On this page: news, events, environmental monitoring, 2012 Effluent Expo, Ballance Farm Environment Awards, Waikato Agriculture Summits, publications and media, Farmcare newsletters, Fertile Ground, guides and manuals
News
Council meetings, agendas and minutes
Field days a source of information for farmers
More than 100 farmers, rural professionals and community group members have attended two highly successful Waikato Regional Council field days aimed at providing farmers with information on ways of improving profits and protecting the environment.
A landcare networking field day – run in conjunction with Waikato Rivercare – was held at Huntly’s Te Ohaaki Marae on 18 April.
The day had presentations on environmental issues and allowed community group representatives to discuss current issues affecting their areas of interest and to develop an understanding of each group’s programmes and strategies.
Subsequently, a stock wintering field day was held on 24 April at Alistair Hogg’s Otorohanga farm.
Besides Alistair, speakers included the council’s catchment services chairman Stu Kneebone, council staff and representatives from AgResearch, DairyNZ and Ravensdown.
Winter-related topics included more efficient use of nitrogen, sediment and phosphorous loss, stock standing-off facilities and compliance with regional council regulations.
Council sustainable agriculture co-ordinator Bala Tikkisetty – who helped organise the days – said they were a very valuable way of sharing information.
Keep an eye out on this website for details of similar upcoming events.
Tomorrow's Farms Today
Tomorrow's Farms Today is a project that has recently kicked off in the central plateau portion of the Waikato River catchment, which seeks to better understand what some farmers are doing, to minimise their environmental footprint, while still retaining a good level of profitability.
The farmer group consists of 25 farms, from Reporoa, Atiamuri, Benneydale and Broadlands. The farmers involved are from Mangakino, south to Orakei Korako. This area involves land that feeds a part of the river that is classed as a “high priority water body” for the Waikato catchment.
In time, farmers in the region may face increased pressure to reduce their diffuse nutrient, pathogen and sediment losses to the wider environment. It appears some farms are already low leaching, and doing a good job of being nutrient efficient with in their systems, so the farmer group aims to find out what the range of the farm systems look like, and just how profitable they really are. The group hopes to better understand what modifications, if any are required to make to their own farm systems over the next few years.
To do this, all farms are analysed over a three year period for their key performance indicators in economic and environmental areas.
The project involves two individual farm visits for each farm each year for three years, along with a couple of workshops for the group as a whole, and a fielday annually on a couple of farms that are operating in ways that are both nutrient efficient and profitable, and that are resilient to a range in milk and feed prices.
This project is funded by SFF, Dairy NZ, with support from a range of farmers, VetPlus, regional councils, a range of agribusinesses and iwi.
If you are interested in more information you can phone 021 242 4949 or email Alison Dewes at Alison.Dewes@headlands.co
Better farm performance
Waikato farmers improved their environmental performance last season. Read more.
Monitoring our environment
Get the most current results from our regional air and water monitoring sites:
Rainfall levels
River levels
Groundwater levels
Water quality - Lake Taupo
Water quality - Waikato River
Water quality - other regional rivers and streams
Water temperatures
Air quality (fine particle levels)
Events
2012 Effluent Expo
More than 500 farmers attended this year's Effluent Expo, held at Mystery Creek on 28 February, maintaining the very solid interest shown at last year's inaugural expo. Check out photos from the the event below, and read more in the media release.
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| More than 500 farmers turned out at the 2012 Effluent Expo, held at Mystery Creek. |
Te Awamutu farmer Doug Chappell talks irrigators at the Qubik stand. |
Expo organiser Kate Ody (right) from Waikato Regional Council is interviewed by Radio New Zealand's Carol Stiles. |
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| A real stirrer - this big effluent pond agitator was just some of the equipment on display. |
Spreading the riches - staff setting up the AgVice irrigator display. Farmers heard about utilising effluent efficiently to maximise their financial returns. |
Members of the Waikato Regional Council team talking with farmers at the council's expo stand. |
Ballance Farm Environment Awards
The Ballance Farm Environment Awards aim to encourage sustainable agricultural practices in the Waikato region. They are held annually and are administered by the Farm Environment Awards Trust. Check out the recent award winners.
Waikato Agriculture summits
These summits bring together agriculture industry stakeholders and look at solutions to the environmental challenges posed by farming. You can read the summit reports.
Publications and media
Podcasts
Click on the file below, and listen to our councillors Stu Barker and Norm Barker talking about land and water policy development on Radio New Zealand's Country Life programme.
What direction does the water flow.mp3 (Right click to download and play this mp3 file on your computer)
Farmcare newsletters
Read current and recent editions of Farmcare, our supplement magazine for the Waikato region's farming community.
Fertile Ground
Waikato Regional Council partnered up with AgResearch and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry at Fieldays 2009 to support the premier feature "My Land, Our Environment". The agencies' joint stand "Fertile Ground" showcased a range of initiatives designed to help farmers be more profitable and environmentally sustainable. The displays included footage of how agencies and farmers are working together. You can view the video footage.
Integrated Catchment Management (ICM) updates and newsletters
Keep up to date with what's going on in your catchment area, with ICM updates and newsletters.
Other publications on this website
Waikato Regional Council publications
The Waikato Regional Council produces a wide range of publications on issues in the Waikato region. Check out the full range of our guidelines, reports, policy documents, pamphlets and information sheets. Most of these publications can be freely downloaded from this website, and print copies can be made available.
Guides and manuals
Best Management Practices for Growing Maize on Dairy Farms
Best management practices for growing maize on dairy farms
Published by the Foundation for Arable Research (FAR)
Permitted activity guides
You can carry out permitted activities without a resource consent, as long as you comply with the conditions outlined in the Waikato Regional Plan.
Read or download these guides, which cover the key conditions of a number of rules that relate to farming activities.
Sustainable dairying
This hands-on guide was produced jointly by Dexcel and the Waikato Regional Council. It shows you how to get the best value out of your farm dairy effluent, protect the environment, and comply with the rules, all at the same time.
Farm Management Issues - Dairying and the Environment Committee manual (revised and updated edition 2006)
This manual compiles current knowledge and gives practical recommendations on sustainable dairying and best management practices in a farm system context. It provides a wealth of information for consultants, contractors, dairy farmers and regional councils. You can download the chapters of the manual below.
Preface
Chapter 1: Sustainable Dairying
Chapter 2: Soil and Pasture Management
Chapter 3: Nutrient Management
Chapter 4: Water Ways, Natural Features and Planting
Chapter 5: Irrigation, Energy and Emission Efficiencies
Chapter 6: Structures, Earthworks and Races
Chapter 7: Chemicals and Farm Waste