Dairy company fined

Press, 29 September 1979, Page 6

Dairy company fined

PA Hamilton The New Zealand Co-oper-•ative Dairy Company has ( been convicted on nine ’ charges arising out of the discharge of milk into ' waterways earlier this year, t In a reserved decision in i the Magistrate’s Court at Hamilton Mr J. E. Millar, i S.M., found one of two charges laid by the Waikato Valley Authority to be , proven. A second charge: was dismissed. AU eight charges laid by I the Auckland Acclimatisation Society were found' proven. The company was fined $5OO on the Waikato Valley Authority charge and ordered to pay $605 solic-. ;Utors’ fees, $483 witnesses; (expenses and $lO court i costs. On one of the Acclimatisation Society charges the compan” was fined $5OO with $605 solicitors’ fees, $467 witnesses expenses and $lO court costs. On the remaining seven charges it! 'was convicted and discharged. 1 The Court heard that more

than seven million litres of milk was discharged into Waikato waterways over three days in March. The dairy company did not deny discharging milk into the rivers. It said it had no alternative. The discharges of milk were made during an industrial dispute when firemen; ■ had withdrawn their labour and dairy factories at Wa-i haroa, Te Awamutu and Tei (Rapa were closed. i —