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Waikato Regional Council is prosecuting a piggery near Te Aroha following an investigation into the discharge of effluent into a stream.
The prosecution under the Resource Management Act follows an active investigation by the council into alleged ongoing, uncontrolled and unauthorised discharges to land and water over the past six months.
Effluent is alleged to have entered the Patuwhao Stream, which flows to the Waihou River, which resulted in the WRC urging downstream landowners with surface water takes to exercise caution until the risk passed.
An Environment Court interim enforcement order issued by Judge Melinda Dickey on August 4, remains in place. It requires the piggery company to cease discharging a contaminant onto land in circumstances which may result in it entering water.
Regional council staff were carrying out regular inspections, regional compliance manager Patrick Lynch said.
“There has been some improvement. The volume and frequency of the discharges has decreased, though there is still work to do and we will continue to monitor activities on the site,” he said.
“It’s important we do not jeopardise the matter before the court, so we will not be able to provide any further detail at this time.”
