22 Dec 2010

Bay of Plenty delays drought application

7:10 am on 22 December 2010

Another North Island region has put an application for an official drought declaration on hold because of this week's rain.

Bay of Plenty applied to the Government last week to be included in the drought zone, which includes Northland, north Auckland, Waikato and the Ruapehu district.

But it has now joined Taranaki in putting its application on hold, while it waits to see how farms recover from the rain and whether there will be any more.

Bay of Plenty rural support trust chair Derek Spratt says the dry conditions were getting very serious in the region and the rain could not have come at a better time.

Twelve farmers are still receiving income support payments from last summer's drought.