
6 minute read
A GREAT ADDITION TO THE BATTERY TOOL RANGE

ANZAC and the RSA
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Programmes to listen out for:
The Deadline Report - Ben Vidgen Investigates
Investigative journalist author Ben Vidgen presents a 30-minute show offering quality alternative media backed by quality documented information on the issues not hitting the headlines, but that should be. A double shot of reality, always educational if never pretty. Airs Sunday afternoons at 1:00 and replays Friday nights at 7.00.
The Dinner Club
Join Emily, Millie and Alex on The Dinner Club
These three Students from Nelson College for Girls present an hour of music chat and fun.
Fresh FM is all-inclusive and welcomes people from our diverse communities to create radio programmes By, For and About your community, in your own language and about topics that are important to you and your community. We provide full training and support. Please contact motueka@freshfm.net for information.
Letters
Next Tuesday 25 April is ANZAC Day – a public holiday when we remember those who put their lives on the line to ensure peace for our nation. A nation where people of all ethnicities now live in harmony – former enemies who are now our friends and neighbours. Had our soldiers, sailors and airmen not made those sacrifices so many years ago things would have been very different.
Today, we still have men and women of the military deployed on peace-keeping missions in hot spots around the world and providing assistance in times of natural disaster such as the recent Cyclone Gabrielle.
The Royal New Zealand Returned and Services Association (RNZRSA) was formed in 1916 to provide support and comfort for service men and women and their families and our mission today is no different – our motto “People helping People”. Right now our RSA is seeking volunteers to help continue this commitment so please consider joining our committee by engaging with us on ANZAC Day or google "Golden Bay RSA" for contact details. Lest we forget.
Noel Baigent, president Golden Bay RSA
The search for spirituality the Dalai Lama: "Why do so many Westerners flock to Eastern religions when they have a perfectly good one at home?"
I know this subculture has been around for a long time now but lately I have noticed a proliferation of posters in the local cafés touting and lauding this or that "workshop" or "retreat".
Larry Petterson
Video neither calm nor measured
In response to Samantha’s self-promotion last week (GBW, 14/4) – this “documentary” demonstrates exactly why “the other side” of the argument is not generally accepted for promotion. It is unreferenced anti vax trope with no basis in established science. There is a washed-up presenter who went beyond his professional boundaries and lost his job over it, a sociologist who gets the science of the vaccine wrong, and a GP who was ineffective in general medicine so moved into a field not supported by medical science. Other highlights include support for a lawyer who complains that the government acted wrongly and should have changed the law, then complains when they take her advice and change that very same law, and an epidemiologist and statistician who made a basic math error and rushed publication of the paper in a dodgy journal. There is no “other side” of this debate, there is no debate in the settled science, the questions have all been answered. This video represents only the dreams and fears of the misinformed who don’t want to accept the answers they are given.
Aaron Marshall
Letters To The Editor
www.freshfm.net www.freshfm.net
FreshFM.NZ
These postmodern dreamers (for want of a better appellation) seem to be descending more and more into a vague, immature search for some form of spirituality. Their "god" (if they have one) seems to be some ill-defined concept of the universe from which emanates some equally ill-defined concept of a "force" which apparently permeates and influences everything (Star Wars!). Of course, the origins of all this lie in Hinduism and thence Buddhism, the irony being that, while embracing such vacuous notions, these adherents wouldn't have a bar of Christianity which, uniquely so, is rooted in real history and whose doctrines explain very existence. Remember
Crossword 281
The winner of the April crossword competition is Ann Speirs
Congratulations, your prize is at Take Note.
Solutions
ACROSS: 1. Scored 5. Cashmere 9. Smug 10. Slowed down 11. Tape measures 13. Espresso 15. Norm 17. Goal 18. Driveway 20. Eat humble pie 23. Chimpanzee 24. Rung 25. Response 26. Treble DOWN: 2.Compassion 3. Rogue 4.Disperse 5. Crossword puzzle 6. Steers 7. Made sense 8. Rows 12. Irrational 14. Relief map 16. Nimblest 19. Attain 21 Eyrie 22. Shoe
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WHAKAARO: FRESHWATER QUALITY
SUBMITTED BY ROD BARKER
Freshwater is vital for survival and on 12 April, the Ministry for the Environment (MfE) published the Our Freshwater 2023 report. The report presents insights about the current state of freshwater in New Zealand, including the challenges and pressures facing the country's waterways, such as pollution, overuse, and habitat degradation.
The report also lays out the Government's goals and targets for improving freshwater quality, including reducing pollution, restoring degraded habitats, and protecting indigenous freshwater species. The Government's approach to achieving these goals involves working collaboratively with stakeholders, such as farmers, industry groups, and community organisations.
New Zealand has approximately 425,000km of rivers and streams, 3,820 lakes larger than one hectare in size, and an estimated 500 groundwater aquifers. Indigenous freshwater species are a key part of New Zealand's biodiversity, with around 40 per cent of the country's native fish and 70 per cent of its native freshwater invertebrates considered threatened or at risk of extinction. In 2019, New Zealand was ranked 15th out of 24 OECD countries in terms of the overall quality of its freshwater resources, based on a range of indicators such as water quality, availability, and use. Furthermore, around 45 per cent of NZ rivers are unswimmable due to contamination, 68 per cent of monitored groundwater sites failed standards at least once, 48 per cent of river networks are inaccessible for migratory fish species and around two-thirds of freshwater birds are threatened or soon to become threatened.
Freshwater ecologist and environmental activist Dr Mike Joy suggests that the report shows how dismal things have become for this essential resource. Between 2011 and 2020, the report shows that 45 per cent of monitored lakes deteriorated. Dr Joy inferred that the state of freshwater had declined due to a lack of monitoring and compliance from regulatory authorities. Moreover, measures within the Resource Management Act which sought to protect waterways have largely been ignored, Dr Joy suggests.
To improve outcomes for freshwater, government reforms include measures including stronger regulations on nutrient management and land use, greater protection for wetlands and other freshwater habitats, and new requirements for farmers and other land users to monitor and report on their environmental performance.
Despite efforts to regulate and mitigate the impacts of intensive agriculture on water quality, some critics argue that more needs to be done to address the root causes of these issues, such as reducing the intensity of farming and promoting more sustainable land use practices. Additionally, there have been concerns about the influence of the dairy industry on government policies and decision-making related to freshwater management, and the need for greater transparency and accountability in this regard.
We can all play a part to ensure waterways are cared for. Swimming in clean rivers and drinking from streams is still possible in some areas, yet the trends shown in the Our Freshwater 2023 report provides a stark warning and indicates that regulatory authorities will need to work more closely with land users.