While not banning the intensification of land or conversion to dairy, observers say council-imposed higher discharge thresholds and resource consents needed for activities associated with dairy farming effectively end the conversion of marginal land.
It was still possible but more difficult to convert better classes of land.
Councils were strengthening rules to limit the impact of nutrient leaching and sediment and effluent run-off and each council had its own approach.
Rabobank’s sustainable farm systems manager Blake Holgate said councils tended to control the effects of land use intensification by requiring resource consents for activities other than converting the land, such as nitrogen leaching and run-off.
Farmers wanting to increase cow numbers or production faced similar challenges.
“A lot of councils have taken the grand-parenting approach to the application of nitrogen, which says ‘your future allocation will be based on past leaching levels’.
“That becomes a restricting factor to increased cow numbers or increased production.”
It would also curb the sale of sheep and beef land with potential for conversion to dairy.
Environment Southland’s new water and land plan required consent to convert land to dairy and imposed rules around the area of land that could be devoted to winter grazing of cows in some parts of the province.
Rules at Environment Canterbury allowed changes to farm operations within nutrient loss limits set for properties, which could exceed the average nitrogen losses measured from 2009 to 2013.
Environment Waikato’s Healthy Rivers scheme and the Bay of Plenty Regional Council in the Rotorua lakes catchment put caps on nutrients that could be applied to land.
Other councils were also tightening rules around land intensification.
Holgate said councils’ response was driven by community expectation of water quality and trends.
The rules prescribed limits of what could be leached and set expectations of good management.
MyFarm executive chairman Grant Rowan said the actual impact of Environment Southland’s winter grazing restrictions was unknown but it appeared to restrict cow numbers by limiting the impact on the environment of winter grazing.
There were plenty of dairy farms for sale so there was little impetus for people to buy farms for conversion.
“Fundamental economics are the key driver and with milk prices getting close to $6 my belief is that they need to be well north of $6 to see a strong surge in dairy conversions.”
Perrin Ag Consultants, Rotorua, managing director Lee Matheson said Environment Waikato’s Healthy Rivers scheme prevented a shift in land use unless it could be proved nutrient loss from the new use would not exceed current levels.
The Bay of Plenty Regional Council’s imposition of a nutrient cap in the Rotorua lakes catchment made land use change a challenge, he said.
“If you are going to convert a farm to dairy you obviously have to do it so you have a much smaller environmental footprint than it had previously.”
Matheson had a client converting land to dairy in the central North Island and believed future conversions would be small scale, integrated with other use, such as forestry, and with lower levels of financial gearing.
Those conversions would be by existing landowners converting a run-off or buying a neighbouring property to add to an existing farm.
Holgate said while the focus had been on dairy, the same restrictions applied to sheep and beef farmers.
The grand-parenting of previous nitrogen fertiliser application levels meant there was little opportunity to sell sheep and beef land for converting to dairy.
“It means they no longer have the capacity to convert to a dairy platform.
“It loses that potential value as a land use option that it previously had.”
ECan’s principle strategy advisor Ian Brown said the council-imposed nutrient loss limits on properties meant farmers must not exceed the average loss measured from 2009-13.
Farmers on land where nutrient losses exceeded the permitted threshold were required to prepare a farm environment plan for their property which was audited regularly and required to meet a minimum grade.
Brown said converting to dairy or increasing cow numbers would be more difficult given the nutrient loss limits.
“Farmers can increase cow numbers provided they don’t exceed their nutrient limit.”
Environment Southland director of operations Jonathan Streat said the council’s Water and Land 2020 and Beyond document was in response to the Government’s National Policy for Freshwater Management.
It split the province into nine physiographic groups according to geological and hydrological characteristics, which it used to identify where risks were in relation to land use and impacts on water quality.
Streat said dairy conversions were not prohibited but were treated on a case by case basis.
“The challenge for those applying for consents is to provide a business case that takes account of the risks to water quality and offers solutions to minimise them.”
