Farmer fined $12k for effluent leak

A Bay of Plenty man who allowed effluent to leak from his dairy farm into local waterways has been fined more than $12,000.

John Alexander Wilson pleaded guilty in the Environment Court this week to discharging dairy effluent which could have entered water in a drain.

The sharemilker was fined $12,229 plus $243 court costs.

Environment Bay of Plenty brought the charges against Wilson after visiting his farm on Hodges Road, in Waimana, 27km southeast of Whakatane.

Its staff found a broken irrigation line, which was leaking discharge into the Matatere Stream from where it flowed into the Waimana River, then the Whakatane River.

Wardlaw Glade, a major bathing area in the region, was also downstream of the leak.

Wilson was the fifth farmer prosecuted this season, which was extremely disappointing, Environment Bay of Plenty chairman John Cronin said.

He urged farmers to manage their effluent systems better to protect the environment.

- NZPA