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THE INDEPENDENT VOICE OF MID CANTERBURY
All the fun of the fair
www.guardianonline.co.nz
FULL STORY
P4
Hunter Dirks, 9, and Riley Fitzgerald, 9, at the Extravaganza Fair at the Ashburton Domain at the weekend. PHOTO HEATHER MACKENZIE 051019-HM-0048
Children’s book a hit P4
CRISIS MEETING By Linda Clarke
linda.c@theguardian.co.nz
Oilers in the final P24
Mid Canterbury farmers are so worried about the impact of Government’s proposed freshwater reforms that they have called a special community meeting to spell out the spin-off effects for the district. Federated Farmers wants farmers, business owners and individuals to hear about the widespread negative financial impact of the reforms on the district’s economy. Mid Canterbury president David Clark said Government had not analysed how the reforms would financially affect Mid Canterbury but dairy farming on the plains would have to end to meet the proposed blanket bottom line water quality measurements for nitrate. Farmers were already committed to achieving tough new nitrate rules brought in by Environment Canterbury and making good progress, he said. Federated Farmers says that in the absence of Government providing any financial analysis, they have tried to source their own.
The special meeting will be at the Ashburton Trust Event Centre on Monday, October 14, starting at 7pm. Minister for the Environment David Parker and Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor are currently seeking feedback on the freshwater proposals and people have until October 17 to submit. Government has said it will accept late submissions up to October 31. Ministry representatives have been holding meetings around the country since mid-September to outline the proposals and farmers have been concerned that the speed of change required will put them out of business. Speakers at the Ashburton meeting will include Federated Farmers national president Katie Milne, CEO Terry Copeland, water spokesman and Mid Canterbury farmer Chris Allen and expert water policy analysts. “We want people to understand the position we have taken and what the effect on Mid Canterbury will be,” Clark said. “We are going to outline our concerns around this policy, where we see the
impacts and what our submissions will contain.” He said the freshwater proposals pointed to a report prepared for neighbouring Selwyn district, and Mid Canterbury could expect similar impacts. The report said widespread loss of equity and change in land ownership was likely and rural communities would experience loss of services and depopulation. Operating surplus returns from the catchment would reduce from $348 million to $45 million per annum. Clark said he hoped the Ashburton event centre would be packed with members of the farming and business communities, as well as others directly and indirectly linked to the region’s rural economy. Federated Farmers will be offering help to farmers and others who want to make their own submissions. “We want the community’s support,” Clark said. Federated Farmers says similar community meetings could also be held in Southland, Taranaki and Waikato.
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