Latest news with #Savill
1News
5 days ago
- 1News
Forestry firm, director fined $112,000 for ongoing pollution of stream
Slash and sediment polluted an important stream in Waihī for over a year and despite six inspections, and two abatement notices, a logging company refused to change its behaviour and continued to cause environmental damage. Forestry company Seaview Logging Limited and company director, Graeme Howard Savill, who carried out the harvest, were convicted and sentenced by Environment and District Court Judge Lauren Semple in the Huntly District Court in April on five charges of breaching National Environmental Standards for Commercial Forestry and fined $112,500. After the conviction, the defendants appealed the sentence to the High Court. However, this week that appeal has been abandoned and RNZ can now report the original sentence. The summary of facts showed that on October 6, 2022, Waikato Regional Council enforcement officers visited the 18-hectare plantation forestry block on Thorn Rd, Waihī to inspect the harvest operation. The council found several breaches of the National Environmental Standard for Plantation Forestry, including a lack of stormwater and water run off control, exposed areas of soil which had not been stabilised, and unmaintained and ineffective erosion and sediment control measures. ADVERTISEMENT This was the first of six inspections over 2022 and 2023 which all found sediment and erosion control measures were deficient in protecting the environment from discharges. In her sentencing indication, Judge Semple said during each visit to the site the council told the defendants that the sediment and erosion control measures were unsatisfactory to prevent the discharge of sediment to waterways. "Rather than work with the council to ensure that appropriate sediment and erosion control measures were put in place and appropriately maintained, Mr Savill determined that such measures were unnecessary or could be undertaken in a perfunctory manner or at a later date." Judge Semple also wrote that Savill was an experienced operator who knew, or should have known, that effective sediment and erosion control mechanisms are a fundamental component of a forestry harvesting operations. "I accept the prosecutor's submission that the offending was deliberate and sustained. I find the defendants' actions to be highly careless bordering on reckless and the culpability in this matter to be high." Waikato Regional Council's acting regional compliance manager Evan Billington said the Waitaheke Stream, which was affected by the failure to control sediment and erosion, should be protected. He said the effects of sediment and forestry slash on waterways was widely known. "The harvest and earthworks management was done very poorly, with Mr Savill failing to take his responsibilities seriously, despite the intervention of council officers," Billington said.
NZ Herald
6 days ago
- NZ Herald
Waihī logging company fined $112,500 for stream pollution, breaching environmental standards
The council found several breaches of the National Environmental Standard for Plantation Forestry, including a lack of stormwater and water runoff control, exposed areas of soil which had not been stabilised, and unmaintained and ineffective erosion and sediment control measures. This was the first of six inspections over 2022 and 2023 that all found sediment and erosion control measures were deficient in protecting the environment from discharges. In her sentencing indication, Judge Semple said during each visit to the site, the council told the defendants that the sediment and erosion control measures were unsatisfactory to prevent the discharge of sediment to waterways. 'Rather than work with the council to ensure that appropriate sediment and erosion control measures were put in place and appropriately maintained, Mr Savill determined that such measures were unnecessary or could be undertaken in a perfunctory manner or at a later date.' Judge Semple also wrote that Savill was an experienced operator who knew, or should have known, that effective sediment and erosion control mechanisms are a fundamental component of forestry harvesting operations. 'I accept the prosecutor's submission that the offending was deliberate and sustained. I find the defendants' actions to be highly careless bordering on reckless and the culpability in this matter to be high.' Waikato Regional Council's acting regional compliance manager Evan Billington said the Waitaheke Stream, which was affected by the failure to control sediment and erosion, should be protected. He said the effects of sediment and forestry slash on waterways were widely known. 'The harvest and earthworks management was done very poorly, with Mr Savill failing to take his responsibilities seriously, despite the intervention of council officers,' Billington said. – RNZ
Otago Daily Times
6 days ago
- Otago Daily Times
Forestry director fined $112k for pollution
By Libby Kirkby-McLeod of RNZ Slash and sediment polluted an important stream in Waihī for over a year and despite six inspections, and two abatement notices, a logging company refused to change its behaviour and continued to cause environmental damage. Forestry company Seaview Logging Limited and company director, Graeme Howard Savill, who carried out the harvest, were convicted and sentenced by Environment and District Court Judge Lauren Semple in the Huntly District Court in April on five charges of breaching National Environmental Standards for Commercial Forestry and fined $112,500. After the conviction the defendants appealed the sentence to the High Court however, this week that appeal has been abandoned and the original sentence can now be reported. The summary of facts showed that on 6 October 2022, Waikato Regional Council enforcement officers visited the 18-hectare plantation forestry block on Thorn Road, Waihī to inspect the harvest operation. The council found several breaches of the National Environmental Standard for Plantation Forestry, including a lack of stormwater and water run off control, exposed areas of soil which had not been stabilised, and unmaintained and ineffective erosion and sediment control measures. This was the first of six inspections over 2022 and 2023 which all found sediment and erosion control measures were deficient in protecting the environment from discharges. In her sentencing indication, Judge Semple said during each visit to the site the council told the defendants that the sediment and erosion control measures were unsatisfactory to prevent the discharge of sediment to waterways. "Rather than work with the council to ensure that appropriate sediment and erosion control measures were put in place and appropriately maintained, Mr Savill determined that such measures were unnecessary or could be undertaken in a perfunctory manner or at a later date." Judge Semple also wrote that Savill was an experienced operator who knew, or should have known, that effective sediment and erosion control mechanisms are a fundamental component of a forestry harvesting operations. "I accept the prosecutor's submission that the offending was deliberate and sustained. I find the defendants' actions to be highly careless bordering on reckless and the culpability in this matter to be high." Waikato Regional Council's acting regional compliance manager Evan Billington said the Waitaheke Stream, which was affected by the failure to control sediment and erosion, should be protected. He said the effects of sediment and forestry slash on waterways was widely known. "The harvest and earthworks management was done very poorly, with Mr Savill failing to take his responsibilities seriously, despite the intervention of council officers," Billington said.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Expert: Israel's attacks were designed to weaken Iranian military
Israel's attacks on Iran were designed to undermine the Islamic republic's military capabilities and stability, not just prevent its nuclear programme, according to military expert Matthew Savill. "This operation is intended to not just dissuade Iran from pursuing nuclear weapons, but also cripple any potential military response and even to destabilise the regime," said Savill, the director of military sciences at the Royal United Services Institute in London, in a statement on Friday. Israel has the capability to carry out several such waves of attacks, he said. However, he said the considerable distance involved could pose a challenge even for the Israeli air force over a longer period of time. Iran's response to the strikes could be delayed or take place in several phases, Savill said. He warned that the use of ballistic missiles is likely, as drones and cruise missiles are easier for Israeli air defences to intercept. Israel targeted Iranian nuclear facilities, military commanders and top scientists in waves of airstrikes beginning early Friday morning. Hours later, Iranian media reported that Israel had carried out a new wave of attacks on Iranian territory including on the cities of Tabriz and Shiraz and again at the Natanz nuclear site. Iran has vowed to respond, with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei threatening Israel with "severe punishment."
Ya Libnan
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Ya Libnan
Israel says it destroyed Iran's air defenses, killed top commanders
Earlier Friday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that the IDF had begun 'Operation Rising Lion,' with a massive wave of airstrikes against dozens of Iranian nuclear sites, military commanders and research scientists, saying the goal was to 'roll back the Iranian threat to Israel's very survival.' Like Netanyahu, IDF spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin, in a video statement delivered Friday, called the attack on Iran preemptive, saying Israeli intelligence had uncovered an Iranian 'plan to destroy Israel that has taken shape in recent years.' He said that plan involved Iran 'racing towards a nuclear bomb,' working to double or triple its ballistic missile stockpile, and continuing to 'finance, arm, and operate its proxies throughout the Middle East against the State of Israel.' 'I can confirm that the senior security leadership of the Iranian regime has been eliminated in the strike: the Iranian Chief of Staff, [Mohammad] Bagheri; the Commander of the Revolutionary Guards, [Hossein] Salami; and the Head of the Emergency Command, [Gholamali] Rashid,' Defrin said, adding that other commanders had been killed and that Israeli would provide further updates. He said Israel had 'targeted and struck the Iranian regime's aerial defense arrays.' The IDF said its operation would continue for days, but that the first wave consisted of 200 Israeli fighter jets dropping 'over 330 different munitions,' to hit more than 100 targets in Iran. 'The breadth and scale of these strikes — against senior Iranian officials and other military facilities in addition to nuclear sites — suggest this operation is intended to not just dissuade Iran from pursuing nuclear weapons, but also cripple any potential military response and even to destabilize the regime,' Matthew Savill, Director of Military Sciences at the Royal United Services Institute, a British military think tank, said in a statement. 'Israel has once again demonstrated its considerable conventional military superiority, and the size of the force allegedly assembled for this series of attacks represents the overwhelming bulk of their longer-range strike aircraft. They have the ability to conduct multiple such rounds of strikes, but operating for an extended duration over this considerable range will stretch even the Israeli Air Force.' Savill said Iran's response 'might be delayed or split into multiple phases, but their main weapon will be ballistic missiles, which have the best chance of inflicting damage on Israel, whereas drone and cruise missile attacks will face more extensive Israeli defenses. Israel operations have therefore targeted air defenses and ballistic missile sites to forestall this.' Savill said that if Iran 'believes the U.S. or others were involved' in the Israeli strike, then their retaliation could include targeting the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet, based in Bahrain, and American air facilities in Qatar, 'though both would widen the conflict to drag in others.' Iranian state media said the Israeli strikes had hit several cities, including in the capital of Tehran and the city of Natanz, a key center for Iran's uranium enrichment program. The IDF said it struck Iran's uranium enrichment site in the Natanz area. 'The underground area of the site was damaged,' the IDF said in a statement. 'This area contains a multi-story enrichment hall with centrifuges, electrical rooms, and additional supporting infrastructure. In addition, critical infrastructure enabling the site's continuous operation and the Iranian regime's ongoing efforts to obtain nuclear weapons were targeted.' The United Nations' nuclear watchdog agency, the IAEA, said in a series of social media posts that its Director General Rafael Grossi had been in contact with Iranian authorities on Friday who told him the country's highly-sensitive and highly-secured Fordo nuclear site 'has not been impacted' by the Israeli strikes. The IAEA also said Iran's 'Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant had not been targeted and that no increase in radiation levels has been observed at the Natanz site.' On Friday, during a visit to Sweden, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte told reporters that 'this was a unilateral action by Israel. So I think it is crucial for many allies, including the United States, to work as we speak to de-escalate.' Despite the ongoing attacks, Rutte said he believed the region was 'not close' to a possible nuclear conflict. While there have been no claims that Iran has yet built a nuclear weapon, Israel is believed to have multiple warheads, though it has never formally confirmed nor denied its status as a nuclear-armed nation. Iranian officials quickly threatened retaliation to the attack, with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei saying Israel 'should await a harsh response.' The IDF said in a statement before Iran's retaliatory strikes that it had prepared for 'a campaign on the frontline and on the home front.' Netanyahu said Israel's strikes against Iran, 'will continue for as many days as it takes to remove this threat.' Shortly after Israel's strikes, the U.S. Embassy in Israel ordered American personnel to shelter in place. A day beforehand, the Trump administration ordered non-emergency U.S. personnel to leave Iraq and allowed U.S. military family members to leave the Middle East voluntarily. Israel has carried out strikes against Iranian proxies in recent years, while Iran has backed foes of Israel, including the militant group Hamas. In April of last year, Iran launched missiles and drones at Israel after a strike on Iran's consulate in Damascus was widely attributed to Israel, but the Israeli military intercepted the vast majority of the weapons. Six months later, Iran launched more missiles at Israel, which retaliated with strikes on Iranian sites. Friday's back-and-forth could escalate to be among the most severe clash between Israel and Iran, which have been adversaries for decades. Mr. Trump warned earlier in the week that the strikes could snowball into a 'massive' conflict. Farea Al-Muslimi, a research fellow at the Chatham House think tank, said in a statement Friday that the Iran-backed Houthi's in Yemen could play a role in the Iranian response to Israel. 'With Iran currently weakened and humiliated, this marks the first time the Houthis will be called upon to repay decades of Iranian investment and support,' Al-Muslimi predicted. 'Following the killing of Hassan Nasrallah in Lebanon and the collapse of the Assad regime in Syria, the Houthis have effectively become Iran's first line of defense against Israel — an increasingly central role.' Al-Muslimi said the Houthi response could extend beyond retaliatory strikes on Israel itself. 'Strikes in the Red Sea will likely resume, the ceasefire with the United States may unravel, and we shouldn't be surprised if Saudi Arabia and the UAE are dragged back into direct conflict in Yemen,' Al-Muslimi said. 'Attacks by the Houthis on U.S. military bases in the Gulf, the Horn of Africa, and naval forces at sea are also highly plausible.' The Israeli strikes and Iranian counterattack came amid efforts by President Trump to strike a new deal with Iran to limit the country's nuclear ambitions — an idea Israel has long been dubious of. The U.S. and Iran were set to hold talks Sunday, multiple U.S. officials told CBS News. There was no immediate comment from any high-ranking Iranian officials that those plans would change after Israel's attack, but some reports in Iranian media outlets indicated Iran would likely no longer participate in the negotiations. 'With Israel's actions, the sixth round of negotiations with the United States will probably not be held,' Iranian lawmaker Aladdin Boroujerdi, a member of parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, said, according to Iranian media. CBS NEWS
