The Ministry for Primary Industries says it is making good progress on developing national guidelines to govern the disposal of oil-industry waste on farmland.
Photo: 123rf
In 2014, the Government was urged by the Commissioner for the Environment to intervene on farms in Taranaki where such waste is dumped.
The Commissioner said the farms were a threat to the New Zealand's reputation as a safe producer of food.
The Ministry for Primary Industries said a Working Group was making good progress analysing the risks and opportunities of applying oil industry waste onto farms.
It said the national guidelines it was developing would include rules around stock access.
Livestock had repeatedly been exposed to unremediated oil industry waste on the farms in Taranaki.
The Taranaki Regional Council, which consents the operations, said it had no ability to regulate livestock.
The council was chaired by Fonterra director David MacLeod.