Kaikōura stock movement rules overdue for review

Nicole Mathewson Reporter from The Press

By David Hill, Local Democracy Reporter

Kaikōura has no active stock movement rules, but no-one seems to have noticed.

Kaikōura District Council operations senior manager Dave Clibbery said the council’s stock movement bylaw, to manage stock movement on roads and roadsides, was due to reviewed in 2016, but was overlooked and has since expired.

‘‘While we still have the bylaw referenced on our website, it is technically not enforceable.

‘‘The severity is not particularly great and we have limited stock movement activity.’’

Council records indicated there had been issues in the past, which suggested farmers might think the bylaw is still in place, he said.

Having an active bylaw allowed the council to set thresholds for when actions needed to be taken, such as when farmers may be required to install stock underpasses.

The worst case scenario would a serious accident from a vehicle hitting an animal on the road, while cow urine could also damage the seal on the road, Clibbery said.

A stock movement bylaw was first introduced in 1986 by the farmer Kaikōura County Council.

This was replaced by a new Kaikōura District Council bylaw in 1995, which expired before the most recent bylaw was introduced in 2011.

The bylaw was due to reviewed in 2016, the year of the 7.8 magnitude earthquake which devastated the district, and has since expired.

Clibbery said the 2011 bylaw was generally ‘‘fit for purpose’’ and he proposed some minor amendments, including distinguishing between roadside races and ‘long acre’ roadside grazing, and prohibiting droving at night.

At a recent workshop, councillors instructed staff to prepare a revised stock movement bylaw to be considered at a future council meeting, before going out for consultation.

■ LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.