An Eastern Southland dairy farmer sentenced yesterday on 10 environmental charges has been described by the judge as a ''very poor'' manager of effluent systems.
Phillip Gordon Pullar, who heads a trust milking 1000 cows at Pukerau, near Gore, was ordered to pay fines and court costs totalling more than $125,000.
The charges, laid by Environment Southland, related to discharges of sewage, dairy shed effluent, silage leachate and molasses over several months last year.
Environment Court judge Brian Dwyer, sitting in Invercargill, said Mr Pullar had one previous conviction for a breach of the Resource Management Act.
Environment Southland staff had inspected his farm four times and issued two abatement notices and an infringement notice before deciding to prosecute.
''The facts show a systematic and ongoing failure of systems ... Your management of effluent systems was very poor instead. Southland Regional Council staff described you as `very casual', which is probably generous.''
Judge Dwyer said the worst discharges were the silage leachate, which he said seriously damaged waterways and aquatic life, was highly corrosive and was ''200 times more potent than human effluent''.
Three charges had been laid in relation to silage leachate, with evidence showing leachate had entered a waterway once.
The other charges related to a leaking household septic tank, dairy effluent pooling on farm laneways, dairy effluent escaping from a broken pipe, and molasses leaking from a 16,000 litre tank.
The maximum fine for each charge was $300,000, Judge Dwyer said, indicating such breaches were taken seriously.
He said he was taking a ''global approach'' to sentencing.
Judge Dwyer ordered 90% of the fines go to Environment Southland.
Barry Slowley appeared for Environment Southland.
For Pullar, Hans van der Wal said his client accepted responsibility for the lack of management on the farm and realised he needed to ''up his game'', which he had done.
Mr van der Wal said Pullar's farm was expected to make a loss of $700,000 this season and he would have to pay the fines off over time.
• Tuatapere farmer Thomas John Cruse was fined $12,825 plus costs for allowing stock to walk in watercourses on his farm, causing destabilisation and ''pugging'' of the banks and silting in the water.
He had earlier admitted one charge brought by Environment Southland last year for breaching its rules requiring waterways to be fenced to keep stock out.
His counsel, Colin Withnall QC, said Cruse purchased the deer farm knowing it required a lot of development, including fencing, and had begun that work when the breach occurred.
Judge Dwyer ordered Environment Southland should receive 90% of the fine.
