The Land and Environment Court will come up to Main Creek on August 25 to meet with Keith Watkins and Dungog Shire Council staff to discuss the issues of cow manure effluent on the road and discharge into a nearby creek.
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Last month Mr Watkins received a letter from Dungog Council stating that “surface water runoff, mixed with cow manure effluent, has been witnessed by council officers being discharged from this area to the road drainage system during periods of rain”.
“While it is accepted that the use of the road reserve for the walking of stock is permitted under a permit used by NSW Local Land Services and has been conducted in the current manner for many years, council is not satisfied that the activity’s environmental impact has been properly and responsibly addressed,” the letter said.
“It is council’s opinion that by allowing the continued unmanaged deposition of large quantities of cow manure in locations where it may be washed or discharged to a receiving body of water, you may be creating an offence under the provisions of the Protection of the Environmental Operations Act 1997.”
Mr Watkins lawyer Paul McGirr, who formerly had a dairy at Vacy and has been acting for dairy farmers in the Land and Environment Court said 1969, said no one has ever acted on the act [Protection of the Environmental Operations Act 1997] in regards to dairy farming.
“We went to court on Friday and applied for stay of proceedings and council agreed,” Mr McGirr said.
“Council asked for a section 34 conference [mediation] which will be held at the property on August 25 and then discussed in a meeting later in the day.”
