support through community workshops and meetings, a regular newsletter and online resources to ensure farmers and growers understand the process and are confident in creating their freshwater farm plan. 

The Ministry for the Environment (MfE) expects about 34,500 Freshwater Farm Plans to eventually be in place across the country, with plans rolled out to all regions by the end of next year.

Lower Clutha will be next in the Otago rollout and will have 18 months from 1 August 2024 to have freshwater farm plans certified.

“National training for certifiers is now open for Otago, with 19 people already undertaking or having completed this training. Regional training kicks off in March,” Miss Caldwell says.

Further information can be found on ORC’s Freshwater Farm Plans web page.

Intensive Winter Grazing 

Meanwhile, the regional council’s annual series of farmer workshops for intensive winter grazing consents begin next month, with 14 workshops scheduled across 12 locations over six weeks.

The workshops begin at Tarras and Omakau on February 15, followed by workshops through to late-March at Weston, Palmerston, Lawrence, Millers Flat, Owaka, Clinton, Milton, Tapanui, Middlemarch and Ranfurly.

Waitaki district workshops will be held on Wednesday, February 21, at 10am in Weston, at the Weston Hall, and at 1.30pm in Palmerston, at the Community Centre. The workshops last two hours.

The focus of the hands-on workshop sessions is for the council team to advise people on the consent process, grazing plans and management practices, council consents acting manager Alexandra King said.

If farmers are unsure of how to put an winter grazing resource consent together, they can attend a workshop and should be able to complete their consent applications “on the spot”, she said

The workshops are not only for new consent applications, but also for farmers to update their existing consent management plans - which is a condition of their existing consents.

Applications should be lodged with the council by mid-April, to ensure consents are in place by May 1 this year.

Farmers need to bring their whole farm map and individual paddock maps of forage crops for 2024, and any relevant farm plans, grazing management plans and information on soils and slopes, such as that from consultants Beef+Lamb, DairyNZ and NZ Farm Assurance Programmes, is also useful.

The consents applied for can be for up to the next three to five years, but they must be in place by May 1 this year.

Farmers need to register to attend the workshops, so they can be staffed accordingly, with up to 20 places available at each event.

“While the target audience to attend is primarily farmers, rural professionals and consultants may also see value in attending these workshops,” Alexandra said.

To register directly go to the Otago Regional Council website.

For further information contact:

[email protected] or [email protected] or 0800 474 082