Timms spells it out

She's short and she's feisty and today's Southland Times opinion piece reveals what she looks like when she waves her stick. Chairman Timms likes to have her say from the high chair and right now, she's talking about Waituna. More specifically, the various efforts by Environment Southland and her supposed partners in the campaign to save the lagoon from degenerating into a sloppy bowl of muck. The article in Saturday's paper begins as a description of the State of the Environment report on fresh water in the region, in which she goes to some lengths to say that the blame for the region-wide deterioration must be shared between user groups, not just farmers, but soon refines her aim to a few user groups who are not playing the game around the Waituna effort.
And good on her for doing so.

"Environment Southland has been trying to work in partnership with DairyNZ, Fonterra, Beef&Lamb NZ and Federated Farmers to try to help farmers in the Waituna catchment to limit their impact on the threatened Waituna Lagoon. This becomes difficult when we are undermined by industry representatives who say one thing and do another."

That's some straight shootin' right there Ms Timms!
Our stirred-up chair goes on...

"I am calling on DairyNZ and Federated Farmers to commit to a real collaboration rather than paying lip service to it."

'Lip service' eh? Ms Timms has obviously refrained from using the more commonly heard farming term, sensitive soul that she is.

Sounds like the kind of delay that could result in the ruination of an internationally recognised and valued lagoon to me. Not the kind of involvement any farming organisation, especially those recognised as leaders, would want to have, I'd have thought.
I hope the big-wigs in DairyNZ, Fonterra and Federated Farmers get their paper early today and get busy making Ms Timms happy, 'cause it sounds like she not too chuffed just now!