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Friday 11 June 2021
Rain no dampener for hunters
Thumbs up: Junior hunter Kylo Newport and Dad Levi Newport at Sunday’s Pig of the Bay weigh-in outside Takaka’s Telegraph Hotel. Photo: Rosa Volz. ROSA VOLZ
A weekend of torrential rain did nothing to deter entrants to the 2021 Pig of the Bay (POTB) competition. The annual family event has been run over three days since 1989 (excluding 2020), and this year culminated with a weigh-in and prizegiving at the Telegraph Hotel on Sunday. This year it was organised and hosted by Telegraph proprietors Jean Bruning and Ben Osmond. The list, totalling 50 entrants, comprised predominantly Bay locals, with a range of prizes such as vouchers, clothing and dog food donated by numerous local businesses. “The rules of the competition are simple,” says organiser Jean. “Each animal must be caught within the Golden Bay geography.” There are five adult and three 12-and-under competition categories, with the “hotly contested prize” going to the heaviest pig (aka
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Pig of the Bay). Organiser Ben says that despite being out of lockdown the event was not held last year due to Covid-19. “Takaka was still recovering and needed time to get back on its feet.” The weigh-in, run by local farmers Duncan McKenzie and Brent Page, was stationed at the rear of the Hotel. The racks held freshly shot deer and pigs, plus piles of hares, possums and goat heads. This caused curious (and no doubt impressed) Fresh Choice shoppers to take pause for photographs. Impervious to the heavy downpours, a large khaki-clad contingent gathered inside and outside the Hotel, where they enjoyed a delicious smoked BBQ, a toasty fireplace and a couple of cheeky pints. The prizegiving saw both new and experienced hunters in the mix. The youngest hunter (aged two-and-a-half ), Kylo Newport, won a new category of “Most Enthusiastic
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THE GB WEEKLY, FRIDAY 11 JUNE 2021
Tasman District Council is to initiate an investigation into events leading up to and including the November 2018 decision to proceed with the Waimea Dam. Councillors voted last Friday to launch the investigation, but it’s not the fully independent inquiry that ratepayers and some councillors have been demanding following February’s announcement of another major cost blow-out. Since that announcement, pressure, which had been building on TDC to reassess the project, came to a head in April with a public protest held outside the council’s Richmond offices. At the rally, councillor Dean McNamara addressed the crowd and delivered a simple message. “We need to know what’s gone wrong, and we need to fix it. That’s why I’m asking for an inquiry.” Campaigners had hoped to see the Auditor General step in, or for a formal public inquiry to be conducted, but instead TDC will appoint an outside investigator – PJ Associates (PJA) – to carry out the investigation, with oversight from the council’s Audit and Risk Committee. According to TDC, the investigation is likely to take three months, cost up to $170,000, and require hundreds of hours of staff time. Although it will “focus on the quality of the information and advice provided to the project governance board and the council”, PJA is unlikely to have the authority to investigate Crown Irrigation Investments Ltd or the consultants who provided key cost estimates and geological assessments. Whatever the reasons, it’s clear that something has gone seriously awry with the dam project’s finances. When the proposal went out for public consultation in 2017, the estimated cost was $75.9m. The current estimate is $158.4m, and there are concerns about further blow-outs. TDC CEO Janine Dowding acknowledges the escalating cost but hopes that lessons can be learned from the investigation. “The cost overruns have been hugely disappointing. If we could have better anticipated them, then we need to learn from that.” She recommended that council proceeds with the investigation, saying that it would provide transparency around decision-making for the project. But critics argue that the process is more of an internal investigation and question whether it will provide the robust evidence required... Continued on page 2
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Participant”. Kylo totalled nine kills (1 goat, 3 possums and 5 hares) shot with proud Dad Levi in the vicinity of Bird’s Clearing. In particular, Kylo said she “enjoyed a night shoot with her Dad.” The POTB prizewinners, for the secondyear running, were Blair Crawford and Luke Jacobsen, who entered a boar weighing 58 kilos, bailed and shot in the Wainui area. The pair say they’ve entered the competition “probably every year for the past 10 years”. Blair runs nine dogs but used five (four bailers and a holder) for the competition. Blair credits friends Toby Arnst and Caleb Dodson-Herron “who did all of the hard work carrying the boar out.” The crowd stayed on until 11pm, enjoying tunes from the band, Chasn Rabbit. Jean estimates that the event will have raised funds in the ballpark of $2,000. Continued on page 2
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