Agricultural intensification and dairy support

From now until the end of 2024, you will have to obtain a resource consent from ORC if you want to do any of the following:

• Increase your existing dairy farm irrigation system by more than 10 hectares or install or resurrect more than 10 hectares of dairy farm irrigation that wasn’t in place or used in the 12 months prior to 3 September 2020
• Change any pre-existing land use (above 10 hectares) to dairy farm land use
• Convert more than 10 hectares of forestry to pastoral farming land
• Increase the area of land used for dairy support above the highest annual amount used for this purpose within any previous farm year between 1 July 2014 and 30 June 2019.

For more information, read the MfE factsheet

Our technical practice notes

Requirements to demonstrate no increase in load or concentration of contaminants from land use changes

Consideration of NES-FW and NPS-FM in consent applications

National Environmental Standards for Freshwater 2020 - Temporary Intensification Provisions and Otago Regional Council’s Regional Plan

Frequently Asked Questions

If my farm is already used for dairy support proposes, and I want to increase the area of dairy support land, do I need to get a resource consent?

Yes, if the area of dairy support land will be greater than the area of land used as dairy support land between the period 1 July 2014 and 30 June 2019.

Do I need to get a resource consent to convert a farm to dairy support purposes if it hasn’t been used for this before?

Yes, under regulation 22 of the National Environmental Standards for Freshwater, a resource consent will be required. ORC can only grant consent if we are satisfied that the contaminant load in the catchment, or the concentration of contaminations in water, will not increase compared with the loads and/or concentrations as at 2 September 2020.

If my dairy farm is already irrigated in the 12 months before 2 September 2020 and I want to increase the area of irrigation, do I need to get a resource consent?

Yes, if you are planning to add more than 10ha to the maximum area of irrigation in the 12 months before 2 September 2020, you will need resource consent.

If I did not irrigate my dairy farm in the 12 months before 2 September 2020, do I need to get resource consent to irrigate it now?

Yes, if the maximum area of irrigation will exceed 10ha.

Can land holdings on different records of title, or that cross boundaries (for example ORC/Environment Canterbury) be used to offset farm intensification rules?

No. A farm is defined in the National Environmental Standards - Freshwater as a landholding whose activities include agriculture. A landholding means one or more parcels of land (whether or not they are contiguous) that are managed as a single operation. Therefore, there may be instances where several titles could be considered part of one landholding.

With regard to cross-boundary landholdings, these will be considered one landholding.