Letters to the Editor: dolphins, mining and Gaza
We might hope that a "New technique helping save Māui — Hector's dolphins" reported in the Otago Daily Times (14.7.25) is as good as it sounds.
Unfortunately clever research continually overpromises and underdelivers. Whether it's drone dolphin spotters, satellite tags stuck to dolphins, or now, DNA sequencing, accompanied by hopeful headlines suggesting that technology can save dolphins, what we still need is action.
What is overdue, is industry and government leadership that supports a transition for fishers out of Māui and Hector's habitat. No dolphin should be drowned in a fishing net. Yet at least 12 Hector's dolphins were killed by bottom trawling in the last fishing year. Set nets killed another three.
More research is no substitute for leaders in local, regional and central government, and the industry itself, who will actively support trawl and set net-free seas, required for Māui and Hector's dolphins to survive. Founder and chairwoman, Māui and Hector's Dolphin Defenders NZ Gone potty
Today Big Brother had me over a barrel or maybe a potters wheel?
Five days ago I was elected on to our local pottery group committee. Today I was informed I had to join Kiwibank and stay with the bank as long as I remained a committee member. Why? Because of the money laundering laws in our country. I am not a signatory on the club's bank account but still perceived as a risk.
Today I sadly resigned from our committee. I refuse to be under surveillance and forced to join a bank if I want to offer my services to our humble club. We are further down the slide of madness than I thought. Powerful words
Otago regional councillor Michael Laws' own words are a powerful reason not to re-elect him.
The ODT reports that Laws emailed ENGO Sustainable Tarras stating, "I am intrigued as to how [Ms Keith], a Wellington-based environmental activist, became the chair of an anti-mining lobby in my constituency" (15.7.25).
The elephant in the room is Santana Minerals' proposed giant gold mine at Bendigo, which Mr Laws obviously supports and Ms Keith opposes.
While Kiwis love Antarctica, not all of us get to live there either.
Nevertheless, we would be appalled to learn an open-cast mine was being planned for, say, McMurdo Sound.
Now, my suspicion is that Ms Keith has probably visited Central Otago at least once.
Does it make her some sort of inauthentic flake for having the pluck to step up when elected representatives don't? Vote him out. The neighbours
My family's property is 900m from the Santana testing facility. We have never been contacted or informed about any activities occurring there (which appear to be in breach of the district plan).
The company does its absolute best to avoid contact and does not share any information. It is extremely difficult to uncover what applications they have lodged, what they plan in the future, how and when these will be implemented.
There is a secrecy that surrounds the company and its activities.
ORC councillor Michael Laws' statement about contact from locals is inappropriate. He has been contacted, other ORC and Central Otago District Council councillors have been contacted, and given the process is national policy the issue has been taken to a national level. Is it apathy or hopelessness re Gaza inaction?
Sadly it would appear there is widespread apathy amongst most New Zealanders about the plight of the Palestinians.
One hopes that this is due to a feeling of hopelessness rather than a lack of concern.
I have had a belief that New Zealand stood for fairness and for what is right. Perhaps it was my wishful thinking and is a fallacy.
This government seems comfortable with toeing the line with most other Western countries and remains practically silent. It is appalling what is happening.
Surely, surely, surely our government can no longer sit on the fence.
Why has the Israeli ambassador not been sent back home? All trade with Israel should be banned and can we really condone allowing Israelis to visit New Zealand on holiday, giving some of them presumably a break from bombing the Palestinians?
I for one would like to be on the right side of history but is lame to say it when there is daily carnage.
It is embarrassing and appalling that this country is doing little to nothing.
Address Letters to the Editor to: Otago Daily Times, PO Box 517, 52-56 Lower Stuart St, Dunedin. Email: editor@odt.co.nz
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
1News
6 hours ago
- 1News
Govt making thousands more building products available for NZ use
The Government has opened the door for many building products from overseas to become available in New Zealand, including cladding systems, external doors, plasterboard, and windows. Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk said products had been given "the green light" for use in New Zealand to end what he called "costly monopolies" on select products. "These changes have the potential to reduce total building costs by thousands of dollars when building a home." Penk said it was "frankly outrageous" how much it cost to build a house in New Zealand. "It is 50% more expensive to build a standalone home in New Zealand than in Australia." ADVERTISEMENT He said there were thousands of well-made, high-performing products that had been tested against international standards but had faced barriers here because they had not been tested against New Zealand standards. "This Government is serious about lowering the cost of building and helping Kiwis into homes faster." Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said it would provide "much needed" competition, lowering the cost of building and subsequently the cost of living. "We want to level the playing field by increasing competition for high quality buildings products, and in turn, lower prices for builders, which leads to lowering the cost of living and making houses more affordable for Kiwis." The first version of the building product specifications document would be released tomorrow. This lists international standards for products such as plasterboard, cladding, windows and external doors. "Later this year, additional pathways will go live enabling more high-quality building products to be used including over 200,000 plumbing products through the Australian Watermark scheme," Penk said.
NZ Herald
7 hours ago
- NZ Herald
Prime Minister Chris Luxon faces questions on building product investment, immigration numbers
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon will face questions this morning on the latest boost for builders, the Foreign Minister's concerns on immigration numbers and the new road cone hotline. He will join Newstalk ZB's Mike Hosking at 7.30am. It comes after Luxon said the Government would be increasing the number of building products available in New Zealand, including plasterboard, cladding systems, external doors and windows. He made the announcement at the weekend with Building and Construction Minister Chris Penk, who said thousands of overseas building products had been given the green light for construction. '[This ends] costly monopolies on a small number of products that are currently used in New Zealand,' Penk said. 'It is 50% more expensive to build a standalone home in New Zealand than in Australia. That is frankly outrageous.' Luxon is also expected to face heat this week from NZ First leader Winston Peters, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, over his concerns about the number of migrants entering New Zealand. Peters said he is observing an 'alarming development' overseas where 'careless immigration policies' are 'transforming cities' and 'changing centuries of development and social life'. He referred to his party as 'nationalist' while his coalition partners are 'globalists', and believes Kiwis are increasingly worried about immigration issues. 'We intend to turn that problem into a success story, so people do understand that, when you're coming here, there are some fundamental things you need to sign up to,' he said. 'If you don't want to sign up to it, don't come.' Meanwhile, Luxon's new hotline to curb overzealous road cone use has come under scrutiny, with a chief executive of a traffic management company saying he is very doubtful it will work. Traffic management planning company Parallaxx helps train WorkSafe staff for the hotline, but chief executive Dave Tilton is sceptical of the concept, partly due to the number of people a report needs to go through before action is taken. 'We absolutely have oversupply [of road cones] beyond the minimum without question ... but I'm very doubtful that this particular thread [the hotline] is going to bear fruit in fixing it.'
Otago Daily Times
8 hours ago
- Otago Daily Times
Business case flawed: Brooking
The release of a "flawed" business case means more information is needed before Labour decides whether it would dump the planned Waikato Medical School, a Dunedin MP says. Last Monday, Health Minister Simeon Brown announced Cabinet had approved $82.85 million in government funding to build the country's third medical school at the University of Waikato — the institution was expected to contribute more than $150m to the project. Dunedin MP Rachel Brooking, of Labour, said she was "very sceptical" about figures used by the government to make its decision. The project's detailed business case was made public on Friday evening, part of a document dump which revealed the cost of producing GPs at the graduate-entry Waikato medical school would be $50 million a year cheaper than at the existing medical schools at Otago and Auckland universities. "The business case has really been written with an outcome in mind and not traversed all of the options, and that's just bad decision-making," Ms Brooking said. "It's bad way to make use of taxpayers' money, and it seems that in general, this all will cost more." She said the "flawed" business case would have consequences for the Otago Medical School: "those are difficult to predict exactly". However, Labour had "no plans at the moment" to dump the medical school, Ms Brooking said. "The issue is that we don't think the business case is credible. "So we'll keep asking questions about that and try and make any assessments on good information when we're in a position to do so." Taieri MP Ingrid Leary said "the so-called business case is really just a public relations document, given the outlandish assumptions and comparators". In a statement last Monday, Mr Brown said the project was an innovative model "that supports our focus on strengthening primary care, making it easier for people to see their doctor — helping Kiwis stay well and out of hospital". Waikato University would begin construction on new teaching facilities later this year. A full cost-benefit analysis was presented to Cabinet before any proposal was finalised, as part of the National-Act New Zealand coalition agreement, he said. Green MP Francisco Hernandez said the government's cost-benefit analysis used to "ram through" the Waikato Medical School made assumptions revealing the "lack of objectivity". Mr Hernandez said the document "falsely assumed" Otago and Auckland universities could not have negotiated a four-year rural graduate programme similar to Waikato University's proposal. "This assumption enables the government to claim that Waikato University will train medical students 'cheaper' because Waikato is assumed to have a four-year programme," he said. The government had also assumed Waikato University was more likely to produce GPs "even though Otago and Auckland could have also done a rural graduate programme". "Fundamentally, these flawed assumptions stem from the government's failure to run a transparent tender process from the start," Mr Hernandez said. "Rather than putting out an open tender to every university in New Zealand, they gave Waikato University a sweetheart deal." He called for the government to "be up front and honest about the actual costs" of the project and release the full agreement with Waikato University with all relevant advice. "The government's failure to rule out further handouts or to release the actual agreement raises questions on whether there were further sweetheart deals negotiated behind closed doors in the agreement that might end up with the taxpayer bailing out Waikato University."
