Synthetic nitrogen notification

What is a ‘NZBN’?

NZBN stands for New Zealand Business Number, if you are registered you can find your NZBN by searching at nzbn.govt.nz.

I don’t have an NZBN

Some companies won’t have an NZBN, if this is the case put ‘0000’ in this section.

What is my ‘Existing fertiliser related resource consent number’

Some farms can apply for consent to apply fertiliser at a rate greater than the 190kg/ha/y limit set by the National Environmental Standards for Freshwater. Environment Southland has not currently issued any consents for synthetic fertiliser spreading, so this section can be left blank.

I purchase fertiliser throughout the year, do I need to enter each purchase?

Yes, each date you purchase fertiliser needs to be done on a separate entry. For example, on the fertiliser purchase page, click add new, fill out the details for all of the fertiliser purchased on one date from one supplier. Once complete, press save, then click add new to enter the next date of purchase.

I purchase fertiliser from multiple suppliers, how do I add each one?

Similarly to above, purchases from different suppliers need to be completed on a separate entry (even if purchased on the same day). For example, on the fertiliser purchase page, click add new, fill out the details for all of the fertiliser purchased on one date from one supplier. Once complete, press save, then click add new to enter the next date of purchase.

When it refers to ‘quantity’ does it mean for the whole product or just the nitrogen content?

In this section ‘quantity’ is the total amount of product purchased. For example, if you purchased 40 tonnes of Urea, you would put a quantity of 40 and tick metric tonnes for the unit of measure.

What is a ‘contiguous land holding’?

A contiguous land holding is any block of joined land belonging to a farming operation. These land blocks can be separated by waterways, roads, rails etc. For example, you can have multiple ‘farms’ in one contiguous land holding if they are side-by-side (see example below).

I applied the same fertiliser on multiple different days. Do I need to enter a different application for each day I applied?

Yes, you should enter a new application for each day that fertiliser was applied.

I applied the same fertiliser on multiple different paddocks. Do I need to enter a different application for each paddock?

No, only one application needs to be recorded for all the paddocks that had the same fertiliser applied on the same day.

However, if the application was made on different contiguous land holdings, this needs to be entered as two separate submissions (refer to contiguous land holdings for more info).

What if I applied multiple different fertilisers or used multiple suppliers on the same day?

You will need to add an application for each type of fertiliser used and for each supplier.

For example, you would put down one application for Urea and a different application for SustainN. For the supplier you would put one application for Balance Urea and a different application for Ravensdown Urea.

What is the ‘nitrogen percent rate’?

The nitrogen percent rate is the percentage of the product that is made up of nitrogen. For example, Urea has a nitrogen percent rate of 46, which means that 46% of the product is nitrogen.

I’m in the submission summary, but I’ve noticed an error. How do I go back to fix it?

On the right side of each summary section there is an edit button. Click the edit button in the section that has the error, and it will take you back to that section to edit. Make sure to press save and continue once the edit is made.

I’ve completed all the information and want to submit. How do I do this?

At the bottom of the submission summary page on the right press ‘submit’.

At Environment Southland the data is saved with your Discharge Permit, and consent holders are emailed with the results of the assessment. If non-compliance is recorded further follow up also may be required.

For more information about our fees and charges please see our fees and charges schedule on our website.