Phillip Woolley has a history of environmental breaches at his farms in Marlborough and Nelson – Source: Fairfax
Top of the south dairy farmer Phillip Woolley is facing fresh charges of unlawfully discharging effluent at his Matakitaki farm near Murchison.
Mr Woolley, who has a history of environmental breaches at his farms in Marlborough and Nelson, is being prosecuted by the Tasman District Council for unauthorised effluent discharges to water and land under the Resource Management Act.
He faces a total of eight charges, his company Awarua Farm (Marlborough) Ltd four charges and his Matakitaki farm manager Hendrick Jordaan four charges.
The charges relate to alleged offending at the 700-hectare farm last year involving the storage, ponding and discharge of effluent.
The defendants have yet to enter pleas and are due to appear in the Nelson District Court on September 25 where a date will likely be set for a hearing.
Meanwhile, Mr Woolley is awaiting sentence on September 10 on four charges related to a drainage channel he dug into a Department of Conservation wetland near Rarangi.
In a hearing in the Blenheim District Court earlier this month, Judge Stephen Harrop described them as the latest in a long string of environmental offences and indicated Mr Woolley faced either home detention or a prison sentence on charges of disturbing a riverbed, depositing soil and vegetation in a riverbed and two of using land in a matter that broke a district rule.
In October 2010 Awarua Farm was fined $30,000 and Mr Woolley $50,000 for unlawful discharge of dairy effluent at the Matakitaki farm.
In November 2008 Awarua Farm was fined $20,000 for dumping cow carcasses near a waterway.
In August 2005 Awarua Farm was fined $10,000 and Mr Woolley $8000 for unlawful discharge of dairy effluent.
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