Dairying and Clean Streams Accord Mid-Term Stocktake Report
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Executive Summary
- The Dairying and Clean Streams Accord (the Accord) was signed in 2003 between Fonterra and MFE, Local Government NZ (representing regional councils), and MAF. It is now approximately halfway through its term, with the 2007 completion date for a number of targets already passed. As part of a wider exercise on the future directions for the Accord, MFE is looking to assess the Accord for its position and relevance in the wider context of dairying in the environment. This report is a stocktake of the environmental initiatives relevant to the dairy industry that aims to place the Accord in a wider context of activities being undertaken by a range of agencies.
- There are a large number of initiatives operating in the environmental sphere related to dairying. The industry ones include:
- The Accord, which focuses on five key practices.
- The Dairy Industry Strategy for Sustainable Management (Dairy Environment Strategy), which encompasses the targets from the Accord, but which includes outcome targets (30% reduction in losses) for sensitive catchments, and which integrates research and leadership.
- The Primary Sector Water Partnership commitments, which encompasses the practices of the Accord and the outcomes of the Dairy Environment Strategy. This contains targets, action plans, and linkages to other primary sector players.
- There are a number of supporting initiatives, particularly from the fertiliser industry and irrigation sector, and co-investment in research in the Pastoral 21 and Pastoral Greenhouse Gas Research Consortium (PGGRC) initiatives.
- The regulatory sector initiatives include:
- A range of regulatory instruments from central government, including National Environmental Standards (NESs) for ecological flows, water measurement, and drinking water sources, and a National Policy Statement (NPS) for Freshwater Management. The NPS in particular sets requirements for regional councils to manage freshwater directly through plans and policies.
- An increasing focus on freshwater management in regional councils, particularly in addressing non point source discharges. There is considerable overlap between this regulatory regime and that of the industry initiatives.
- A very large number of voluntary initiatives supported by the regional councils, farmer groups, Fonterra and others. These include group facilitation, subsidies for fencing and riparian planting, and farm planning.
- Whilst the Accord is the highest profile of these industry initiatives, in many ways it represents only a very small part of the overall approach that industry and regulators are taking to manage the environmental impacts of dairying. It is important that any review of the Accord is cognisant of the relationships between the Accord and these other initiatives. In this context there is perhaps a need for greater clarity in communicating that these other initiatives exist, and how they relate to each other.
- Environmental goals in the dairy sector are focused primarily on water quality and efficiency of water use. It is not possible to comment on how appropriate these goals are, other than to note that the focus on water reflects government and regional council goals. There is less mention in the sector's environmental goals of climate change and the wider range of sustainable management issues such as biodiversity, energy and eco-efficiency. There is industry consideration and effort in these non water related areas, and this effort may be reflected in a widening of goals in future. However given resource pressures and difficulties in accessing skilled people to work on existing targets, care is warranted in prioritising goals and resources.
Contact for Enquiries
MAF Information Services
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25 The Terrace
PO Box 2526
Wellington, NEW ZEALAND
Fax: +64 4 894 0721
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