John Blackwell: Taking on powers that be

John Blackwell.

Dry conditions and strong south-westerly winds have made this summer a real challenge for farmers.

The early long-term weather forecast was for a wet and hotter than normal summer.

Just like last year's summer forecast - wrong again.

Forecasting must be one of the few jobs in which you still get to keep your salary even when your performance is so wide of the mark.

To be fair, we had good rain over much of Northland in the last half of February, but it was a long wait in between drinks.

The cost of doing business in Northland is under pressure with the proposal to revise the Electricity Authority's transmission pricing methodology.

Northern Federated Farmers argues that the proposal is seriously flawed. It entirely overlooks the fact that the electricity transmission network is vital national infrastructure, in much the same way as the roading, postal and telecommunications networks are.

With an increase in population, growing demand has been put on the electricity network.

The South Island, with its hydro schemes, which were paid for by all New Zealanders, has the larger ability to provide electricity, but more people are in the North Island, and we live furthest away at the top of the country.

This is where the challenge lies.

Farmers' land has been used since early last century to provide power corridors, and this was done with the understanding it was a national electricity transmission network. It was also widely acknowledged that the price of transmitting electricity across the national network would be equalised.

Farmers needed, and have benefited from having power supplied to their farms - and so has the wider New Zealand economy.

Northland rural farm land has seen very little in the way of irrigation systems, and large areas have been planted in pine trees over time.

This has meant our consumption of electricity has not really changed much over decades.

It was pleasing to hear New Zealand First leader Winston Peters, as he opened the Northland Field Days, hit out at the review proposal to increase power prices in the areas covered by Top Energy and North Power by towards $9 million per annum.

He noted there was a petition circulating at the field days, calling for an enquiry into the authority's pricing practices, and urged people to sign it.

I think it would be unfair for our sector to be paying again when we see that the greater growth in population is outside this area.

Northland and Auckland Federated Farmers have submitted on the transmission pricing methodology, and we've asked to be heard when hearings get under way.