An Ōpōtiki dairy farm manager, senior farm assistant and landowner have been ordered to pay $24,700 under the Resource Management Act for discharging effluent into a drain.
The landowner was also previously found guilty and fined $30,000 for the same offences.
According to the Bay of Plenty Regional Council, an effluent irrigator failed on October 18, 2016, and discharged into a nearby drain.
The same day, a council compliance officer was carrying out a dairy inspection at the property. The officer arrived to find the irrigator located within spraying distance of a spring-fed drain.
The inspector also noticed signs of effluent having flowed over the bank and into the drain, which flows into the Waiaua River, and on to reach the coast approximately 10 kilometres east of Ōpōtiki.
A water sample taken from the receiving drain on the day of the event found the water had a high faecal coliform reading of 64,000 per 100ml - 640 times higher than the recommended maximum level for safe stock drinking water.
Environment Court Judge David Kirkpatrick noted that the farm worker was "careless to a relatively high degree".
Regulatory Compliance Manager Alex Miller said it’s well established that, if not managed properly, effluent irrigators can be dangerous to the health of waterways.
"In this case the irrigator was placed close to a waterway, despite conditions in the resource consent prohibiting it. Once the irrigator was turned on, a mechanical failure occurred and, without fail safes on the irrigator, it stayed where it was. This led to the effluent building up and running down the bank into the drain," Mr Miller said in a statement.
"While not intentional, ultimately this case serves as a reminder that farm staff have a responsibility to be aware of the environmental risks associated with equipment they’re working with. They must take the necessary steps to avoid situations like this happening, particularly when using outdated equipment."
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