Bay tour showcases green business

On Tuesday this week, 21 people boarded a bus for a tour of four Golden Bay businesses as part of Climate Action Week. The tour was organised by Mohua 2042 with support from Nelson Tasman Climate Forum. The first stop was at HealthPost, where Nina Griffith and Gabby Hollis explained how the Collingwood company grew from a small family business into one of the largest employers in the Bay. Tour participants were told about the company's deep commitment to sustainability which includes brand alignment, BCorp certification, purpose embedded in their constitution, support for Cape Farewell Eco Sanctuary, and offsetting carbon emissions.

At the Mussel Inn Henry Dixon spoke of his family's journey in creating a place for the community to gather, be entertained, and eat and drink together with friends. The bush café, Henry explained, has evolved into a thriving local business that, through thrift and necessity, has made the most of local resources, ingenuity and staff.

Over lunch at the Wholemeal Café, owner Wayne Green told the story of how his café developed into the iconic establishment it is today, and the steps he has taken on the sustainability journey, including the recent initiative to source quality coffee beans direct from Timor Léste growers.

Last but not least, at Kiwi Spirit Distillery, Terry Knight entertained with tales of making alcohol and fruit tonics from local produce. Terry's distillery currently produces world class spirits, liquors and tonics. The tour group even got to see the thousands of agave plants destined to make Te Kiwi tequila.

$8,000 Community Grant Round 20 Results

• GB Riding for the Disabled - Leigha

• GB Toy Library - New Bikes

• CAS TOSI Trials Group – Van Hire

• Takaka Primary – Netball Uniforms

• Dance Collective – Matariki Concert

• CW Girls & Boys Agri Club - Ribbons

• CW Rugby Football Club – Goal Post Pads

• GB Football Club – Pop-up Goals Balls Bibs

• Golden Gardeners – Hospital Gardens

• Bricks in the Bay- Lego Robotics Equipment

• Hospital Kitchen Garden Project – Supplies

• GBHS Adventure Race Team – Kaikoura Trip

• Village Theatre – New Vacuum Cleaner

The purpose of the RSC Grant is to distribute funds to cultural, philanthropic, charitable, sporting and educational organisations for any purpose that benefits the Golden Bay community.

Thank you to all applicants

Next round September 2023

Ph: 525 9113 64 Meihana Street, Takaka

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Dollars and sense

The grass decided to charge herbivores for consuming it, so the price of meat and dairy went up.

Nitrogen-fixing bacteria in the soil decided to charge for its services, so the price of grains, fruits and vegetables went up.

The clouds decided to charge for its manufacturing of rain, so the price of water and electricity went up.

The sea decided to charge for its resources of fish and salt, so, you guessed it… prices went up!

The sun, the giver of all life, decided to go on strike as it had ever been reimbursed for millions of years of production of vital solar energy.

Then the moon saw the gravity of the situation and decided to evacuate, so the ocean’s tidal rise and fall failed.

Next the wind blew cold greenhouse laden air around the world and all life was extinguished.

Time came to the rescue and mediated with the sun, moon, soil, seas and air, so slowly life began to return to Earth.

But this time without humans as their over emphasis on the figure at the bottom of the balance sheet had been the cause of so much strife, too much value on the dollar and lack of common cents!

Felicity Fitz-William Racism,

sexism, Marama Davidson

I'm saddened the local Green Party members haven't distanced themselves from the unapologetic racism of their Māori co-leader. Perhaps she should join the Māori Party.

And where were the "rainbows" after the vilification of "white men" who identify with their birth gender assignation?

Love and peace,

Sustainable quality of life

BJ White

Reg Turner unfortunately left out the word "unsustainable" from his comments (GBW, 26/4) about "our quality of life" that he doesn't want to see "sacrificed".

At a recent public meeting on "Degrowth", Dr Mike Joy stated that the rich 10 per cent of the world, those whose assets over debt total more than $150,000, have created 50 per cent of the world's resource and environmental issues including climate change, and if we want future generations to have a modicum of the lifestyle that we currently wallow in, then we need to get used to living with only 25 per cent of the energy we currently collectively consume. I agree that "the pursuit of zero carbon emissions by 2050" may not be achievable but our grandchildern would eternally thankful for a 75 per cent reduction by then.

Secondly, hydro power could/should be New Zealand's "battery" for the growing renewable energy infrastructure as it can react quickly to the fluctuating nature of the renewable power generation. If only the Government still had ownership of the hydro stations. In parts of Europe, power grids are already designed for high renewable inputs.

Solar farms have the financial viability to pay for themselves within 10 years while the infrastructure comes with a 25-year warranty. I dearly hope that those in the dairy industry, close to appropriate distribution infrastructure, would jump at the chance of reducing their environmental discharges by farming the sun as well as cows and offsetting the herd numbers by the equivalent solar profit. It may also take the pressure off farmers who could try more environmental methods of dairy farming.

Andy Clark

Pōhara’s

new shared pathway/cycleway

This is being pushed as an exercise in safety and choice. There has been no consultation about the impact with residents/ratepayers. The elimination of car parks in this proposal seems to have been overlooked on the plan. The community will be impacted as holiday-makers' vehicles flood into narrow streets that are not designed for overflow parking, leaving residents unable to get out of their driveways.

In correspondence with TDC I was told that if any parking restrictions are required they will be considered based on actual parking behaviour. This is not going to help if residents want to leave home at 6am. We are not against a shared pathway but our request is that the council looks at alternatives that will be beneficial to the whole community and does not create disharmony between residents and holidaymakers.

The current pathway is not fit for purpose, many riders don’t use it, why would TDC extend a path that isn’t used? The impact of this pathway is between mid-December to mid-February. There are numerous solutions that would enhance everything we have in this beautiful bay and it needs to be beneficial for all. A reduction in the speed limit and a zebra crossing could be an option. The expansion of Tarakohe and new subdivisions are going to put more pressure on the roads as residents and visitors want to visit the store and cafés.

Have your say on Monday 5 June at 4pm at a community meeting at Molly B’s in Pōhara.

Helen Vesper

Shout-out to recycling crew

A massive shout-out of thanks to the consistent, hardworking staff at our brilliant Tākaka Recycling Centre next to the fantastic Labyrinth Rocks on Scott Road.

The ladies smiles are generous and giving along with their ability to afford everyone their found "treasure". The quiet men, solid and steady in the workplace, keeping everything sorted, clean and tidy.

Thanks also to the community and everyone for your efforts in recycling and donating your excess to support this essential facility. The world is a better place for your dedicated efforts.

Be prepared to leave with more than you went for!

Tania Belworthy

Cycleway plan a threat to store

Running a small business is hard. It is especially hard for a seasonal business that relies on making money over summer and the support of 500-600 locals to survive through the remainder of the year.

That is life for the owners of Pōhara General Store, David and Tania Hix.

Retail businesses like Pōhara General Store are not like banks. They do not make huge profits. Even in good times, business is challenging. Factor in having to re-build after surviving twothree years of business being severely disrupted by a pandemic, life must be tough.

A recent TDC proposal to remove car parks in front of the store will not help either. While it may seem a bit silly and annoying for regular customers that support the business, it will be worse than that.

For a small retail business operating on tight margins and trying to recover from covid, the parking changes proposed by TDC will be more than an inconvenience.

Pōhara General Store does not pretend to offer the lowest prices or have the widest range of products. That is not what it is about. It survives on two things, good people providing good service and convenience

Make it less convenient, and fewer people will stop. That is human nature. For a small business that provides a community lifeline while operating on tight margins, this proposal amounts to an existential threat. TDC and Golden Bay Community Board have either missed this point or don’t care.

Bernie Kelly

Swap King's Birthday for Winter Woollies?

Queen's Birthday weekend has arrived, now styled King's Birthday weekend. As neither of them have/had a birthday on that weekend why do we call it that at all? Why not call it "Winter Woollies weekend", or something, and drop the royal altogether? After all, we're hardly British anymore. Then we can shove the bloody commonwealth as well, being as it is, a "darker shade of pale".

Zane

Perry

Storing potential energy

Reg (GBW, 26/4) stated that "the cost of putting money into wind and solar energy is a waste of time, money, etc".

Reg is right when he says that you can't store the electricity efficiently once it has been generated, and there is no generation on cloudy and windless days.

But, the potential energy is being stored behind the hydroelectric dams. While the solar and wind farms are generating, the water is not being used, saved for the time when it is needed. And of course reduces the need for coal and gas being used.

Is it a waste of time? I think not.

Graeme Bradley

Letters

An ode to the feijoa

Oh my dear green friend

With your sweet sweet centre

And perfectly tart skin

Hiding under your mother tree in abundance

Overwhelming the unprepared

Specially bred in Aotearoa

And sorely missed by kiwis living abroad

Only around for two glorious months

So versatile...

Chutneys, divine dried, jams, fizz, wine

Oh you cheeky little fruit you!

See you next year feijoa.

Saying “no” to junk mail

Miriam Sherratt

It is high time that the “junk mail fraternity” including The GB Thinker, religious organisations, VFF, political parties, advertisers, etc recognise that, just because homeowners buy and install letterboxes outside their houses, it does not entitle them to arbitrarily deposit junk in them.

In all likelihood, the majority of Golden Bay residents would far rather not have to place a sticker on the side of their letterboxes, than have to repeatedly issue an instruction not to do deposit junk.

One distributor in particular is adamant that, because a letterbox does not have a notice on it that specifically says “no” to their specific brand of annoying publications, they are entitled to leave their junk as mentioned earlier.

Council publications are also on my list of undesirables because we all know that TDC is going to do whatever it pleases anyway, so why bother telling us. Stop wasting the countless thousands of dollars that it takes.

Let me be clear. A letterbox outside a house does not entitle you to shove stuff into it. If you want to share your story, ask the homeowner for permission to do so. Make a list and ensure that the person doing the drop has that list with them.

Gary Thorpe

All smiles at the dentist

Golden Bay has a wonderful all-round health service –responsive, empathetic and reliable. I yesterday and today visited the GB Dental Centre, and experienced the same excellent service. After a lifetime of feeling anxious about dental appointments, I was able to relax under the sympathetic, friendly care of Dr Lee; I was fully informed and consulted about treatment (and given time to swallow and shut my mouth!). Efficiency was evident – wait time was minimal, and next-day follow-up was offered. I am a satisfied and happy patient.

Robin Keown

The dangers of nuclear power

If you want to know why New Zealand is so stubborn in accepting nuclear power I suggest the following.

A) Read David Lange’s book My Life . Research NZ’s involvement in the protests at the French nuclear testing at Mururoa, and the Rainbow Warrior incident. Also the health effects on those who witnessed the testing and those who lived on islands in the fallout region. There is a harrowing case of a couple whose baby was born without a skeleton and it took decades before the French government accepted responsibility.

B) Research the short and long term effects on the cities of Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Fukushima and Chernobyl.

C) Check out where the fault lines run through our country and where earthquakes have occurred. Then ask yourself what would Christchurch look like now had there been a nuclear power plant built there and consider the after effects. Any country along the Pacific Ring of Fire that constructs a nuclear power plant is foolish as it becomes an accident looking for a place to happen.

D) Search the internet and you'll find other nuclear accidents in several countries.

Here is a proverb for you to ponder on.

A fool never learns from his mistakes.

A wise man learns from his mistakes.

A genius learns from the mistakes of others.

All countries should in my opinion learn from past mistakes and use common sense.

“I can smell the uranium on your breath”, thank you David for this quote.

Felicity Fitz-William they are world leaders in sustainable farming practices and significant emissions reductions would be hard to achieve.

Unfortunately, OECD stats show a different story. NZ’s agricultural Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions per production value (USD), the production we get out of a unit GHG, are the sixth highest in the OECD ranks. Emissions intensity per hectare is also not very flattering and puts us way behind our agricultural trading partners and competitors like the US, Argentina, Canada, UK and EU. We could argue until the cows come home why our emission intensities are so high but, at the end of the day, the pastoral farming sector has no competitive edge as far as GHG emissions are concerned. Luckily, companies like Synlait Milk, Silver Fern Farms and Pamu have recognised the wider consequences of high GHG emissions for their economic and environmental futures and are working hard at reducing their emissions profiles.

Klaus Thoma

Hunters to show respect

Regarding A-hunting they did go (GBW, 26/4), yes these animals are pests and need removing. However the biggest threat to the planet is humans with our lack of care, awareness and respect. To mock the death of an animal whose life is just as important to it as ours are to us, and who just happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, shows a callous lack of respect. To teach such young children that their deaths are an excuse for fun and games is saddening.

Heather Wallace

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More on our Net Zero ambitions

I am puzzled to hear from Reg (GBW,26/4) that we should concentrate on the electricity sector to achieve our net zero commitment. Electricity generation, according to our official Greenhouse Gas Inventory stats, only contributes 5.7 per cent of our national emissions. If Reg wanted to help with reducing our national greenhouse emissions, he should pick the biggest emitter and talk to our farming sector which contributes 49.2 per cent of our national emissions while it contributes 6.2 per cent to our GDP. A word of warning though, the pastoral farming sector has convinced itself (and many politicians) that