Wednesday, July 06, 2011

Proactive farming a recipe for success

Combine a hard working farm supervisor with some proactive farming practices and you have a recipe for success.

Cavelands Farm, located opposite Pukaha Mt. Bruce National Wildlife Centre, has fully immersed itself into the Tararua Stream Fencing Campaign and has come out on top.

The Tararua Stream Fencing Campaign, an initiative run by Horizons Regional Council, assists dairy farmers to fence off streams to prevent their stock from entering and contaminating waterways by subsiding fencing costs.

Concerns for Cavelands stemmed from a blend of the properties steep terrain, their 15km of waterways and the high annual rainfall (over 3.3m in 2010).

But since September 2010 Cavelands farm supervisor Doug Phillips has built just over 10km of fencing for the 30km of stream fencing required for the property.

Mr Phillips has developed Cavelands into an exemplar farm through developing a landscape littered with over 750 fence posts, dotted with around 10 culverts and interlinked by 1 tonne of wire.

Horizons Regional Council Biodiversity and Water Quality Manager Alistair Beveridge is staggered by the progress Mr Phillips has made.

"The hard work Doug and his workers have put into this project is something other famers can aspire too" says Mr Beveridge. "He has put in truck loads of effort for this farm and now he deserves to reap the benefits."

Cavelands Farm received a 50% subsidy through becoming a part of the Tararua fencing campaign which meant a saving of over $14,000 so far on fencing costs.

Mr Phillips believes that the Horizons fencing campaign offered not only benefits to him as a famer but also to the animals and the wider environment he helps cares for.

"Last year we lost a number of stock through cows becoming trapped in streams, seeps and drains, then becoming hypothermic and dying.

"Since then we have erected a significant amount of fences which makes caring for the stock more manageable, as well as providing vital protection for our streams.

"Being located on SH2 and right opposite the Pukaha Mt. Bruce National Wildlife Centre means we are a highly visible farm, so it's very important for us to be proactive at all times to ensure that our property and our stock are properly cared for.

"This project was a challenge at times but I just went out and made it happen and we've certainly noticed the differences since." says Mr Phillips.

The main stream running through the Cavelands property is Bruce Stream which continues into the Pukaha Mount Bruce National Wildlife Centre. It is also part of the Makakahi and Mangatainoka catchment which eventually feeds into the Manawatu River.

Department of Conservation Captive Breeding Team Leader Rosemary Vander Lee who is based at Mt. Bruce, is both delighted and appreciative of the progress made on Cavelands Farm. "We are over the moon with the huge advances that have been made.

"Water quality is always an issue when breeding any bird species, so the active role Cavelands is taking to protect their stream is simply fantastic." says Ms Vander Lee.

The Department of Conservation and Mr Phillips are partnering together to plan some stream edge planting to help continue the positive progress made. This is programmed for the end of July 2011.

ENDS

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