#one plan

We have been getting compliments and continual positive reinforcement from our lovely community Quesnel BC & from around the world.

On Facebook we received feedback from an individual that as a child was treated and looked after by Children’s Hospital.

I spent a whole reading & rereading the comment as it was an emotional moment.

Georges story on ques cycle Facebook page reinforced our mission…

I think this is a great decision by the Environment Court, which provides a perfect example of pressure points, and how by solving such contentious issues, you can make way for real progress on a holistic whole-of-systems approach to managing waterways and agriculture.  Aside from the polarised conflict still between farmers, the Court, and the Council, I think this is evidence of an IEM outcome.  This was a sticking-point that blocked progess on both properly monitoring and regulating the effects of intensive dairy farming, and made cleaning up waterways almost impossible.  By finally addressing this issue once and for all, and establishing a precedent for other councils to follow, Horizons and the Environment Court have broken through this bottle-neck pressure point and, hopefully, now real change can flow.

The Court approved provisions in the One Plan which require particular consideration to be given to cumulative adverse effects which might be caused by further developments. The Councils in the region will be required to give particular attention to avoiding new and significant adverse effects.

The most contentious issue was the control of nutrient (mostly nitrogen) loss through leaching and runoff from farming operations into streams and rivers. The main problem is that excessive amounts of nutrients, such as nitrogen, getting into waterways will cause a proliferation of pest plants and algal blooms. This leads to the clogging of the waterways, serious oxygen depletion and visual effects. The water will become undrinkable for stock and for humans and the ecosystems of plants and fish in the waterways will be destroyed.

The parties representing pastoral interests - Federated Farmers, Fonterra, Ravensdown - and Horticulture NZ, largely agreed on the need for a regime to control nutrient runoff - the differences arose in how best it was to be achieved, and whether sheep and beef farming, and horticulture, should be included in the controls. The evidence was that about one half of the nutrients presently being washed or leached into the region's waterways by farming and horticulture come from dairy farming, although dairying occupies only a relatively small percentage of the farmed land in the region. The original proposal had been to control only runoff from dairying, but the Court decided that it would be unfair for dairy farmers to be subject to controls when other types of farming were not. It was also obvious that controlling only dairying would deal with only half of the nutrient problem. The Court therefore decided that steps should be taken to bring both irrigated sheep and beef farming, and horticulture, into the nutrient management regime. The Court also accepted the view put forward by some of the parties that including all sheep and beef farming in the management regime, and a nitrogen trading scheme, had possible merit, although a trading scheme requires further detailed planning. The Court has suggested to the Council that these are matters which could be dealt with by way of a Plan Change in the future. Some farmers will need to change some practices to get their nutrient losses within the Plan's limits, but the evidence was that in most cases that can be done at acceptable cost. In the proposed version of the Plan, the lakes in the region's coastal areas, and Lake Horowhenua, were not included in the water management system. The Court has decided that those lakes should be included as the evidence is clear that, particularly for Lake Horowhenua, the water quality is severely degraded and requires concerted attention, although the Court acknowledges that the causes of the Lake's problem are long standing and complex.

http://www.justice.govt.nz/courts/environment-court/one-plan/proposed-one-plan

http://www.stuff.co.nz/waikato-times/farming/7428206/Dairy-sector-strategy-placed-under-review

Cows not fenced out of waterways - BAD

The Listener article - http://www.listener.co.nz/current-affairs/one-plan-a-win-for-all-new-zealanders/