Nocton Dairies Ltd - environmental issues

‘We have no objection in principle to large dairies' - Paice

'THE Government should have no objection ‘in principle’ to large scale dairies, Farming Minister Jim Paice has told a meeting at the Conservative Party Conference.

The NFU President, Peter Kendall also said the industry should engage with an "experiment that brings together in a predominantly arable area a large livestock unit that produces a lot of nutrients, renewable energy through an anaerobic digester and has high welfare as pre-condition".'

Why does it need to be an 'experiment' when these type of intensive dairy have been operational for many years elsewhere?

I do not like the sound of this... has it really been thought through properly if it's only an experiment?

http://www.farmersguardian.com/home/hot-topics/super-dairies/‘we-have-no-objection-in-principle-to-large-dairies-paice/34755.article

Tories building ‘greenest ever’ Government

"Our incentive for renewable heat will bring forward the generation of heat from waste and other renewable sources – a crucial part of cutting carbon and maintaining energy security."

http://www.farmersguardian.com/home/business/business-news/tories-building-‘greenest-ever’-government/34753.article

Lethal algae take over beaches in northern France

"Environmentalists blame pollution from intensive farming."

Nitrates the possible cause of algal blooms?  I seem to remember reading that Nocton Heath/Dunston Heath is in a Nitrate Vulnerable Zone is it not... so perhaps that's why so much attention is being focused on the environmental impact from siting an intensive dairy right in the middle of a Ground Source Protection Zone?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/aug/10/france-brittany-coast-seaweed-algae

Will Anaerobic Digesters be the answer?

AD gets thumbs up despite high barriers to entry

"Clive uses cow slurry, poultry manure (‘rocket fuel’), silage effluent, waste silage, discarded milk and ‘whatever other green waste we can get hold of’ to feed the digester."

http://www.farmersguardian.com/home/hot-topics/ebec-2010/ad-gets-thumbs-up-despite-high-barriers-to-entry/34360.article

Minister to update farmers on green subsidies

"Mr Barker, who will open the Renewable Energy Association’s (REA) annual conference on Wednesday (October 6), is under pressure to re-assure farmers that green energy schemes will not fall under Government cuts."

http://www.farmersguardian.com/home/hot-topics/ebec-2010/minister-to-update-farmers-on-green-subsidies/34722.article

'No Pressure'

There will be blood – watch exclusive of 10:10 campaign's 'No Pressure' film.

Humorous or horrible... you judge!  [Warning: not for viewing by children or squeamish adults]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/blog/2010/sep/30/10-10-no-pressure-film

A glimpse into the future... perhaps?

A number of contributors to the topic of intensive dairies have suggested enlargement is the only way forward for profitable dairying.  As I see it, the bigger the dairy, the bigger the risks involved... on all aspects.  So at risk of being alarmist, let's hope this isn't the type of article we are viewing in our media in years to come:

"Large slurry spillage on Nocton Heath affects water supply.  Despite protection systems being in place, a 20 million gallon slurry lagoon had a catastrophic failure yesterday, leading to contamination of the local aquifer. Raw slurry seeped into the ground overnight and is estimated to take anything up to 400 days to contaminate the local borehole supplying valuable drinking water to local villages.

Residents are now having to depend on deliveries of bottled water whilst tests are carried out on the water supply. Arrangements are being made for water bowsers to be set up in affected villages for drinking water only. The local MP is calling for a public enquiry into how this intensive dairy was permitted to be developed in such a sensitive location... over a Ground Source Protection Zone... following abolishment of the Environment Agency.  The local District Council is under pressure to justify their decision in passing the plans.  Legal action is being considered.

For decades, the exorbitant cost of trying to remedy this appalling accident will be felt by the public purse. The degradation of the environment may be irreparable and no one can estimate how long the recovery will take."

In conclusion, my glimpse into the future may be alarmist, but if the NFU President truly believes this to be a worthwhile 'experiment' for the industry to engage in, then perhaps he might also call for a Dairy Indemnity Fund to protect the public purse in case this 'experiment' goes catastrophically wrong.

The States have experienced large unit intensive dairying for years (as can be seen from the many articles in this blog)... and have already encountered environmental accidents such as described... so perhaps it's not so far from the truth.  Perhaps the UK may also need financial protection from such incidents... after all pollution accidents do happen... don't they Mr Willes?