Federated Farmers isn’t winning any new friends as it persists with its own accord to clean up the polluted Manawatu River.

An accord drafted by Horizons Regional Council and signed by companies such as Fonterra and DB Breweries was released last month, but the Feds disputed its wording and delayed signing on.

This week they released their own, virtually identical, accord, but their reluctance to side with majority has earned them the ire of Labour Party Environment spokesman Charles Chauvel.

“We always prefer to see co-operation occurring between people of goodwill, that’s our preference.

“But in the end, we’re going to see public opinion demanding action on cleaner rivers, especially in the Manawatu, where there’s a big problem.

“I just wish farmers take that into account and join up with the community in this area.

“No-one wants to impose a solution, but that will happen if  they don’t, there will be regulatory action.”

Horizons Regional Council isn’t impressed either, council chairman Garrick Murfitt says everyone is sick of waiting for the Feds to move.

“It won’t stop anything going ahead.”

“When they talk about costs, we don’t know what the costs will be because we don’t have an action plan yet. The public are sick to death of this, well, I certainly am."

Mr Murfitt says the council rejects the Feds suggestion the accord’s language should be changed.

“Their wording change was rejected yesterday by the Leaders’ Group in the forum, they said ‘Come on, let’s get on with it and stop worrying about a few words.’”

Federated Farmers has now been banned from future meetings of the Manawatu River Leaders’ Forum.

Tararua President John Barrow says the council is turning the Feds' legitimate concerns into a political issue.

“The dairy industry and the municipalities are basically the polluters.

“My fear is that after the elections, the mayors of those towns will say ‘Look, there’s an extraordinary cost here, we just can’t afford it, we’ve just won the election, let’s just sideline this for a while.’

“It’s all very easy when the dairy industry is being blamed, and I don’t think they will hesitate to let the dairy industry take the heat on this one.

“The dairyers are doing their part, they’re cleaning up their act, let’s get about the job and kick the bullshit out.”

Mr Barrow says he hopes the situation will calm down after October’s local body elections and the Feds will be invited to rejoin.