A farmer has failed in his appeal and will have to pay for allowing his stock to graze in a prohibited area.

The Hamilton High Court has ruled that Oliver Cother Saxton will have to pay the $19,800 fine imposed on him for allowing his stock to graze in a stock exclusion area in, and on the shores of Lake Whangape in north Waikato.

Saxton was convicted and fined by the District Court in September.

However, he appealed the decision as he felt the district court had not adequately taken into account of the voluntary payment of $20,000 to the Department of Conservation (DOC) to carry out mitigation planting when they imposed the fine on him.

In his ruling, Justice Jagose noted that "considering Mr Saxton's offending involved a deliberate breach of restrictions imposed by the RMA, undertaken for personal gain and with disregard for the preservation of the reserve, the sentencing objectives of accountability, deterrence and denunciation clearly are engaged".

Saxton was also issued with an enforcement order by the district court not to undertake any activities within the reserve without written permission and supervision from DOC, as it was their reserve.

In August 2017 the Waikato Regional Council were alerted to the stock in the reserve. It was found that they belonged to Saxton who has land adjacent to the reserve.

There was a history of him grazing his stock in this area, despite it being fenced off from his property. The council and DOC had advised Saxton several times since 2010 that this practice must stop.

The fine and order is the result of the council carrying out a prosecution under the Resource Management Act.

The council noted there were immediate environmental effects from the grazing, including damage to indigenous fauna, soil compaction and increased sediment caused by stock trampling in a protected significant natural area.