Legal proceedings for three offences were set in motion by the Otago Regional Council in the first six weeks of this year, and it issued five infringement notices for non-compliance, under the Resource Management and Biosecurity Acts
In a report to the council's regulatory committee, compliance manager Peter Kelliher outlined the council's enforcement activities.
Of the three new prosecutions authorised by chief executive Graeme Martin, two were for dairy effluent discharges in the Waitaki and Clutha and one was for pugging and mechanical excavation of a riverbed in the Maniototo.
During the period, one company and two individuals from the Waitaki were sentenced on three charges relating to discharging contaminants to land where it might enter water.
Fines amounted to $25,000 in one case, and $15,000 and $9000 in others.
Five infringement notices across the region were issued for non-compliance with permitted activity rules, including two for the commercial take of seaweed from the Brighton Beach and one for discharging contaminants to air from outdoor burning.
Further enforcement was required in two cases with abatement notices being issued for one case where a septic tank was discharging beyond the Dunedin property boundary and the unlawful removal of a retaining wall in Waitaki, he said.