Waikato share milker fined $40,000 for polluting waterway

A Waikato share milker has been slapped with a $40,000 fine and 140 hours of community work after the council accused him of having dairy effluent repeatedly flow from a family farm into a waterway near Te Awamutu.

Daniel Warren Lund appeared in the Hamilton District Court facing five charges under the Resource Management Act, according to the Waikato Regional Council.

A spokesperson said compliance officers found effluent storage ponds overflowing into the tributary of the Puniu River on two separate occasions during inspections in 2022.

"On another occasion, they found effluent ponding and runoff from an irrigator. An abatement notice that had been served on Mr Lund was also being breached."

The council reported that in her decision, Judge Melinda Dickey described the defendant as "highly careless" with "insufficient attention paid to the infrastructure and management of effluent disposal".

She further stated that the operation of the system left much to be desired.

Regional compliance manager Patrick Lynch said the "farm effluent ponds were inadequate and posed a real risk to the environment."

"Mr Lund displayed a lack of understanding of managing effluent effectively and safely on the property," he said in a media release.

"Moving into the wetter and busier time of the year for farmers, this prosecution is a timely reminder to all farmers that there needs to be adequate effluent infrastructure and good effluent management systems on every farm."