Gardener lodges $200,000 crop damage claim

A Northland market gardener whose entire 2002 crop was wiped out after weedkiller sprayed on to a nearby farm contaminated his irrigation water has lodged a $200,000 claim for loss of earnings.

Peter Hulmes' Kerikeri market garden was one of three damaged when Tordon Brush Killer was sprayed on to a Landcorp farm in October 2002, contaminating an unnamed tributary of the Mangaparerua Stream, used for irrigation.

Mr Hulmes' entire crop of tomatoes, eggplants and cucumbers were wiped out by the spray.

Northland Regional Council laid charges against helicopter pilot Duncan Gourley and Skywork Helicopters Ltd under the Resource Management Act for contaminating the stream.

Gourley has now been found guilty but Skywork was cleared.

No penalty has yet been set.

Mr Hulmes said he hoped the decision will add weight to his civil claim against the helicopter company, the farm owner Landcorp and forestry company PF Olsen, adding that the crop damage cost him $200,000.

"Because there was a high level of chemicals in the water and because I grow hydroponically it was taken up by the roots (of the plants) and killed them," he said.

Under the Regional Air Quality Plan, the NRC requires sprayers to comply with the buffer zone requirements of the Agrichemicals Users Code of Practice (a New Zealand standard) to protect sensitive areas such as streams, crops and other non-target vegetation.

Meanwhile, Skywork Helicopters chief executive Miriam Stevenson said the court decision on aerial spraying could have major ramifications for the industry and is considering whether there are grounds to appeal.

In a statement Ms Stevenson said: "Our preliminary view is that the decision is significant for the aerial spraying industry as a whole. The decision, if followed, will render aerial spray applicators liable to prosecution for discharging contaminants into sensitive areas such as waterways that they are not aware of, have not been informed and cannot see through an aerial inspection."

- NZPA