The Otago Regional Council (ORC) has once again taken to the skies this week for a bird’s eye view of land use in the region, to monitor for disturbance caused by forestry and land developments.

ORC compliance manager Tami Sargeant said the flights were a good chance to spot land disturbances and discharges of contaminants to water.

“Land disturbance from these operations, if proper measures are not taken, can lead to sediment and nutrients from the ground running off into waterways. 

“One of the advantages of the flights is being able to spot issues that are harder to see on the ground.”

Another objective of the flights is to help farmers prepare for new winter grazing requirements.

The new National Environmental Standards, which have arisen through the government’s Action for Healthy Waterways policy, have tightened the restrictions around intensive winter grazing from 2021.

“Our usual winter flyovers are mainly monitoring for land disturbances and discharges of contaminants to water,” Tami said.

“The benefit of doing these flights during summer is the ability to spot potential risks for the environment and have a proactive conversation with landowners, rather than investigating discharges after the fact.”

Any potential issues spotted from the air will be followed up on the ground in consultation with the landowner concerned.

“It’s part of our collaborative, education-first approach to compliance monitoring across Otago,” Tami said.

The ORC’s rural liaison team is available to visit Otago farms and help develop a strategic grazing plan for anyone needing advice on managing their forage crop this winter. 

To get in touch with the team, contact [email protected], or call 0800 474 082.

PHOTO: ORC