Forgot to say, your comment re intensification "That, of course, is precisely what regional councils don’t want them to do" is also, how shall I say this.... naïve. Regional councils are the biggest enablers and cheerleaders of intensification in the land. Here's just today's example of many court battles that Fish & Game, Iwi, Forest & Bird et al find themselves in with regional councils trying to dilute water rules. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/hawkes-bay-today/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503462&objectid=11425696

Generally a great article. Some thoughts.

Firstly, Horizons 'One Plan' is good on paper but is simply not working in reality. There is continual interference being run by the farmer-stacked councillors. In reality, they are consenting in a manner that is breaching their own One Plan on a daily basis. In fact, it would not be a stretch to say that they are worse now on N-loading than they were before the Plan was introduced. I am writing a column (or two) on this very subject as we speak - it is quite shocking.

Secondly, to label Waikato's Fed Farmer's president a "thinking farmer" is a big stretch. Yes, he said what he said about a moratorium (and then got swiftly put back in line by WGTN) but he's not coming from any notion of altruism or care for the environment. He's firmly figured out that the losers in the cow numbers race are established farms and farmers like himself. Survival of the fittest, baby.....