Liability for stock effluent (cow/sheep shit on the road)?

[MarkH]

My experience in rural NZ is that cockies do install underpasses, or they use a mat which they roll up and remove the muck deposited on it, or they clean the road surface.

Some do, but I have been on rides where the whole group came across a cow shit covered road with a large number of cows crossing it.

Roads are not just for motor vehicles. It is legal for farmers to move stock along them. No farmer sets out to ruin motorists' days. They would not use the road unless they had to. Most are very considerate about "emptying out" their stock before transport by truck, and also try to choose times when traffic is minimal when droving stock.

I never said or implied that what farmers were doing was illegal. I just think that many farmers do use the road when they don't have to, they could build an underpass for example.

In my experience there are only a few farms where they need to move their stock across a road, the majority of farms are on one side of the road only. But where the farm is on both sides of the road the cows are often moved for milking and therefore not done just when traffic is minimal.

I would say though that I can't think of anywhere that I have come across where the stock is regularly moved across a road near a blind corner. Of course that does not mean that there is nowhere where that happens - but I would expect at least those warning signs and an amber flashing light that I have seen occasionally.

I would also suggest that in a case where a new road is built cutting across a farm then the road builders should build and underpass for the farmer - to be fair to the farmer and to improve safety for the motorists. This may be a standard thing to do in such a case, I don't really know.

[scumdog]

Roads are not just for motor vehicles. It is legal for farmers to move stock along them. No farmer sets out to ruin motorists' days. They would not use the road unless they had to.

'Used a vehicle in a manner likly to cause damage to any road surface'? $600.

Sems reasonable.

After all, the average motorist does not use/drive in a manner that wreck roads that badly.

[Okey Dokey]

'Used a vehicle ...

Sheep and cattle are not vehicles. I think (hope) you are taking the mickey.

MarkH, I don't know how a cocky could keep a road clean while the cattle are crossing it- nappies, maybe. When I said they clean the road I meant once the cows had crossed it...

[Okey Dokey]

I am not a trucky, but I guess stock trucks have a sort of tray that is under the animals that drains into a holding tank? I've not had the experience of being sprayed by a truck, but I guess if there is muck on the tray that has not reached the tank, it would be very difficult to prevent it from spraying.

Once it is in the tank it should be fine. However, when the tank is full, the trucky needs a place to empty it. For years there were no dump sites between Reefton on the West Coast and Riverlands near Blenheim. So what is the trucky to do? They certainly can't dump it in laybys because of the environmental issues. This is another example of insufficient infrastructure in the roading system of NZ.

I mentioned in an earlier post that Southland had no dump site whatsoever until just recently when the first one was opened. Yet the SRC has hit truckys with substantial fines, as McJim has noted.

Markh, I realise you didn't claim illegality; I'm sorry if it seemed I put words in your mouth. I was just trying to make a point that roads aren't just for motorists. A lot of city people may not realise that, unlike yourself.

I am a motorcyclist and vulnerable as we all are to hazards on the road. I just think that blame is being laid here without due consideration.

[Dazza]

Stock truck effluent, very interesting topic & guess what, it's all going to hit the fan again in another couple of months. It all starts on the farm, if the Farmer actually emptied there cows out ie. held for 12hrs & feed dry food ie.hay we wouldn't have half of this problem,but no the animals are still being brought to the yards as the truck is reversing into the loading race.
We have a wonderful hill down/up here called Mount Messenger,May-July is watch out for the dreaded green stuff, 12mths of the year watch out for diesel
As for ringing your local RC, they actually have to catch them in the act I suspect for a sucessful prosecution , or have you'd have to prepared to turn up in court to act as witness. Stock effluent dumps are the way to go but we definately need more of them.
Stock underpasses are a good idea but in this current economic climate don't hold your breath on many new ones going in.
It's not one set of blanket rules for the whole country either, each region addresses it differently be RC, DC or Transit NZ each responsible for different aspects.
So, agreed there is no need for effluent on our public roads,something is been done about it & stay alert to stay alive

[Okey Dokey]

Agreed, farmers should empty their stock, and more dump sites are needed.

You raised a good point about the RCs, DCs, and Transit that I hadn't thought about. Just a further complication.

[MarkH]

MarkH, I don't know how a cocky could keep a road clean while the cattle are crossing it- nappies, maybe. When I said they clean the road I meant once the cows had crossed it...

Yeah, but many don't clean the road. The cows that were crossing the road may have dropped fresh shit that could be understandable, but there was plenty of dried cow pats on the road too. So I am talking about a farmer that takes his cows across the road twice a day (each way) for milking and doesn't clean the road afterwards. I think for such regular crossings the farmer should be made to build an underpass.

[Okey Dokey]

Fair enough, if the farmer isn't playing by the rules he should be the subject of a complaint.

I know this is only the internet and kb, but I hate seeing farmers and truckys all blamed in a sweeping generalisation.

Hugs for my fellow biker, and for all the good farmers and truckys!

[Grahameeboy]

I have, on more that one occasion while riding around New Zealand beeen sprayed with shit by stock trucks, had arse puckering moments on corners due to cow shit from stock trucks and experienced various other problems due to shit being in the wrong place. I just though it was part of the culture and economy of New Zealand and thought the good ol' Kiwi "get over it" (i.e. we know there's a problem but we're gonna do fuck all about it....a bit like Otago Uni) was to be applied liberally in these cases.

I have recently found out otherwise. If you can get the number plate of a Stock Truck spreading potential death (cow shit) liberally on corners you can contact your local Regional Council with the details and lodge a complaint - you can ask them to keep you appraised of what they do. There are some hefty fines that can be thrown at the responsible parties to make them stop wanting to do it. I firmly believe that any complaints I have will be followed through in Southland and hope that other Regional Councils around the country will look after bikers who raise these instances as issues within their region.

Don't get that up here in Auckland...

[Ixion]

Y'know, while cow shit isn't the nicest stuff in the world , it's not going to kill y' for Pete's sake. And if you get a bit on you, it's hardly earth shatterering is it?

Hardly be anyone surely who hasn't squelched through a few cow pats. hell when I was a boy, chucking them at one another until we were all plastered from head to toe classed as good childish amusement.

And spare a thought for the cocky. He's ankle deep in it most of the day.

[pete376403]

Y'know, while cow shit isn't the nicest stuff in the world , it's not going to kill y' for Pete's sake. .

It might if you loose control of the bike because you were riding along on a perfectly dry and grippy road and without warning the road turned slick with cow shit. As happened to me. I stayed on, but the rider of the bike I slid into suffered a broken ankle. The cop who billed me agreed it was wrong, but he said he had to write someone up for it and I was the lucky winner

[Clubbie]

I just did a nerdy search for stock underpass legislation - have heard many different 'rules' from many people.

Got a ton of hits - appears each council has it's own weird and wonderful view on the subject.

Awesome, that clears it right up!