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Read what farmers who have experienced the Farm Enviro Walk tool have to say:
Hamish Davidson, Singletree Dairies, Ashburton
"I believe the Farm Enviro Walk tool DairyNZ has created is a good farmer focused tool to use. It makes sense and is easy to follow.
You need to remember, it is a self assessment tool, so you do need to be honest with yourself when you complete it - do that and you will have a good base to make any changes required.
The Farm Enviro Walk also provides a good way to get staff involved in the farm's environmental management. It provides a professional way to identify issues in each area of the farm operation, and for staff to be able to apply it to other places they may go to work on.
For us, being two years into a conversion, the Farm Enviro Walk enabled us to get a bigger picture view of what we are doing. It's helped us understand the areas where we are doing well, and those we can work on further."
Andrew Calder, Riverslea Dairies, Wyndham
"We would certainly see the Farm Enviro Walk as a good tool for teaching staff a better understanding of the farm's environmental impact. For us, we already do much of what is covered in the Walk, but for some farms the tool is the start of a proper system to follow to get their systems sorted.
I would hope that the Enviro Walk format stays, that we don't have to keep re-inventing it, and in 10 years time it will look pretty similar, maybe with a few minor changes or additions.
The checklist would play a part in a strong farm management system. It works through your whole system and you need something standardised for that."
Willy Buchanan, Dunrobin Farm, Otautau
"The Farm Enviro Walk is a process you now have on paper, enabling farmers to go and check their total farm system, identifying anything that may need improving.
"It means when you get checked by your regional council you will know before the check that you are up to standard.
"It is a self-assessment test, so honesty with yourself when assessing is the key.
"The Walk is easy to use, and my staff found it was a good way to outline a problem.
"I think it is something we would run through every year. And with current regulations changing in our region on the use of travelling irrigators, it is more important than ever to have the right systems in place."
Noldy Rust, Te Pahu
"The Farm Enviro Walk checklist is a good hands-on, easy to understand format - if you can tick boxes it is easy to see how well you comply. It is not threatening and is a nice, simple approach to evaluating how things stack up on your property.
"It has been easy to push environmental aspects under the carpet and view it as an 'us and them' issue, but doing the checklist will help you see that if you do things right, you can actually save money. That's all the better!
"We have been farming in Te Pahu for 12 years and the checklist has provided a good catalyst to get us to lift standards.
"I can see the value in the checklist tool for the way it fits with the whole nutrient management plan we are now required to complete."
John Luxton, Chair of DairyNZ and Morrinsville dairy farmer
"I would recommend the DairyNZ Farm Enviro Walk to any farmer minimise the risks associated with utilising dairy shed silage stack or feedlot effluent."
