Council issues warnings following compliance investigation
Canterbury Regional Council (Environment Canterbury) has issued formal warnings to three parties following an independent compliance investigation into activities at a South Canterbury farm.
Chief Executive Dr Stefanie Rixecker initiated an independent investigation in May following comments made by Chair Peter Scott in a media interview about farming practices on land near 252 Kerrytown Road, Timaru.
The investigation was done by a qualified, experienced Resource Management Act compliance officer from a North Island regional council. Environment Canterbury has chosen not to name the investigator or the council to protect their privacy.
Investigation outcomes
The investigator passed their findings and a recommendation to Environment Canterbury’s regulatory Enforcement Decision Panel to determine the appropriate action.
The Panel met on Friday 12 July and decided formal warnings would be issued to Peter Scott and two other parties.
Now that the affected parties have been advised of the outcome, Environment Canterbury is releasing the independent investigation report, in recognition of the high level of public interest.
The independent investigation into irrigation and land use consents cost about $92,770, which is an increase from the initial estimate following receipt of further invoices.
Breaches of the Resource Management Act may result in enforcement action being taken including prosecution, an infringement notice, a record of non-compliance, an abatement notice, or a formal warning.
Given the time that had elapsed since the Council first had information on the activities (through the application for a land use consent in October 2022), along with the low level of environmental impact, the panel determined it did not meet the threshold for prosecution.
While the case was complicated and involved changes in ownership and lease arrangements, along with amendments to the Canterbury Land and Water Regional Plan, the Panel considered the seriousness of the non-compliance activity to be at the lower end of the spectrum, meaning a warning was appropriate.
Scott voluntarily stepped aside from his role as Chair of Environment Canterbury while the independent investigation was undertaken. With the conclusion of the regulatory process, he is free to resume his role.
The necessary land use consent for the property is being processed.
Investigation report and information release
Now the investigation is complete, Environment Canterbury is able to release the investigation report and supporting information, with appropriate redactions.
Here is a list of documents released:
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- The investigation report into 252 Kerrytown Road, Timaru (PDF file, 1.22MB)
- A copy of the transcript of the Newstalk ZB radio interview (PDF file, 78.35KB)
- Letters to property owners advising of the Environment Canterbury investigation (PDF file, 95.4KB)
- A copy of the Land Titles adjoining Kerrytown Road and retained by Dirragh Farm Limited (PDF file, 469.97KB)
- A copy of the Land Titles of the Farm transferred to Rooney Farms Limited on 31 March 2023, and the previous Land Titles for the same land parcels (PDF file, 741.67KB)
- A copy of the Title Plan associated with the LINZ land (PDF file, 1.18MB)
- Companies Office extract relating to Dirragh Farm Limited (PDF file, 153.99KB)
- Companies Office extract relating to Rooney Farms Limited (PDF file, 114.17KB)
- A copy of the resource consent including the map illustrating the irrigation area (PDF file, 331.49KB)
- A copy of a resource consent CRC170457 (PDF file, 341.25KB)
- A copy of a resource consent CRC244590 (PDF file, 330.3KB)
- A copy of the relevant rules from Plan Change 5 to the Canterbury Land and Water Plan (PDF file, 145.29KB)
- A copy of the relevant rules from Plan Change 7 to the Canterbury Land and Water Pla (PDF file, 236.25KB)
- A copy of the Notification Recommendation Report and the Overseer Review Sheet (PDF file, 2.21MB)
- Notebook entries recording the conversations with company director (PDF file, 7.52MB)
- A copy of the aerial imagery and a Google Street View image (PDF file, 1.3MB)