Issue No.21 • JAN/FEB 2015 • $8.00 Including GST
Amalgamation Advocates Fresh start for the Bay?
Napier Port For Sale Exporting Our Water to China Becoming the Solar Capital Islam in Hawke’s Bay
9 772253 262016
01
Biodiversity Rescue Housing Shambles Deadly Health Stats Smart Farming Rights of Nature The Year in Food
Driver: Abby Oliver
The reigning champions of the inaugural Soap Box Derby Sponsors Challenge.
ATTN14GEM42
2015 showdown at noon on Sunday 22nd February.
Issue No.21 • JAN/FEB 2015
THIS MONTH It’s the year for amalgamation, or not. Should we export our water to China? Or sell the Napier Port? Our health stats are deadly. Can Hawke’s Bay become NZ’s solar capital? Islam in Hawke’s Bay. Biodiversity rescue strategy launched. Plus the year in food, the arts scene, and Brendan’s humour.
FEATURES
22 HARVESTING THE SUN Keith Newman
Hastings aims to make Hawke’s Bay a solar capital.
32 EXPORTING OUR PRECIOUS WATER Bridget Freeman-Rock Should we export water from the Heretaunga aquifer?
36 DHB SOUNDS ALARM … NOW WHAT? Jessica Soutar Barron We need a health action plan involving all sectors.
46
AT RISK OF EXTINCTION Bridget Freeman-Rock Stakeholders unite to launch HB biodiversity rescue strategy.
52 ISLAM IN HAWKE’S BAY Mark Sweet
Adding another dimension to Hawke’s Bay’s diversity.
62 POLITICAL BUZZ Tom Belford
Amalgamation advocacy begins in earnest, with commentary by Chris Tremain, Rebecca Turner, Chris Joblin, and Di Petersen. Page 1 • Issue 21 • Jan/Feb 2015 • BAY BUZZ
Issue No.21 • JAN/FEB 2015
JESS SOUTAR BARRON Jess is a wordsmith and project manager whose past gigs have included time with Sky TV, Hastings District Council and Band, as well as three years as a communications managerwith the Metropolitan Police Service. She also produces Fruit Bowl Craft Jam.
KEITH NEWMAN Keith is a journo with nearly 40-years’ experience across mainstream and trade media. He’s won awards for writing about hi-tech, produces Musical Chairs programmes for Radio NZ and has published four books, one on the internet in New Zealand and three others on New Zealand history.
BEE in the KNOW
MARK SWEET Napier-born, Mark worked overseas in Hong Kong and Scotland, before returning to Hawke’s Bay, and establishing Pacifica restaurant. Re-creating himself as a writer, Mark’s first novel Zhu Mao was published in 2011; an extract from his next novel, Of Good and Evil, has been short-listed for the Pikihuia Awards, will be published soon.
08 Scotland logs out. Hawke’s Bay Wellness Index. Hot/Not. Kudos to Vidal, Craggy, Paynter. Cohabiting space. Brainwork pays. Climate change & NZ. Counting birds. Are you happy? (Take our survey). reader quiz. Big Holly cheque. Get brainfood at TED. Events not to miss. IDEAS & OPINIONS 66 I WANT TO SEE CHANGE Chris Tremain 68 2015: HAWKE’S BAY AT THE THRESHOLD Rebecca Turner
BRIDGET FREEMAN-ROCK Bridget is Hawke’s Bay grown, and a bookworm by vocation, or a ‘literary scientist’ to borrow a German term for the ubiquitous arts degree in English. She freelances as a writer, editor and translator (German), and proofreads BayBuzz, alongside postgrad study and ventures in poetry and fiction.
70 GETTING IN TOUCH WITH REALITY Chris Joblin 72 A CENTRAL HAWKE’S BAY VOICE FOR AMALGAMATION Di Petersen 86 THE RIGHTS OF NATURE David Trubridge 88 SMART FARMING: READING THE TRADES Tom Belford 90 TIME TO SELL THE PORT Paul Paynter 92 OPENING THE DOOR TO BETTER HOUSING Anna Lorck 94 GET FIT, OR DIE Damon Harvey
MANDY WILSON Mandy Wilson manages advertising and store sales for BayBuzz. She’s worked in print media in the Bay for 20 years or so (Wow!). In her leisure you can spot Mandy walking or cycling one of the numerous tracks throughout Hawke’s Bay or sipping hot chocolates in any number of cafes. 027 593 5575
CULTURE & LIFESTYLE 74 ARTS Jessica Soutar Barron Roy Dunningham reviews EAST 2014. Pounamu at MTG. Gold of the Kowhai. Tangata Whenua - extraordinary Maori history tome. New HB drinks & places to try. Outdoor music vibe. Opera House plan. Culture Minister visits HB. 84 TASTE HAWKE’S BAY Kent Baddeley 96 NO NEWS IS GOOD NEWS Brendan Webb BayBuzz articles are archived 30 days after publication at: WWW.BAYBUZZ.CO.NZ For editorial enquiries:editors@baybuzz.co.nz For advertising enquiries:mandy@baybuzz.co.nz
ISSN 2253-2625 (PrINt) ISSN 2253-2633 (ONlINe)
THE BAYBUZZ TEAM EDITOR: Tom Belford. ASSISTANT EDITOR: Jessica Soutar Barron. SENIOR wRITERS: Bridget Freeman-Rock; Jessica Soutar Barron; Keith Newman; Mark Sweet; Tom Belford. cOluMNISTS: Anna lorck; Brendan webb; Damon Harvey; David Trubridge; Paul Paynter; Phyllis Tichinin; Prue Barton; Roy Dunningham; Sarah cates. EDITOR’S RIgHT HAND: Brooks Belford. PHOTOgRAPHy: Tim whittaker; Sarah cates. IlluSTRATION: Brett Monteith. cREATIvE, DESIgN & PRODucTION: Empire Design; coast & co. ADvERTISINg SAlES & DISTRIBuTION: Mandy Jensen. ONlINE: Mogul. BuSINESS MANAgER: Bernadette Magee. PRINTINg: Format Print. Page 2 • Issue 21 • JAN/FEB 2015 • BAY BUZZ
This document is printed on an environmentally reponsible paper produced using Elemental chlorine Free (EcF) pulp sourced from Sustainable & legally Harvested Farmed Trees, and manufactured under the strict ISO14001 Environmental Management System.
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FROM THE EDITOR TOm BElfORD
Are you happy? I hope everyone is reading this BayBuzz in a state of holiday afterglow and summer calm. Because things are about to heat up in Hawke’s Bay. Decisions on amalgamation and the fate of ‘The Dam’ are coming to a head. And by March councils will be signaling the grand schemes they have in mind for their next threeyear Long Term Plans (LTPs), assuming these aren’t overtaken by reorganisation. With respect to amalgamation, in this BayBuzz we offer the views of proponents Chris Tremain, A Better Hawke’s Bay chairman Rebecca Turner, former Wairoa councillor Chris Joblin, and former CHB councillor Di Petersen. In Political Buzz, I introduce their views by reporting on the latest debacle in council blundering, the failure of CHB’s new sewage treatment scheme to clean up the effluent from Waipawa and Waipukurau entering the Tukituki. The failure of the CHB District Council and the HB Regional Council to get it right eight years after the Environment Court set a higher standard for the Tuki offers another ‘poster child’ illustration of the dysfunction of our present five-headed local government structure. Regarding the Tukituki, as I write, the High Court has just decided that the Board of Inquiry (BOI) erred, both in process and substance, in relaxing its initial nitrogen safeguards for the catchment when it changed its stance between its draft and final decisions. Consequently, the Court has instructed the BOI to revisit that linchpin issue, and ordered HBRC/HBRIC to pay court costs to the environmental groups who challenged the BOI’s final decision. On earlier occasions, HBRIC, the dam’s advocate, has said the project is not viable if a regime akin to the Board’s initial decision were to stand. But uncertainty over the regulatory regime is only one daunting hurdle the dam faces.
Page 4 • Issue 21 • Jan/Feb 2015 • BAY BUZZ
At its pre-Christmas briefing to the Regional Council, HBRIC gave an update on CHB farmer uptake for the proposed dam irrigation scheme. HBRIC reported that 5.4 million cubic metres of water had been contracted, out of the minimum 40 million cubes required to proceed with the project. And 19.3 million cubes were at a stage where farmers had requested information on potential water user agreements. I guess one man’s flood of commitment – eg, Irrigation NZ’s Andrew Curtis misled CHB farmers in December that 40 million cubes were already committed and HBRIC was now shooting for 60 million – is another man’s trickle. Another water controversy bubbled to the surface at year end when the public became aware that HBRC had awarded seven consents for extracting nearly 2.5 million cubic metres of Heretaunga Plains aquifer water … water to be bottled and exported. Bridget FreemanRock provides the details in Exporting Our Precious Water. Bridget’s At Risk Of Extinction carries a warning, but also hope. She describes how a broad range of stakeholders have united behind a strategy to protect and enhance our region’s biodiversity. And how you can get involved. For biodiversity, we have a plan. For resolving the human health inequities in Hawke’s Bay, not quite. You have probably seen coverage of the DHB’s end of year report, Health Equity in Hawke’s Bay. That disturbing report was more alarm bell than answer. In DHB Sounds Alarm … Now What? Jessica Soutar Barron looks at the challenge of improving HB’s health stats. Key takeaway? The solutions are far beyond the sole responsibility or control of our DHB. Two feature articles deal with what Hawke’s Bay is becoming. More diverse (not necessarily more tolerant)
How happy are you? Take the BayBuzz Happiness Survey. See page 15 or visit www.baybuzz.co.nz
reports Mark Sweet in Islam in Hawke’s Bay. And writing about aspiration, in Harvesting the Sun Keith Newman examines the possibility that Hawke’s Bay could become the ‘solar capital’ of New Zealand. If we need some investment capital for new directions, maybe it’s Time to Sell the Port, as provocateur Paul Paynter suggests. Serious stuff! But BayBuzz has plenty of ‘lighter’ content – new things to try, events to catch, people to applaud – to keep you entertained and in the buzz. And maybe even happy! Are you happy?! Don’t set aside this magazine without taking the BayBuzz Happiness Survey on p15 (it’s easiest to take the survey online). In our next edition, we’ll be looking in depth at happiness – what are the ingredients? And with your response to the survey – we’ll report just how happy we are here in blissful Hawke’s Bay! Please take the survey and enjoy the magazine!
TOm BElfORD Tom’s past includes the Carter White House, building Ted Turner’s first philanthropic organization, doing heaps of marketing consulting for major nonprofits and corporates. Tom writes an acclaimed blog for professional NGO fundraisers and communicators in North America and Europe, and is a HB Regional Councillor.
coloured background reverse version
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Issue No.21 • JAN/FEB 2015
LETTERS We’d like to hear from you! With three issues of the ‘new, improved’ BayBuzz magazine under our belts, the BayBuzz team would really like your feedback. We’ve gotten some nice compliments, but folks seem to be shy about offering constructive criticism along with the kudos. That’s why it was so great to get the following letter from a devoted BayBuzz reader. Maybe her remarks will stir you to offer your own reactions to the magazine. We’re good listeners!
So, is BayBuzz ‘new and improved’ … or not? What do you like/not like? Where would you rate BayBuzz on the READER scale (#10 being Brilliant)? Send your thoughts to: editors@baybuzz.co.nz Or, if you want to remain anonymous, just mail your comments to:
BayBuzz, PO Box 8322, Havelock North Page 6 • Issue 21 • Jan/Feb 2015 • BAY BUZZ
G N I H T E M O S
. P U E M CA We all need a break sometimes. That’s when you need to rely on your agent to keep the sale of your property moving, and make the right decisions on your behalf. Bayleys team of experienced professionals will ensure everything is taken care of, even when you’re not here. We take the responsibility of being an agent very seriously so you don’t have to worry when it’s left to us. www.bayleys.co.nz Napier 06 834 4080 | Havelock North 06 872 9300 | Waipukurau 06 858 5500 Coast to Coast Limited, Bayleys, Licensed under the REA Act 2008.
BEE in the KNOW
Logged out Jim Scotland retired last December as chairman of Napier Port after ten years of leadership. And what’s become of the Port during his tenure? Page 8 • Issue 21 • Jan/Feb 2015 • BAY BUZZ
Revenue has grown from $37 million to $67 million. Earnings have doubled. The dividend paid to ratepayers has grown from $4.8 million to $7 million. Total tonnage is up one third, to 4.1 million tonnes. Shipping containers handled were up 68% to 220,048 TEUs*. Mighty impressive growth in a highly competitive environment, accomplished with an exceptional workplace safety record for which Jim is duly proud. A team effort, he would note. But leadership matters … Well done Jim Scotland! *The 20-foot equivalent unit (TEU) is a unit of cargo capacity describing the capacity of container ships.
BEE in the KNOW
Hawke's Bay Wellness Index Jobs on Seek.co.nz
Homes For Sale
[December 12, 2014]
[Realestate.co.nz]
188 Homes Sold
Lamb price at Stortford
AVERAGE
December 12, 2014
1,922
$101.71 [December 8]
Giant Jaffas that 'disappeared' from Pipi
Dwelling Assualts
195 2,874 100 118.8 21,394 218 [REINZ]
[Family violence indicator]
[Up 430 from July 2014]
in November 2014 [Down 7% from Nov 2013]
in October 2014 [Down 2 from October 2013]
Monthly Retail Spending
HB Tourism Website
Burglaries
[3rd lowest percent increase in NZ]
[Monthly Website Users]
[October 2014]
$
Million
September 2014
in November 2014
Visitors to MTG
Paid admissions, Nov
2,602 (up 350 from September)
Down 24 from October 2013
[Up 23% from Nov 2013]
[Paymark]
61
GB
Gigabytes of data downloaded in November by average NOW residential customers. Up from 56 GB in September
1022
Bay Espresso coffee sold [Nov 2014]
(up 93 kg from Sep 2014)
kg
Hazardous Drinkers
24% [% of Hawke's Bay adults]
New Zealand average is 15% 983 breath/blood alcohol offences FY13/14
What's Hot
What's Not
250mcg/L alcohol breath test
400 mcg per litre
Pipi truck
Nash fire truck
Container shops
Albert Hotel
HB chardonnay
Marlborough sav
Napier Port
Air New Zealand
Off-lead Te Mata trails
Te Mata trails dog poo
$$$ dairy payout
¢¢¢ dairy payout
Mussels
Mustelids
Cider
Bottled aquifer water
Page 9 • Issue 21 • Jan/Feb 2015 • BAY BUZZ
DON’T MISS THE BUZZ!
KUDOS
Tipple Wins Triple Hastings' Vidal Estate wins a trifecta of trophies
Hastings' Vidal Estate has won a trifecta of trophies: the coveted Air New Zealand Champion Wine of the Show Trophy for its 2013 Chardonnay, which also won the Champion Chardonnay Trophy. And the Vidal Legacy Hawke's Bay Chardonnay 2012 was awarded the Champion Exhibition White Wine trophy. Vidal Estate Head Winemaker Hugh Crichton: “It’s been a long crusade of ours to produce great chardonnay and these awards show we’re really hitting the mark. Equally, there is the realisation that Hawke's Bay is producing world-class chardonnay, not all regions can claim this.”
Terrific Terroir
Paynter's Pride
Craggy Range winery, out the back of Te Mata, has been named New World Winery of the Year by Wine Enthusiast magazine.
Paynter's Cider has emerged from a pack of 75 ciders to win the trophy for the best cider in New Zealand at the annual Fruit Wine and Cidermakers Awards held in Auckland in November. Hawke's Bay's Paul Paynter and his family have been working on their cider, made from genuine cider apples, for a number of years, finally releasing it onto the market in 2014.
Owner Terry Peabody says the Craggy Range team is thrilled by the award: “From bringing on the very best winemaking talent through to our choice of planting and the way we manage the vineyards, our stewardship has been unrelenting and conscientious," Peabody says. Terroir is a big part of Craggy's story and the setting, tucked between the Peak and the river, is sublime, as BayBuzz readers know. The award honours not just the winery but also the landscape in which it sits.
Page 10 • Issue 21 • Jan/Feb 2015 • BAY BUZZ
Cloud Everything
There's a new breed of suit in town. Actually they don't wear suits, they wear bright patterns and expensive jeans. They have beards and twitter handles. In the spirit of LOL and YOLO and ROFL they're known as YOPROS: Young Professionals.
BEE in the KNOW
And like bees swarming they are colonising a new hive in central Napier under the shingle Inc and Co. Accountant Simon Griggs set up the shared work space a year ago and now cohabits with NZ Digital's Adam Harris, his team, a copywriter and a project manager. They have two desks spare, looking for workers ready to move from their home offices. They also have a hot desk that can be rented per day or per week. It's a new way of working: "We benefit
from water cooler chats, from camaraderie, from the buzz and the banter that comes from working alongside like-minded people, but we still each do our own thing and run our own businesses." says Griggs. Hawke's Bay needs more such ideas to stay vital and keep young people in town. "Business is changing. Politics are changing. It's cloud everything," explains Griggs, referring to the ability for companies to use internet-based resources to run their businesses, from accounting and wages, to scheduling and stock taking. "Entrepreneurship is in and turn around times are fast," he says, explaining that in order to meet the expected short deadlines, providers need networks of trusted, savvy co-workers, in a full range of professions. "A lot of the way we work is based on technology, it's always been there for us and it's the norm. It means we can work across countries, in different time zones, we are always contactable, we're wired in and people expect a response." Griggs sits on the board of the Hawke's Bay Young Professionals (as does Harris). He is a proponent of new ways of thinking about work and business. "We're not rethinking the wheel, we're just inventing new ways to use it, and to make it turn faster!"
will often include specifics like portion sizing, packaging, how a product is used, even what flavour is most popular in a particular location. "It's about seeing what is out there and using that knowledgeto benefit NZ." Cathy gives an example of how New Zealand has to stay on its toes, even in areas where traditionally we've had an edge. "Australia is looking to diversify, and agribusiness and food processing offer economic growth. We have a target on our backs and we need to protect our market share by being smart and acting fast," Cathy says.
Sometimes clients come to her with a good idea, but they are often years too late. Technology and trends have moved on. "It's better to spend money on research first,because exporting is very expensive and unless you know there is a market for it, don't do it. People can get so invested in their business idea that they really need to take a reality check, and that's what I help with." Through Cathy's research, clients can make decisions based on intelligence and facts rather than gut instinct. "It's really worthwhile work, it's got rigour behind it," she explains.
Getting an edge Cathy Heath is just the type of person we need more of in Hawke's Bay. Her business is her brain. Her product: intelligence. Her footprint: small. Her income: big city. Cathy is a marketing insights researcher. Asked if she is a spy, she agrees she is, sort of: "But I don't go through rubbish bins!" Tucked up the back of Onekawa, Heath Research Services has clients all over New Zealand. Eight years she has been working from Hawke's Bay (after a move from Auckland) and only a handful of jobs have come from local businesses. The majority of her clients are medium to large businesses who are looking to grow, predominantly into new markets with new products. Cathy is the research arm of the R&D we know is key to the future growth of New Zealand's economy. Her work includes competitor intelligence, consumer gap analysis, and geo-specific purchasing habits. "A lot of it is psychology – what motivates consumers," she says. Research
Page 11 • Issue 21 • Jan/Feb 2015 • BAY BUZZ
Climate Change and NZ In November, China and the US reached unprecedented agreement on the urgency of addressing climate change. The US committed to emitting 26-28% less carbon in 2025 than in 2005. And China pledged to reach peak carbon emissions by 2030, if not sooner. Meanwhile, advice to incoming NZ ministers noted: “New Zealand has a long term target of reducing its net emissions to 50% below 1990 levels by 2050. However, our gross emissions have increased by 25% since 1990, and are projected to rise substantially in the time to 2050, based on current settings.” With NZ already 5th amongst OECD countries in greenhouse gas emissions per capita, the Government routinely started its 2015 ‘Block Offer’ process for awarding further oil and gas exploration permits. The area offered includes 79,067 km2 off the Hawke’s Bay coast, mostly beyond the region’s 12 nautical mile limit. At least the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment (PCE), Jan Wright, is on a different page than the Key Government on the issue. In late November the PCE issued her report: Changing climate and rising seas. Said Wright: “As my own understanding of the science has evolved through this investigation, my concern has grown. I had hoped to find greater reason for optimism, but unfortunately
the opposite has occurred.” Her report focuses on sea level rise. The international science consensus predicts a 30 centimetre average rise by 2050, regardless of any action taken to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and a metre or more by 2100. She notes: “It is not just private property that will be affected. Councils and central government will need to prepare for increased costs because some public infrastructure such as roads, waste water systems, and buildings will be affected by rising seas. Here in Hawke’s Bay, with coastal communities, water treatment plants, the airport and more at risk, a three-council task force has begun a multi-year examination of the issue. And Wright has promised a further report in 2015 that will “show in some detail which areas of the coastline around the country are most vulnerable to sea level rise and assess the risk to the infrastructure in those areas.” Stay tuned for bad news! Get the report at: http://bit.ly/1supl1a
Birds Count
Turns out birds can count! We know this thanks to a German psychology PhD student, her Victoria University supervisor, some New Zealand robins and the New York Times via YouTube. Can’t cheat these robins out of their food! The enchanting video can be seen at http://bit.ly/12CbSxg
FIVE FACTS: 1. Collective noun for robin – a worm of robins 2. Maori for robin – toutouwai 3. New Zealand robins are relatively long-lived, surviving up to 14 years 4. We have three varieties of New Zealand robin: North Island, South Island and Stewart Island. 5. Their song has five notes – listen here: http://bit.ly/1zfDODV
CORRECTION In issue #20 we identified Havelock North High School's 2004 Head Boy Scott Nicol incorrectly. He is presently a constable in the New Zealand Police Service. Page 12 • Issue 21 • Jan/Feb 2015 • BAY BUZZ
BEE IN THE KNOW
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” Dickens aside, this might be an apt description of Hawke’s Bay these days. On the one hand, our region falls to the bottom of the New Zealand scale on just about every socioeconomic indicator. And yet we extol our pleasant and easy lifestyle, our fabulous food and wine, and our welcoming natural environment. When it’s all added up, how do we reconcile these contrasts? And at bottom, person by person …
Are we truly happy? Let's find out! In our March/April edition, BayBuzz is planning a major feature on ‘Happiness’. What is it and what does it take to get more of it? (The answers might surprise you!) And, equally important, just how happy are we in Hawke’s Bay? To find out, we need some raw data. That’s where you come in. YES YOU! Please take our BayBuzz Happiness Survey by 15 February 2015 so we can report back in our next edition. The more HB locals who take the BayBuzz Happiness Survey, the better we can take the happiness pulse of our region!
Page 14 • Issue 21 • Jan/Feb 2015 • BAY BUZZ
HOW TO TAkE THE BAYBUZZ HAPPINESS SURVEY The easiest way is to take it online on the BayBuzz website:
WWW.BAYBUZZ.CO.NZ Just follow the
TAkE THE HAPPINESS SURVEY button on the homepage. Or, copy the page opposite, answer the questions, and mail your response to: BayBuzz Magazine PO Box 8322, Havelock North To make BayBuzz happy take the BayBuzz Happiness Survey by February 15th. All responses will remain anonymous.
THE BAYBUZZ HAPPINESS SURVEY 1. These questions ask you about your feelings and thoughts during the last month. In each case, please indicate how often you felt or thought a certain way. Never
Almost Never
Sometimes
Fairly Often
Very Often
In the last month, how often have you felt that you were unable to control the important things in your life? In the last month, how often have you felt that things were going your way?
2. Again, reflecting on your feelings and thoughts during the last month, please indicate your agreement or disagreement with each item. Strongly Disagree
Disagree
Agree
Strongly Agree
Sometimes
Often
My social relationships are supportive and rewarding. I am engaged and interested in my daily activities. I actively contribute to the happiness and wellbeing of others. I am competent and capable in the activities that are important to me. I am optimistic about my future. People respect me. As I get older I find myself more able to appreciate the people, events, and situations that have been part of my life history. I am satisfied with my life. So far I have gotten the important things I want in life. Long amounts of time can go by before I feel grateful to something or someone.
3. Please indicate how often each of the statements below is descriptive of you. Never
Rarely
I feel in tune with the people around me. No one really knows me well. I can find companionship when I want it. People are around me but not with me.
4. In general, I consider myself: Not Very Happy
2
3
4
5
6
Very Happy
4
5
6
More Happy
5. Compared to most of my peers, I consider myself: Less Happy
2
3
6. What is your gender: Male
Female Page 15 • Issue 21 • Jan/Feb 2015 • BAY BUZZ
DON’T MISS THE BUZZ!
SUBSCRIBE NOW& SAVE! Be sure to ‘bee in the know’ by getting Hawke's Bay’s hottest magazine delivered straight to your door… and save money too! Take advantage of these great subscription deals.
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We’re plenty grateful that you recognize producing a high quality, HB-exclusive magazine is hard work … and costly. Same six issues delivered to your letter box, but no vouchers or gift subscription to sweeten the pie.
Plus, we add two bonuses: 1. You’ll receive a gift pack of merchant vouchers worth well over $50 – from Ten24 Restaurant and Mahia St Kitchen, Poppies and Beattie & Forbes booksellers, plus healthy foodstores Cornucopia and Chantal. Use the vouchers and you’re getting BayBuzz for free! 2. We’ll give one BayBuzz Gift Subscription in your name to anyone you choose to reward. [be sure to fill out the adjoining Gift Form.]
Just want to gift a BayBuzz subscription? Gift subscriptions are a terrific way to help your friends understand the issues challenging our region and stay abreast of the ‘buzz’ around Hawke’s Bay. For $25 you can give a gift subscription for our new, bigger and better BayBuzz magazine. Just fill out the adjoining Gift Form.
Why not take the easy option and subscribe online? Just go to www.baybuzz.co.nz/subscribe
BEE in the KNOW
FEELING CLUED UP BY BAYBUZZ? Now prove it! Answer these 12 questions (reading the magazine will help!). Then send your answers by 28 February to: editors@baybuzz.co.nz or PO Box 8322, Havelock North 4157. Or enter online at: www.surveymonkey.com/s/BaybuzzQuiz Answer each of the 12 questions correctly, and you’ll go in the draw to win a $100 dining voucher, courtesy of Ten Twenty Four Restaurant, Pakowhai Road, Hastings.
QUIZ 1
What percentage of HB freshwater wetlands have been lost?
2
How many cubic metres of water per year have been consented from the Heretaunga aquifer for bottling?
3
What is the percentage of Maori pregnant women who smoke?
4
Which was the first country to pass into law the universal rights of nature.
5
What is the fifth Pillar of Islam?
6
Which state highway runs from Wairoa to Rotorua?
7
Who is the incoming Chair of the Port?
8
What company has bought Crafar Farms and soon Lochinver Station?
9
On which river is Barlow Hut?
10 In which year did Taradale merge with Napier? 11 Whose sculpture School's Out appears in East 2014? 12 With which city has Hastings entered a solar partnership?
WINNERS All BayBuzz readers are special to us, but these people actually won fantastic meals in our draw for those gifting BayBuzz subscriptions. • Christine Hardie of Taradale • Sigi Ziegler of Haumoana • Anne Gibbons of Havelock North Dining vouchers provided by Mister D, Elephant Hill and Ten Twenty Four.
Page 17 • Issue 21 • Jan/Feb 2015 • BAY BUZZ
BEE IN THE KNOW
Holly Cheque A cheque for $250,000 has been handed to Cranford Hospice by the Hospice Holly Charitable Trust Trail Committee. Two and a half thousand people took part in the three-day event in November. Homes across Havelock North are decorated and opened to ticket holders. The event is a mainstay of the Hawke's Bay Christmas season. Money raised in 2014 is $30,000 more than the previous event. "The Holly Trail is a huge community effort for a cause that affects all of us," says KK Marffy, chair of the Trail Committee. Cranford's care of the dying and their families is available to everyone from Mahia to Takapau. The biennial fundraising event is run exclusively for the benefit of Cranford
Hospice Holly Trail Committee Chair KK Marffy presenting flowers to Debbie Nott and Mel Harper, both have retired after 16 years of being with the committee and have given hundreds of hours of time to the cause. Hospice. This year it included 13 venues, 50 sponsors, 350 volunteers, 2,800 patrons and countless hours of voluntary work over 18 months. Food workshops, flower workshops and a gala were also held as part of the event.
Tall Poppy Brain Drain TED
EDGE
TED is an international rolling feast of innovative thinkers in every imaginable field. Its slogan is ‘Ideas Worth Spreading’. TED talks reach a global audience thanks to the presentations being archived on the TED website for anyone to view (www.ted.com). The library of subjects is immense and easily searchable – from 3D printing to world hunger. With most talks running under 10 minutes you can chew up a lot of information in one sitting – a great alternative to mindless hours in front of the box. One early TEDster was kiwi Brian Sweeney who attended the conference, which is by invitation only, from its early days. His talk on the "New Zealand Story" presents a new way of looking at NZ Inc and the ways we sell ourselves to the world. You can view his 2013 talk at: http://bit.ly/1G9MsEo
Sweeney posits the concept of Edge Thinking, whereby NZ embraces its place on the edge of the world. "We're winning the world from the edge," he says, challenging NZ norms like 'brain drain' and 'tall poppy'. Sweeney's baby is NZEDGE.com. Here there are two useful tools for expats and homebodies alike. One is a regularly updated collection of NZers doing good abroad - not a 'brain drain' but rather a 'network'. It's full of inspiring stories from every discipline imaginable. The other feel-good tool is the list of world-changing kiwis from the past, not our 'tall poppies', our 'legends'. Sweeney's thoughts, shared and shareable on NZEDGE and in his TED talk, are useful from a national point of view but there are lessons too for the real edgedwellers - us out here on the isolated coast, the real edge of the world.
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BEE in the KNOW
Just Hanging Out "Being upside down releases lots of happy hormones - dopamine, serotonin, endorphins," explains Lisa Collings who opened Levity, Hastings' new aerial yoga centre in late 2014. Come to yoga classes at Levity and you'll spend the hour doing your poses up in the air, suspended from the ceiling in an acrobat's silk hammock. "I've got some students who the minute they go upside down burst into tears then spend five minutes giggling," she says. Collings, a cardio physiologist, and her family moved from England to Hawke's Bay seven years ago. They'd never been to New Zealand before and decided to relocate after seeing Havelock North featured on a UK TV show. Doing brave new things is certainly part of Collings' make up. "I leave things up to the universe," Collings explains. Aerial yoga is an idea devised by American Christopher Harrison, a gymnast and Broadway dancer whose aerial acrobatic troop performed at Barack Obama's inauguration. Finding a space just right for aerial yoga in Hastings was tricky, so when something suitable came up Collings leapt at it. Three steel I-beams have been installed in the building, with each of the ten hammocks able to hold 500kg of weight. Collings explains that aerial yoga makes challenging yoga poses more accessible. No yoga experience and no specific level of flexibility is needed. "Some people take a while to get used to the rush of blood to the head," she says. "Some people are so trusting and they just throw themselves back. Others, you have to pry their fingers off!" Collings has practised Iyenga yoga for many years and completed training in Hatha yoga in India. "When you do aerial yoga you have to be very present in your body, and very aware, and so it supports the coming together of mind and body," she says. "Also, yoga can be quite serious, but aerial is light hearted. It's like being a child again," explains Collings. "People take things so seriously. Sometimes it's just nice to hang out!" Page 19 • Issue 21 • Jan/Feb 2015 • BAY BUZZ
The BUZZ around the BAY Sundaze 11 & 22 January and; 8 & 22 February
Tattletale Saints
Chill out in the country at Sacred Hill's cellar door in Puketapu. Wine, food and music in the beautiful countryside.
Tour de Beautiful Cycle Challenge 18 January The pelaton sets off from Central Hawke's Bay College and cycles through the beautiful CHB. Four events:100k, 55k, 25k and 10k rides.
Napier Country & Variety Music Spectacular Festival 20 – 25 January Hosted at the Taradale RSA this is a full week of live music events.
Bridge Pa Wine Festival 24 January Eight wineries in the Bridge Pa Triangle are running a collective wine festival. Connected by hop on/hop off buses the close proximity of the wineries means patrons are never more than five minutes from their next vino.
Tattletale Saints Summer Tour 28 January Winners of the New Zealand Music Award for Folk Album of the Year 2014. At The Cabana.
Andrew Fagan & The People 30 January Fagan and his band tour this summer to celebrate 30 years of The Mockers, then The People. They play The Cabana.
Eclipse - Pink Floyd Tribute 31 January Lights and lasers will fill the night sky during a sight and sound extravaganza of Pink Floyd's best at Black Barn.
Great Long Celebration 31 January Join the long table and savour a three course meal designed by 2014 MasterChef winners Kasey & Karena Bird, paired with superb Pask wine.
Opera at Oruawharo 1 February Be part of a magical evening at Central Hawke’s Bay’s beautiful Oruawharo Homestead, Takapau. Take your own picnic dinner, or purchase a ticket that includes either a gourmet burger or a full seated dinner. An amazing line up of opera artists including Dame Malvina Major.
Antiques, Collectibles and Crafts Market 7 February Meeanee Hall is the location of this riot of knick-knackery all under one roof. A fun market for collectors, hoarders and the curious. Free entry.
Sunday Session 8 February & 8 March Te Awanga Estate hosts lazy afternoons lounging on the lawn! Local music, Rod McDonald Wines and Renaissance Beer with pizzas hot from the oven, platters a plenty, good vibes and sea views.
Food Matter Aotearoa 9-20 February This is a conference and tour of speakers through New Zealand with Hawke's Bay talks on 16 and 17 February. The theme is Our Farms, Our Food, Our Future. More information is available at www.foodconference.co.nz
First Sunday Funday 1 February & 1 March Andrew Fagan
Ranui Farm Park in Waipukurau hosts an open day. Enjoy a mountain bike ride, go for a run or a walk, see the animals in the petting zoo, give archery a try. There's also a golf challenge, paint ball and the 70 metre water slide.
Common Room Craft Beer Challenge 6 February Come and sample Hawke's Bay's best boutique brews in the garden bar as brewers compete for bragging rights and the title of Best Brewer in the Bay. Anika Moa
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Hawke's Bay goes giddy over Art Deco from 18-22 February. Here's the pick of the new, unusual and best on offer. The Elixir of Love 17-21 February Festival Opera presents this playful comic opera by Donizetti, with English subtitles. Featuring a knockout international and local cast. At the Napier Muni. Raymond Crowe
Winery Tour 2015 12-13 February
End of the Golden Weather 19-22 February A perfect beach, in a perfect 1930s New Zealand, during a perfect summer. At Napier Little Theatre in McGrath St.
The Winery Tour is back at Black Barn, headlined by the iconic Dave Dobbyn & Don McGlashan, performing together, followed by the legendary Supergroove and the Queen of the Winery Tour, Anika Moa.
Out Of Africa Partridge Shoot 20 February
Raymond Crowe: The Unusualist 13 February
Death by Chocolate 21 February
Illusionist, magician, mime, comedian and hand shadow artist ventriloquist, Raymond Crowe is sure to entertain. At MTG's Century Theatre.
Join the HB Sporting Shooters Club in rural Hawke’s Bay for a 3 station/15 target clay shoot. Dress is Deco era country attire. All equipment is provided.
Deco afternoon tea experience: a scrumptious selection of Silky Oak crafted chocolate treats and a solemn cup of tea or coffee, in a building surrounded by vintage hearses. You'll even have your very own undertaker at your table, which is fitting considering the venue – Dunstall’s Memorial Chapel.
Triples Peaks Challenge 28 February
Steam Train Pea, Pie and Pud Run 21 February
One of Hawke's Bay's major annual events, participants range from school children to dedicated grandmothers as well as an elite field of endurance champions.
This is a family excursion, with a stop in Otane for the traditional Pea, Pie and Pud meal plus a variety of entertainments.
ICC Cricket World Cup 2015: Pakistan v United Arab Emirates 4 March See some of the greats at McLean Park in Napier during the Cricket World Cup, played in Australia and New Zealand this year.
NZSO presents: Freddy kempf's Beethoven 7 March
Soap Box Derby 22 February Turn out for your favourites and watch the wheels spin as Soap Box carts from all over the Bay careen down the Tennyson Street hill. Good fun for the whole family.
The Legends of Cricket Art Deco Match 25 February Clifton County Cricket Club in Te Awanga takes cricket back to basics. Join the club as some of the world’s most famous cricketers dust off their whites to bring you New Zealand vs The Rest of The World.
It’s a Beethoven extravaganza with the NZSO and fearless British piano star Freddy Kempf, who performs two of the composer’s masterpiece concertos and conducts the orchestra too at the Napier Municipal Theatre.
The king is Back - Ben Portsmouth World Tour 13 March Ben Portsmouth looks like Elvis, sings like Elvis, and has an extraordinary stage presence that makes audiences believe they're watching the King himself. At the Napier Muni.
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Harvesting the Sun STORY KEITH NEWMAN PHOTOGRAPHS TIM WHITTAKER
Keith Newman reckons recent breakthroughs in solar technology could transform Hawke’s Bay’s superior sunshine hours into a massive renewable energy source.
Aerial view of a 4kw solar installation on Unison show home at Fitzroy on the Park, with Unison’s Ken Sutherland and Daniel Stettner
If Germany has the world’s highest uptake of solar energy, with sunshine hours equal only to Invercargill, then Hawke’s Bay should be in pole position to leverage the latest innovations in solar energy. The 60-year-old solar business, previously plagued by inefficiency, high cost and poor performance, appears to be nearing a tipping point that will shift the demand from early adopters to mainstream use. The cost of photovoltaic (PV) cells has plummeted by around 80%, battery storage is undergoing a metamorphosis, smart energy management is improving, and researchers have come up with jaw-dropping breakthroughs in materials and processes. Then there’s an invitation for the region to partner with China’s ‘solar capital’ to showcase and import leading edge systems.
Sun city synergies If an offer by the mayor of Dezhou City stacks up, Hastings mayor Lawrence Yule believes Hawke’s Bay could become the solar capital of New Zealand, showcasing the latest Chinese technology. Yule was part of a Hawke’s Bay trade mission to Shandong Province last year when he was shown streets, hotels and office buildings in Dezhou City powered by locally developed solar systems. He’s now bringing himself up to speed with what that technology might offer for the region before putting proposals to his council, Napier City, HBRC and potential business partners and formalising a science and technology memorandum of understanding (MOU) in China in May 2015. He’s prepared to arrange for land and buildings and sort out consenting issues in the hope the solar alliance might be operating within two to three years. Yule’s hopeful the right mix of technology might even attract government funding. “It’ll be a Hawke’s Bay relationship, but I want to start it … this is a technology of the future. The Chinese have offered to set it up so why wouldn’t you?” Yule wants to work closely with local power company Unison to avoid any conflict that might undermine its customer base or place undue pressure on its network. “If the world is going to move this way the more we understand the opportunities the better … We don’t want a rear-guard action against this.” He suggests Unison’s smart metering system, able to control demand
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Hastings and Dezhou, solar city partners
“It’ll be a Hawke’s Bay relationship, but I want to start it … this is a technology of the future. The Chinese have offered to set it up so why wouldn’t you?” management and variable pricing, makes it a good candidate for integrating solar into the mix.
Roof top relief John Bell, Massey University business manager for Hawke’s Bay is “110%” behind Yule’s plans, offering university backing if there’s sufficient interest. But he suggests there’s a need to look at a wider range of technologies and partners. He’s enthused by new nanoparticle-based material for solar power plants, designed by an engineering team at the University of California, that absorbs and converts over 90% of the sunlight it captures. The concentrating solar power (CSP) system uses thousands of reflective mirrors to aim sunlight at a tower sprayed with a light absorbing black paint to maximise absorption. It heats
molten salt to generate electricity from steam 24 hours a day, and can be retrofitted to coal, oil and other generating plants. Bell says the solution, revealed in October and funded by the US Department of Energy’s SunShot programme, is what everyone’s been waiting for. Lawrence Yule is already looking for opportunities to make solar shine. Panels on the roof of Hastings District Council offices or the Regional Sports Park might help offset daytime power bills and high line charges. Unison might like to be involved if the technology pointed to true diversity of land use through fields of distributed solar panels, although some might complain about the glare or the view. “In the US they have whole deserts of the things … we need more understanding
Aaron Duncan has around 200 solar installations in Hawke’s Bay.
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(of whether) there’s a good case for that. It’s more attractive the cheaper it becomes. As a country I don’t think we’re doing enough,” says Yule. Bell believes local councils should collaborate on a compelling case by removing all obstacles for potential partners in China or the US. Building those partnerships now “could make the difference between being at the forefront of commercialisation in five years or fifteenth in line.”
Steep curve ahead Like other sunrise industries, many are watching the early adopters for leadership. Hawke’s Bay Regional Council’s $2.2 million refurbishment of its leaky north-facing Napier premises in 2013 looked like such an opportunity. However, the annual saving of $3,000 over 16 years to get payback on the $45,430 investment wasn’t convincing enough. There’s been strong interest in solar at a series of public meetings, so it’ll remain in HBRCs draft long term plan, although there’s no specific programme. Interim chief executive Liz Lambert is all for Hawke’s Bay becoming the ‘solar capital’. “Let’s claim it before Marlborough tries it, like they did with wine country”, but wants to see a credible business case.
Her council will keep a close watch on Yule’s negotiations with Dezhou City, hoping at least for a more cost-effective offering to kick start its stalled $6 million Solar Saver loan scheme. In its last LTP, HBRC provided for up to $6 million in loans to encourage installation of solar hot-water heating, to be repaid via a voluntary targeted rate on the borrowers, with consents to be issued by the Napier and Hastings
“One company pays $60,000 a month on power and we believe we can save at least half of that.” councils. However, the scheme hasn’t been progressed due to advice, periodically reviewed, that the payback period for conversions would be too long.
Shifts happen Aaron Duncan from Freenergy Solar has around 200 installations in Hawke’s Bay with a growing focus on commercial and industrial premises. Only two years ago his business was 90% solar water heating, now PV panels
which power a house and divert excess electricity to hot water cylinders make up 85% of his business. He’s completed several 10kw, 40 panel jobs and is negotiating for 40kw systems requiring up to 160 panels. The ideal customer, he says, is company-owned premises with plenty of rooftop real estate. “One company pays $60,000 a month on power and we believe we can save at least half of that.” He says there’s plenty of reliable data showing solar works for dairy farms, wineries and the biggest installation in New Zealand, a shopping mall in Whangarei with a 240kw system. Bruce Emerson of Harrisons Energy Solutions, entered the market in mid2014, convinced solar was maturing. He reckons New Zealand has grown from around 1,000 to 30,000 installations a year, up 300% nationally and locally in the last year alone. Emerson “and just about every other installer” – either franchisees like himself, remarketers, re-branders or direct importers – “have been inundated with inquiries.” There were six installers at the Hawke’s Bay Home Show in September and as Aaron Duncan says, “just about every sparky in Hawke’s Bay can source products from wholesalers now.”
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Bruce Emerson says government should prevent price collusion by electricity retailers
Off-grid challenge Ideally solar energy turns your home or business premises into a mini power station diverting excess capacity back to the grid to further reduce power bills. The big four power retailers will buy excess domestic generation but they’re not exactly encouraging it. “They don’t want to be subsiding your power when they can be charging you full whack,” says Duncan. He says it’s up users to make solar work for them regardless of the power companies. “While it’s nice to have a feed-in tariff to offset costs, that’s not what we base our business case on.” Bruce Emerson says solar is on a sustainable growth path and he’d hate to see Australian-style subsidies or buy-back tariffs skewing the market by creating unsustainable growth and quality issues. “Don’t fiddle with the industry to give it a boost, as that encourages fly by nighters to cut corners.” He would, however, like to see government controls to prevent retailers colluding on price. He’s referring to the 24 hour period in November 2014 when Contact and Meridian slashed their buy back rate for self-generation. “If they’re agreeing to cut the rates that’s
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a concern” as it could be undermine the potential for solar growth, he says. The Dezhou model being look at by Mayor Yule, for example, is not designed to connect to orthodox lines network and is a challenge to lines companies and Transpower. Yule warns: “You have to make sure existing players don’t discourage the
“Don’t fiddle with the industry to give it a boost, as that encourages fly by nighters to cut corners.” introduction of new energy sources,” asking “why wouldn’t you use an energy source that’s free?” He echoes Deputy PM Bill English’s recent comments that lines companies may eventually have to rethink the distribution model they operate under. He empathises with consumers whose electricity bills are often higher than their annual rates, creating a sense that “the whole value proposition has been lost”. Regardless he reckons there’s a sweet spot for solar to co-exist in a parallel evolution
with lines companies reducing the load on networks, cutting the carbon footprint and bringing benefits to ratepayers.
Network challenges Yule has a case study from one Chinese distributor operating in New Zealand, promising a four year return from a $20,000 investment in a 5kw system. Couple that with new micro battery technology that can be charged “from nothing to something in a minute” and he has a eureka moment. “If I was to build another house in the countryside, I’d probably go off-grid … with solar and cellphone technology and stored water…” Local lines company Unison isn’t taking the challenge lying down. It has a commercial scale research installation at its offices, and at Fitzroy on the Park it’s trialling solar generation and battery storage to smooth peaks. Unison’s Ken Sutherland says he’s looking into engineering and network management implications and power quality issues related to solar photovoltaic generation. Additional transmission network investment may be required to cope with growth in electric car use, new
technologies and solar on-selling. If 50% of household power was solar, that could reduce Unison revenues by a third, but the fixed cost of line capacity would remain static, with that cost still needing to be paid by electricity users. Sutherland doesn’t see solar photovoltaic generation as a substantial component of New Zealand’s energy mix. Currently the country has a “highly renewable mix with several large scale renewable generation schemes in the development pipeline” and an oversupply of generation.
Shocked into solar Bruce Emerson, says the biggest driver for solar panels isn’t necessarily the ‘clean and green’ incentive or increasing viability, but the exorbitant prices charged by electricity resellers. “Over the past 12 years the price of electricity has risen 118%, while the cost of solar panels has decreased as this industry gets up to scale. It’s the perfect storm really.” Most of us, he says, are perplexed about why power costs so much when it’s mostly produced from sustainable and renewable resources and our dam infrastructure and distribution network has been around for decades. With commentators speculating that more accurate data from smart meters will result in significant increases in peak hour pricing, he says, people will turn to solar “to give the two finger salute to energy retailers”. Aaron Duncan agrees peak hour charging will put more pressure on those who can least afford it, making solar even more compelling. “I’ve had pensioners in tears ringing me about their power bills, they’re so frustrated
Massey’s John Bell urges more technology partnerships
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Payback’s a Glitch Claims of massive growth in Hawke’s Bay solar installations may have some merit, but if those connecting back into the power grid are any indication, the trend is hardly revolutionary. Unison only had 20 solar links in 2012 and that had ramped to a total of 136 by November 2014, including 122 residential, 11 business and three schools. Unison chief executive, Ken Sutherland says lower prices, more suppliers and a rise in awareness have led to “a modest increase”. However, he claims the recent reduction in solar buy-back rates by Contact and Meridian has reduced the value of selling back to the grid, placing more focus on the quality and capacity of solar systems and users extracting maximum value from their investment. The Electricity Authority is currently looking into a call for fairer and more predictable buy-back prices and allegations that power companies are trying to stifle solar generation. BayBuzz research suggests a prime market for solar systems is baby boomers, looking to cut costs ahead of retirement. A 3kw entry level system can cost $6000-$10,000 with payback between 5-8 years, although offsetting a monthly power bill of $400-$500 may require a $20,000 system. Unison remains sceptical, suggesting even an investment of $9,000-$12,000 and selling about $900 a year back to the grid with payback over 10-15-years is still not viable, particularly if no one’s home during the day. And Sutherland wonders whether a small scale 1.5kw system at around $7,000 would stand the test of time or generate the same long-term output over “more reputable brands”. “Unison’s detailed modelling, which is based on typical consumer load profiles relative to solar generation forecasts, certainly doesn’t support a 5-6 year payback,” he says.
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Ken Sutherland, with DC to AC solar converter, is conservative on solar payback
… many are going to bed really early to avoid power use and some turn off their hot water cylinders entirely … It’s sad.” Unison’s Sutherland says time of use (TOU) tariffs may result in “greater variability in electricity pricing” to reflect differing power costs. But the result would be “a reallocation of costs” amongst all users, rather than an increase in profits.
Smart solutions ahead A counter to smart meters may be smart solar management systems that determine more effective use of power. Duncan says automated controllers interface with the inverter, monitoring daily generation and consumption, diverting excess to the hot water cylinder, spa pool heater or swimming pool pump rather than the grid. Small scale storage with 3-4 hours runtime as part of ‘distributed solar technology’, enables better solar management and less reliance on the grid. Traditional lead acid batteries arrays are giving way to smaller, more ecofriendly lithium batteries that charge more rapidly with the cost now in freefall, in some cases from $30,000 to $15,000. Eventually, says Duncan, the grid will keep batteries charged to further compensate for peak hour tariffs. Others innovations include new types of longer lasting n-type silicon base material, transparent film overlays for glass and more efficient PV panels embedded in roof or paving tiles. SolaRoad began a three year trial in the Netherlands in November using a short stretch of cycle track with ‘Lego-like’
panels; each square metre can supply enough energy to power one or two houses.
People power a driver Unlike other countries that depend on fossil fuel generation there’s no strong environmental driver for New Zealand, with 75% renewable generation, to take up solar.
“Unison’s detailed modelling, which is based on typical consumer load profiles relative to solar generation forecasts, certainly doesn’t support a 5-6 year payback.” While supportive of large-scale solar generation for Hawke’s Bay, Aaron Duncan believes that must be driven by domestic and business uptake of more affordable, smarter systems. Massey’s Hawke’s Bay business manager John Bell insists opportunities to partner with technology owners in China and the US should be pursued with vigour by local councils so we can deploy domestic, micro-generation and massive electrical power generation as soon as its commercially viable. Bell says we should avoid trying to replicate existing efforts and let international experts lead the way, preferably with Massey assisting through its global science and technology connections. Sunlight and our open spaces, he says, are Hawke’s Bay’s genuine point of difference.
COME EXPERIENCE THE NEW … OLD CHURCH The Old Church on Meeanee Road is well known as a favoured wedding venue and beautiful restaurant with a reputation for fine dining. The makeover of the Old Church from a saddlery to a beautiful venue was carried out by Karen and Paul Hill eight years ago. At the same time the villa was refurbished to the standard of a high end lodge and the four bedroom four bathroom accommodation impresses guests from around the world. New business owners Moira Irving and Garry Walker were wowed by the beauty and adaptability of the buildings and the grounds when they first viewed the property, and in July of this year took over the business. The history of the Church is also significant and many people pop in to visit and share memories from occasions when the Church was an important part of the parish. Moira with experience in a similar business and Garry as an Accountant felt well qualified to take on the task of growing the business to a new level. We were respectful of the task but not intimidated by it says Moira. Parts of the business were doing extremely well. 50 weddings booked for this summer season provides the backbone of the business. Special occasions and events are also often celebrated at The Old Church. The very success of these was to some extent compromising the success of the restaurant and use of the beautiful grounds and outdoor cabana bar. When researching the business Moira was often told by people that they did not consider the Church as a casual dining option due to it being always closed for weddings and functions over the summer. Also it was seen as a rather expensive and special occasion venue for dinner. The ability to balance the requirements of a busy venue while at the same time ensuring that locals and their guests could enjoy the ambiance of The Old Church and its surrounds, meant that Moira and Garry
199 Meeanee Road, Napier, Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand
needed to think of the business in different ways. Hence the development of the inside out philosophy for dining. The outdoor areas are extensive and beautiful, the kitchen capacity is one of the largest in the bay and Head Chef Andy Glover and his team were up for the challenge. The result...create your own platters. A platter menu with over 25 individual items on it. Guests are encouraged to take their time and create their own platter, ensuring they get exactly what they want. Moira noticed from day one that the interaction amongst guests as they debated their creations led to instantly relaxed guests. It’s not a menu that encourages one to hurry. It’s designed to encourage the best of kiwi summers, long lazy afternoons outdoors with friends and family relaxing in each other’s company, enjoying great food and beverages. The platter menu is an all day menu and on a nice day even when weddings are on there are areas where guests can still be seated. The A La Carte menu is still an essential part of the old church offering and will always be so. The villa in its beauty is often available for night time dining when the Church is fully booked. This has been extremely well received and provides a space as beautiful as the Church if not more intimate. Moira and Garry continue to work on innovative ways to ensure that the beautiful venue is available to as many guests as possible. The most important thing for Moira is to ensure that people know that the outside of the venue is as beautiful as the inside and dining is not compromised in any way. We want to offer as many experiences as possible to our guests says Moira. At the end of their visit we want them to go away feeling that they have had great food in beautiful surroundings and were treated in a manner that has them feeling that they were personal guests. Moria, Garry, Andy and the team look forward to seeing you there and experiencing outdoor dinning at its best.
+64 0)6 844 8866
www.theoldchurch.co.nz
Exporting Our Precious Water STORY BRIDGET FREEMAN-ROCK PHOTOGRAPHS TIM WHITTAKER
Ngati Kahungunu’s Ngahiwi Tomoana seeking moratorium on consents that permit water exports.
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Anyone who’s tasted water elsewhere understands how good our water is. So good there are plans afoot to bottle it up and export it offshore. Drawn from the cool depths of an ancient underground reserve, this water’s what makes Hawke’s Bay a region of plenty – a fact we can appreciate each summer as the hills brown and the rivers drop while the shops and roadside stalls fill with fresh abundant produce. Seven consents for water bottling purposes have been issued by the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council so far. If all exercised, they total nearly 2.5 million cubic metres of water a year. One company has applied to up their watertake volume from 364,000 m3 to 900,000 m3, and there are concerns increased water extraction will put undue pressure on the Heretaunga aquifer with long-term consequences for us all. Already, in the 2013 drought, the rivers that replenish the aquifer were so depleted growers in the Twyford area faced a sixweek irrigation ban.
N
gati Kahungunu has called for a moratorium on any exporting. In November they hosted a public hui at Waipatu Marae, which was attended by approximately 50 people, including two regional councillors. Ngahiwi Tomoana gave the history of Waipatu (which he translates as ‘artesian water’) – the marae moved originally from Pakowhai to Waipatu because of the artesian water, and the hapu see themselves as having a responsibility for it. He talked about the Elwood Road bottling consent (at site of the former Tomoana freezing works), noting that the justification for using the bore there is “we used it before, we’ll use it again”. But the difference, he emphasised, is that the freezing works “used to be a big employer of the community, feeding a lot of whanau, but this will bring no return to our community.” Tomoana sees it as an “exporter’s dream”. They can skim off the resource “without spinning the local economic wheel”. The bottom line for Tomoana: “We want to ensure that in 1,000 years’ time people can still live here and that the integrity of Papatuaanuku is kept intact.” The consensus from this meeting was for a halt on all water bottling until more is known about the aquifer, and that Ngati Kahungunu take action on behalf of the wider Hawke’s Bay community to ensure transparent process. Adele Whyte, Ngati Kahungunu’s CEO
“Not a fan of bottled water.” XAN HARDING
explains: “We’re not saying, categorically, don’t take the water. But we don’t think there’s enough information to make that decision, and if there is information available then we want to see it. We want to have the opportunity to sit down and be assured that it’s not going to impact existing growers and users of that water, because they’re already generating economic wealth for our region, and that it’s not going to impact the households and communities that have bore water. It’s a community resource; we all own it. If someone’s going to take it for their own profit, well let’s be really clear what the ramifications are.”
“We’re not saying, categorically, don’t take the water. But we don’t think there’s enough information to make that decision, and if there is information available then we want to see it.” For the record, vice-president of Hawke’s Bay Winegrowers, Xan Harding, is “not a fan of bottled water.” It’s environmentally questionable, in his view. While Harding “completely empathises” with the concerns expressed, he says it’s pretty hard to argue against on grounds of a competition for resources. To put things in perspective, he tells me the catchment area for the Heretaunga Plains is about 6,000 ha with over 5 billion m3 water from rainfall alone flowing in each year. Annual consented water use is 300 million m3, which means only 6% of water coming into the catchment is allocated. The combined consents for water bottling represent a water volume less than 1% of what’s currently being used.
Harding’s a member of TANK (a forum for interest groups to promote consensus decision-making about water supplies around the Heretaunga Plains), and says “We have some confidence in the big picture, but more’s needed in the detail at the sub-catchment level – the linkages between ground water and surface water, for example. Before we give our recommendation to Council, we think Hawke’s Bay needs a better hydrological model for monitoring water.” While he acknowledges there are localised seasonal effects that need managing, and agrees the precautionary principle should apply, he sees nothing to suggest significant concern for the aquifer itself. Harding does, however, question what Hawke’s Bay will really gain from exporting water, and believes we need to look at the way we allocate our resource, making judgements based on what’s good for the region socially, culturally and economically.
H
astings Mayor, Lawrence Yule, says he’s only aware of one consent for bottling water, and that’s at the old Tomoana Works. “We supported it at the Hastings District Council on the basis of 100 jobs being created. I don’t have the perspective on the volumes of water, but we were told by Regional Council there was lots of water, the existing bore was wellsituated, and that 80% of the water goes out to sea anyway.” Yule has always seen it as a “complementary use – if there’s surplus, why not extract it – but there’s no way I’d ever promote a whole-scale water-bottling scheme.” He sees that “Ultimately we need a policy around this. Under current New Zealand law, the policy of any natural resource really is ‘first in, first served’, and with water, priority is only
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“Let’s have a cup of tea, take a bit of a break, and get our heads round this. Once you provide a consent it’s very hard to withdraw it.” JERF VAN BEEK
“We don’t want to stifle economic development, but it needs to be sustainable, and it can only be sustainable if it’s measurable. That’s why we’ve partnered with HBRC to find out more.” really given to drinking, everything else is considered commercial. Clearly this needs to be revisited.” Jerf van Beek, from HB Fruitgrowers’ Association and the Twyford Irrigation Group (TIG), suggests: “Let’s have a cup of tea, take a bit of a break, and get our heads round this. Once you provide a consent it’s very hard to withdraw it.” While he’s confident there’s plenty of water, he doesn’t believe we understand the aquifer enough. “We don’t want to stifle economic development, but it needs to be sustainable, and it can only be sustainable if it’s measurable. That’s why we’ve partnered with HBRC to find out more.” The Fruitgrowers’ Association has sunk a 123 metre well (deep for Hawke’s Bay) expressly to research such things as connectivity between river flows and
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ground water levels: “We advocate the use of actual data gathering rather than desktop modelling.” Asked how the water-bottling consents compare with growers’ takes, van Beek explains that water use is “overallocated” to growers to ensure adequate supply but rarely made good on in reality. Last summer, Twyford growers used only 23% of their water allocation. “The difference is, we only use water if we require it – our use is either climatic or crop-stage driven, whereas a bottling plant’s use is entirely market driven. It’s not responsive to the environment or seasons and there are no restrictions at all within the allocated amount.” There is a concerted effort by TIG to be more efficient and responsible with water. “We are working on putting a global consent together [for the Twyford area] to ensure Community concerned about water bottling
safe, sustainable and competent water access,” says van Beek. “By stockpiling all our water we can budget amongst ourselves as to who can use water and when, based on need.” Surplus water can then be fed into rivers and streams, regulating temperature and volume and ensuring their health, along with increased efforts to plant up banks with riparian vegetation to cool waterways. Van Beek can’t see the water-bottle industry taking such a stewardship role. “People need to understand how important horticulture is for our region – what it can do in terms of jobs, economic returns per hectare and carbon footprint. A bottling plant will simply take the water and ship it off with very little value-add, whereas we use it for growing produce to feed New Zealand and the world.” From a holistic point of view, he believes this is a far better use of our precious resource.
This year we’re getting together Ben Walker, Taradale
, Hastings
and Diane Thompson
This year you will be asked to make the biggest decision in the history of Hawke’s Bay.
BETTER TOGETHER
SAY
YES
It’s time for Hawke’s Bay to get together for a better and brighter future. Say YES for . . . One regional plan A stronger voice nationally Less council ‘red tape’ and duplication Making the most of our resources A better place to live The Hastings District Council supports the reorganisation of the region’s councils. We believe that a single council will enable the region to seize the opportunity provided by scale and cohesion. We’re better together!
Visit www.hbtogether.co.nz
District Health Board Sounds Alarm ... STORY JESSICA SOUTAR BARRON PHOTOGRAPHS SARAH CATES
So What Now?
DHB’s Dr Caroline McElnay, director of population health, and chief executive Dr Kevin Snee “We can’t do it all by ourselves”.
“Whanau Ora is not a new concept. In many cultures it is just the way they raise their families.” AUDREY ROBIN
Our DHB recently released a report on Health Equity in Hawke’s Bay, or the lack of it. The cover depicts the crowd at a Magpies game. There’s a lot of laughing, clapping, some drinking, a fist pump, a few kids. The strapline says “We have all got a role to play.” Of the one hundred people in the photo there’s about five brown faces. They look impassive, drawn, waiting to see what will happen next. It’s a fitting picture. In Hawke’s Bay your health is determined by where you live, how much you earn and what colour you are. Maori are six times more likely to die of lung cancer than nonMaori. Nearly half of all pregnant Maori women smoke. One in every two Maori adults is obese. The rates of hazardous drinking in Maori are twice that of nonMaori. Maori die eight years earlier than non-Maori. One quarter of Maori and Pasifika die before they turn 50. It’s not a stretch to call these ‘third world’ health statistics. But before white folks tune out, the prognosis is not great for them either. Hawke’s Bay in general is fat, lazy, intoxicated and has far too many bad habits. Compared to NZ averages we have more people dying younger, more mental health issues, more smokers, more drinkers, more teen pregnancies and fewer people who are physically
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active. We should eat three servings of vegetables a day; we eat two (same as the rest of NZ). Health Equity is a valuable, much-needed statement of the problem. However, it is far from a blueprint of solutions.
“There’s quite a lot of good community leadership in Hawke’s Bay; it just needs to be harnessed to a common purpose. And it’s that common purpose we lack.” Focus on family The DHB is now convening an interagency working party to come up with a plan. To turn these figures around there must be serious conversations across our councils, police, Health Hawke’s Bay (who look after GPs), education providers, social agencies, business and employees, iwi and the communities themselves.
George Reedy is one year into his role as chief executive of Te Taiwhenua O Heretaunga (TTOH), who facilitate wellbeing and social programmes for Ngati Kahungunu. He sees three things as integral ‘fixes’ to the health picture. “Income is number one,” says Reedy. “Everyone deserves to have the opportunity to develop abilities to get an income.” “Number two is we need education for our youth, and that has to be a focus from the community. We need to support them to support themselves. Three, we need a whanau-focused approach to services.” One such approach is Whanau Ora, which wraps a number of services around the needs of the whole family rather than particular individuals. It also works with whanau and with hapu (wider family groups) to develop plans based on a family’s aspirations rather than its ills. Whanau Ora contracts have been around now for four years. Many of the contracts come up for renewal every three years with no guarantees the relationship between the Ministry of Health, the service provider and the client will continue. This is despite the fact that many families need ongoing support on a variety of levels for far longer than the three-year contract period allows. Te Kupenga Hauora Ahuriri holds a number of Whanau Ora contracts. It is a registered charitable trust based in Napier providing health and social
Hastings City Markets Hastings is the place to be this Summer! As well as an abundance of great boutique shops and chain stores lining the tree-lined boulevards, there are two fabulous markets to visit.
Hastings City Night Market The Hastings City Night Market has had a roaring start to the season. The weekly evening market runs every Thursday from 5-9pm in the city centre by the fountain. A coming together of local colour including an exciting mix of ethnic street food - perfect for grabbing dinner on the fly, rounding off an evening of shopping or fuelling up pre-cinema. Arts & Crafts stalls and non-stop free live entertainment makes for a fabulous night out for the whole family and the perfect place to meet up with friends.
Hastings City Growers Market This Saturday morning market will really appeal to families looking for fresh, healthy food options that won’t break the bank. The market brings together an eclectic mix of local growers who grow or produce food in Hawke’s Bay. Stallholders range from small growers with a single seasonal product such as mandarins, to trucks with a variety of fruit and vegetables. Live chickens, seeds and grow your own planter boxes, breads, fresh meat and flowers are just some of the fabulous produce on sale at the market. Fuel up on coffee and breakfast whilst stocking up your pantry with fresh, affordable produce at this bustling community market, delivering an all-round enjoyable Saturday morning shopping experience.
Tel: 06 876 9093 - www.hastingscitymarkets.co.nz
“The difficulty the health service has in applying a whanauoriented service is they are accountable to the Ministry of Health.” PATRICK LE GEYT
services across Hawke’s Bay. “Whanau Ora is not a new concept,” explains Audrey Robin, CEO of TKH. “In many cultures it is just the way they raise their families.” “But we have taken the value out of the concept because of the way the government delivers services, their silo approach.” One of the major disadvantages of the contract model TKH works with is it is very prescribed and specific. “Rather than the DHB saying, ‘These are the results we want to see, we want them in a year, and here’s some resources to do it’, they say ‘Do it like this’, and they do it in bits and pieces,” Robin explains. Robin would like to see the DHB working closer with communities to find out what their aspirations are before rolling out health promotions. “But I don’t think it’ll happen. I think they’ll come up with something themselves.”
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Rob Ewers is a nurse and the service manager at Central Health in Waipukurau. His staff work across Central Hawke’s Bay and have hands-on experience of how a whanau/community-owned solution can have real pay back. (One of the
“We can’t sit back and throw stones and blame everyone else, we have to roll up our sleeves and find a way to contribute.” communities he works in is Porangahau, whose story is highlighted as an adjunct to this article.) Ewers explains he is sceptical of health campaigns that fail to take into
account the needs and aspirations of the people themselves. “As health promoters and providers we’ve always got a good idea. But if people have not actually asked for it then they won’t be interested and it won’t work,” he says. “We have to find the things that ring their bells and work with that. But it is far quicker and more comfortable to sit around with work mates and come up with ideas you all think are great. It is more messy, difficult and time consuming to go out into the community and find out what is really needed from the people themselves.” Rob Ewers describes Central Health as designed for Maori but open to all ethnicities. He says there is mistrust of a western health model in many communities he works with. “There are trust issues; you tell
“Income is number one. Everyone deserves to have the opportunity to develop abilities to get an income.” GEORGE REEDY
them they need it, they don’t believe you. They don’t feel it works for them. They say ‘I don’t want to come to your surgery, I don’t want to do it like that, so I won’t bother.’ We need to find out how they do want to do it,” he says.
The problem with ‘solutions’ George Reedy, CEO of TTOH, would like to see buy-in from as many parts of the community as possible, and knows turning things around will take many agencies working in unison. “This report should be a wake-up call for Hawke’s Bay. It’s such a complex issue, so complex that attempts to address it have failed. There’s no particular one point you can look at and begin to fix,” he says. Patrick Le Geyt is General Manager of Health at TTOH, which has an onsite general practice clinic. “The difficulty the health service has
in applying a whanau-oriented service is they are accountable to the Ministry of Health, who have packaged a whole range of indicators into different services rather than integrating them. It’s tied to the financial model.” “There needs to be a translation system that works for family,” Le Geyt explains. “We need to translate the way government does things into a format that works for people and their families, into a delivery method whanau will respond to.” Le Geyt also knows it is the protective factors that should be the focus alongside the risk factors. “Our patriarchs, our matriarchs. Good diet. Parenting. Education. Good healthy relationships. If New Zealand doesn’t start bringing back the sense of community to our neighbourhoods then we’re in real trouble.”
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“Number two is we need education for our youth, and that has to be a focus from the community. We need to support them to support themselves. Three, we need a whanau-focused approach to services.” Ownership from across the community is a call put out by the DHB too. “It’s only an insurmountable problem if it’s left to one or two people or one or two organisations to fix,” says Dr Kevin Snee, chief executive officer of the HBDHB. “There’s quite a lot of good community leadership in Hawke’s Bay; it just needs to be harnessed to a common purpose.
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“The children are the cause of our greatest concern but it is the whole family we help. We find ways to provide the additional support a family may require so children can grow in a safe and nurturing environment.”
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And it’s that common purpose we lack.” “We need to move away from being very parochial and just focusing on one bit of our community,” agrees Kevin Snee. “We need to start thinking what can we do as a community of Hawke’s Bay, as a region … because it’s a problem that goes from one end of Hawke’s Bay to the other.” Dr Caroline McElnay is the DHB’s director of population health and the author of the Health Equity report. She knows that the solutions are complex and that many of the factors of inequity are outside the health board’s remit. “There’s a whole lot of factors that influence health and we tend to assume that a health issue is automatically for the health board to fix,” she explains. “Essentially we are a treatment facility, but once you start looking at prevention you have to look at all those other factors that influence health. That’s where you start looking at education, employment, the social connectedness of the communities. Everyone’s got a role to play, it’s not just one organisation, or one agency.” George Reedy is vocal in linking poor health outcomes for Maori to housing and jobs. He also blames a Euro-centric model of treatment. “The big issue is we’re looking at health in isolation rather than looking at the whole needs of individuals and whanau,” he says. “We’ve put a bandaid on what is out there. It’s a western medical model. It works while you’re in the care of the hospital, but once people leave they fall back into unhealthy lifestyles.” Caroline McElnay sees virtue too in a whole of whanau approach. “Looking at the needs of families and then trying to meet those needs on their terms is vital,” says McElnay. In many cases one whanau has a number of interwoven issues that are being overseen by a multitude of service providers. “Often it is the same 10% we are addressing the needs of, but we are addressing them as separate organisations. If we put all our information together it’s the same families that we’re seeing, the police, MSD.” McElnay wonders: “If we’re working in a cross-agency way, then we’ll be thinking, ‘How can we work with other agencies to
address that need?’ rather than, ‘What is my institutional response?’” One of the issues that has fallen out of institutional response is MoH contracts. These are let and managed in short bursts with no guarantee of renewal, and they are let for specific services rather than in support of an holistic approach. This means that an on-the-ground health worker may visit a client for one specific reason and although they may then recognise a range of issues in the home it is not within their remit, ability or resource to help. (In many cases they do anyway because, more than anyone, they are acutely aware of the situation and the ramifications if no support is available.) This also means that some clients can be visited by a number of agencies in a single week, sometimes up to thirty agencies could be involved with one family. TKH is one of a few on-the-ground services that have established strong relationships with the families they work so closely with. “We have the ability to get into houses because of the trust and rapport we have built up together,” explains Chief Executive Audrey Robins. “The children are the cause of our greatest concern but it is the whole family we help. We find ways to provide the additional support a family may require so children can grow in a safe and nurturing environment.” The DHB do meet with TKH regularly but it’s not often with additional support and resource. “They come and tell us they won’t be renewing our contracts, that they’ll be delivering the services themselves, then they take our staff. Staff we have trained, and worked with for years.” “The DHB culture is changing though. They are moving away from counting widgets, away from outputs and towards outcomes. But they do need to be brave enough to invest in change,” says Robin.
Daunting scale As much as the Health Equity report is a watch-dog document, it is also a kick-starter and a call to action. Kevin Snee explains: “When you put it all on the table, even some people who are quite senior are surprised about the level and the extremes and the scale of the problem that we need to tackle. This report is about raising consciousness that there is a problem that needs to be solved.” Bringing people together to begin solving those problems is also part of the DHB’s role. “We’ve been instrumental in pulling together local agencies, local territorial authorities, the police, TPK, MSD, Business
“Our approach has to be focused on prevention and early intervention over treatment ... we need to ensure messages are being delivered in a way people understand and feel comfortable with.” HB, just to look at what are the things we need to do as a group to help improve the lot of local communities,” Snee says.
From talk to action Shifting the focus from ‘all talk’ to ‘more do’ should happen in 2015. But it remains to be seen whether an ambitious, punchy, actionable plan – commensurate to the problem – will emerge. George Reedy believes much of the solution lies with Maori themselves. “Sometimes we don’t need you to solve things for us. Sometimes we just need you to get out of our sunlight and let us solve it ourselves.” TTOH general manager of health Patrick Le Geyt agrees: “I do have faith in the DHB,” says Le Geyt who sits on the DHB’s Maori relationship board. “We can’t sit back and throw stones and blame everyone else, we have to roll up our sleeves and find a way to contribute.” “Our approach has to be focused on prevention and early intervention over treatment. There is also a need for people to become literate and responsible for their own health. We need to ensure messages are being delivered in a way people understand and feel comfortable with.” Grand vision needs to be replaced by practical tactics. George Reedy: “You can have the policies but it needs to meet the ground. We need to be talking to people out in the field. Whanau have told us they hate bureaucracy, but at least we come with the right approach.” Kevin Snee promises plan attack in 2015.
He too recognises that the way forward cannot be paved with good intentions. “You can all get together and have a nice conversation and feel good about how we all think it’s a terrible problem and we need to do something, then go away with a warm glow. But (a solution) takes commitment and hard action and hard work, and that’s a challenge for other agencies and the broader community,” he says.”We need to be clear about the actions we need to take, that they are well managed and well monitored.” Accountability is something Snee is acutely aware of: “How are we going to stand up in front of the community and say, ‘This is what we said we’d deliver and we have’, in one year, two years, three years time?” A multiagency meeting took place in mid December and a preliminary way-forward will be decided in the first half of 2015. Dr McElnay says although the DHB will lead the march, actions need to be owned and rolled out by as many agencies as possible and also by members of the business and philanthropic communities. “It will be a plan to start and it’ll evolve as we go along,” she says. “We’ll make our full contribution, but we can’t do it all by ourselves.” Patrick Le Geyt knows there is a lot of work ahead of Hawke’s Bay to turn health equity statistics around but he is optimistic changes can happen. “We need a cohesive community working in unison and involving people. It’s no good dreaming up ideas, we need to ask the community. We have to engage opinion leaders and go neighbourhood by neighbourhood” He congratulates the DHB for publishing the report. “But a report is just a report, it’s the action that happens next where the magic really lies,” he says. Note: Local film maker Kathleen Mantel has made a terrific documentary on Whanau Ora in Hawke’s Bay. It screened on Maori Television in late October 2014 and can be viewed online at http://bit.ly/1vDuA3g.
Unheathy Symptoms Top causes of preventable premature death in Hawke’s Bay: ischaemic heart disease (reduced blood supply to the heart), diabetes, lung cancer, road traffic injuries, suicide, breast and bowel cancer. Smoking • 46% of Maori pregnant women smoke compared to 11% of non-Maori. • Maori are six times more likely to die of lung cancer.
Drinking • One in four adults in HB is a hazardous drinker – Maori rates are twice that of non-Maori. • 24% of Hawke’s Bay adults are hazardous drinkers. The NZ average is 15%. • 58.9% of Maori men are hazardous drinkers compared to 26.3% of non-Maori; 33.7% of Maori women are hazardous drinkers compared to 11.1% of non-Maori women.
Obesity • One in three adults is obese. One in two Maori adults and two in three Pasifika adults. • 43% of Hawke’s Bay adults do 30 minutes of exercise a day compared to 53% across New Zealand.
Mortality • 77% of Maori die before the age of 75 (compared to 39% of all deaths). • 25% of Maori die before the age of 50 (compared to 5% of all deaths). • Rates of death from ischaemic heart disease are four times higher in Maori than non-Maori. • Rates of death from lung cancer are six times higher in Maori than non-Maori. • Rates of death from diabetes are four times higher in Maori than non-Maori.
Other • Teenage pregnancy rates are higher than the national average and three times higher in Maori than in non-Maori. • 65% of Hawke’s Bay adults (84% of Maori) never visit a dental health worker or only visit for toothache. • Avoidable hospital admissions for Maori are twice that of non-Maori. • The rate of serious assaults resulting in injury in HB is twice the NZ average. • 20% of adults in Hawke’s Bay have suffered from mental health issues compared to 16% across NZ.
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Porangahau-ora Winner of the 2014 HBDHB ‘Commitment to Reducing Inequities’ Award waka ama, without those kinds of people you can’t make it work.” Porangahau identified six priority needs: a community garden, waka ama, a kaumatua group, a nurse-led clinic at the school, a community nurse clinic and a school kitchen. All six have come to fruition. There’s a waka ama group with all members also now engaged in other physical activities. The community garden is 235 square metres in the middle of town and accessed by over one hundred people. Education programmes are also run out of the space. From 50 nurse consults in 2011/12 there are now over 200 a year. Cervical, cardio vascular and mammogram screening numbers have all improved. The school kitchen has gone from offering a once weekly cooking class for older students to being used by every student for every school meal. Students can access the kitchen whenever they need it and often take leftovers home for tea.
At the southernmost point of Hawke’s Bay, on the edge of the ocean, sits the tiny settlement of Porangahau, a village of about 100 houses and 240 people. The population is 58.3% Maori and 20% speak te reo (compared to 6.9% across Hawke’s Bay). 47% of adults have no formal qualification (31% across HB). The median income is $19,000 and 7% of adults are unemployed. There are about 50 kids and 27 over age 65s. In the last three years huge changes have happened in Porangahau, thanks to a collaborative, whanau-focused, communityowned health programme. It ticks all the boxes and although it’s small there may be some lessons to learn for our bigger towns. Central Health has led the initiatives, but three quarters of the Porangahau community are actively involved. The aims, set three years ago, were clear: reduce health inequalities, improve access to health services, and improve the overall health of the Porangahau population. Now, the community is seeing real changes in their own wellbeing, and the programmes initiated have been done in a self-sustaining way so the benefits are set to be realised for many years to come.
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Central Health has been delivering services to Porangahau for many years, but with little traction. In 2011 they began making big changes to the way they do things. The emphasis became collaboration across disciplines. Services are now delivered in partnership with the community and built on the strengths of the people involved. Rather than focusing solely on treatment, Central Health looks at the holistic wellbeing of individuals and families from what they eat and how they exercise, to how their health is monitored. Central Health began with a series of hui asking Porangahau residents what they needed to improve their health. “The critical component is identifying people in the community who are leaders, who have a vision for the community,” explains Central Health’s Rob Ewers. “At Porangahau Doug Hales, the principal of the school, was already very driven and had a vision for a school kitchen. All we needed to do was support, facilitate and find a little bit of money. Same with Kim Steffert at the community garden and Piri Galbraith with
The kaumatua group runs regular nurse clinics, tai chi and other activities. When the project began in 2011 Central Health and the Porangahau Community couldn’t have dreamed of a more positive outcome. Rob Ewers explains, “Our initial response was one of ‘maybe we’ve bitten off more than we can chew’. But we’ve been able to establish and sustain a community-wide initiative that has had a major impact on everyone.” Along the way Porangahau has been asked its views and what it needs to keep its people healthy. There have been vaccination clinics, women’s health days, installation of a basketball court, a youth sexual health clinic, mental health workshops and an alcohol and drug clinic. Rob Ewers: “If we can work with whanau to help them set goals based on their own aspirations, then work together with them to achieve those, we are likely to see a much greater level of engagement and success.” The conversation between provider and community continues, for the good of both. As a microcosm for the positives that can happen when policies and plans are translated into practical solutions, Porangahau is a real winner.
FROM COUNTRY TO COAST TO CITY Owners, Marianne & Peter Poszeluk established JARKs Surfside Café & Bar at Waimarama Beach some 7 years ago. “It’s been hard work but fun” says Marianne “but the location means it is somewhat seasonal, and though we have a group of loyal customers we often felt underutilised”. With most trade coming in the week end and summer period they decided it was time to take what they had learned in Waimarama and put it to play in the City. Our customers have always been a great mix of locals, city, rural, young, old, couples and groups. The bikers love a ride to the coast and that road gives them the challenge they so enjoy. More and more batch owners pay us visits now as they love the fact they can get quality food and service while relaxing at their favourite weekend get away. Tradies are not an unusual site these days with so much development in Waimarama we often see them for a quick beer or coffee before heading home. JARKs Cityside has offered us a new challenge again, though an existing business the previous owners had left under difficult circumstances, the temporary manager was fantastic and had really set the improvements underway, particularly in the bar, but we couldn’t wait to get in and make the changes we needed to get the restaurant humming and restore the trust in the customers, many of which had left . Simple food served with Style …and as we tell the staff, good manners & smiles. Back to the basics of hospitality, make them feel like you are hosting them in your home, and remember one visit is easy, getting them to want to recommend us to their friends and want to return is true success.
2252 WAIMARAMA ROAD, WAIMARAMA 06 874 6550
118 MARAEKAKAHO ROAD, HASTINGS 06 870 8333
At Risk of Extinction STORY BRIDGET FREEMAN-ROCK
Over the last 150 years we’ve cleared 77% of our native vegetation, lost 98% of our freshwater wetlands, and approximately half of all our indigenous species are either threatened or at risk of extinction. So concludes a recent stocktake of Hawke’s Bay’s biological diversity. Despite celebrated conservation projects and steady unfêted efforts across the region to halt this decline, it’s clear we must do better. And among the different environmental agencies and interest groups, there’s optimistic hope that with better coordination and collaboration, we can. The Hawke’s Bay Biodiversity Strategy (to be finalised in February) is a 35-year plan to ensure our important habitats and populations of native species are “enhanced, healthy and functioning” by 2050 – a vision that aligns with the international Convention on Biological Diversity ratified by New Zealand in 1993. The strategy recognises that biodiversity is essential for bringing greater resilience to our ecosystems, and ultimately vital for our own survival. Its key objectives: to sustain, protect and improve native habitats and ecosystem services (such as pollination, nutrient cycling and water filtration) and to grow our native species; to integrate Maori values and kaitiakitanga; to develop effective partnerships; and to actively engage the community.
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It’s a non-statutory, ‘living document’, that tells us what we have and where we’re going, with the flexibility to accommodate divergent pathways, levels of involvement, and a fluid situation as we learn and adapt to new knowledge. While Hawke’s Bay Regional Council has facilitated and resourced the development of the strategy and accompanying
“A lot of really good biodiversity work has been done in Hawke’s Bay, but there’s value in providing a more structured approach.” Biodiversity Inventory, Tim Sharp, strategic policy advisor for HBRC, emphasises that it’s been community instigated and a “collective-thinking process”, with diverse representation and input from environmental agencies and community groups, iwi, councils, government and
industry. “It’s a community strategy, a signal of intent from everyone involved.” After two years of round-table discussions, Des Ratima (Te Roopu Kaitiaki O Te Wai Maori) declares, “We are all in the same waka, paddling in the same direction, and that’s a huge achievement in itself.” To get a feel for what this strategy might mean for Hawke’s Bay, I spoke with some of those most passionately involved in biodiversity protection, to ask what hopes and cautions they hold for it.
Identifying the knowledge gaps John Cheyne has been working professionally in conservation for 47 years and was the first Hawke’s Bay manager of DOC in 1987. He is part of Nga Mahi Te Taiao, an informal forum for conservation groups to coordinate their efforts and act as a conduit of information; they’ve been pushing for a biodiversity strategy for years. “A lot of really good biodiversity work has been done in Hawke’s Bay, but there’s value in providing a more structured approach.” An important outcome of the strategy
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John Cheyne, 47 years in conservation and key mover in getting biodiversity on the HBRC agenda.
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Dead villains.
Hawke’s Bay Green (Barking) Gecko and Fernbird (right) are ‘At Risk’ species.
Photo Courtesy of Rod Dickson
already has been the collating of all existent information on biodiversity in the region, which has shown up the knowledge gaps. For instance, Hawke’s Bay is of national importance in terms of its near-shore creatures, such as crabs and starfish, and hosts many migratory marine mammals at certain times of the year. Other than commercial catch data that shows a decline in numbers of fish caught, next to nothing is known about the state of our marine fish, mammals or invertebrate communities. Cheyne is passionate about freshwater wetlands, and believes their plight makes them a top priority for protection. While there are some huge challenges, he sees these as “exciting times”, and points to two great examples of work done so far: the restoration of Pekapeka Wetland and Whakaki Lake (north of Wairoa). Protecting biodiversity is not built around one issue, but a combination of factors, and wetlands are a case in point: “There’s been fantastic work at Whakaki over the last 20 years: retiring lake shores, massive planting, weed and pest control. This has been achieved largely by Maori landowners with financial support from regional council and Nga Whenua Rahui.” While Cheyne is wary of over-emphasising iconic species and projects (although these are “great for lifting people’s awareness”), he sees a real advantage in using flagship species such as bittern, which are rarer in
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Photo Courtesy of Rod Dickson
Hawke’s Bay than kiwi and blue duck: “If you look after the bittern, you look after most wetland birds.” Cheyne believes that in order to realise the strategy objectives, “There’s going to have to be substantial resourcing, and it’s going to take much more than private landowners and volunteers – volunteers are great, but they’re no substitute for the statutory responsibilities of agencies such as DOC. This requires funding from central government.” Cheyne says, “It’s important that the strategy is not cumbersome, and that it provides involvement at different levels, but I’m holding out a lot of hope for it, I really am.”
More birds, more happiness Vaughan Cooper (Forest & Bird) believes the greatest thing to overcome is the fragmentation of resources, species, and labour, which the strategy should help address. Forest & Bird have partnered with
other organisations, such as HBRC, in the past – “with Poukawa Stream, they provided the trees and our volunteers put them in the ground” – and Cooper sees the strategy as a continuation of this partnership concept. It also represents a shift in thinking “from one tree at a time, to one site at a time.” He suggests it could even increase our position on the happiness index, proportionate to the increase in bush and birds: “I think in the longer term we’re going to see people far more satisfied with their environment and enjoying it more. As an analogy, you’ve just got to look out and see how many people are using the cycle ways now and yet they were never participants before. So the community is going to benefit in ways that we never thought about, and that’s exciting.” The biggest concern Cooper has, is that with such a long-term focus and less immediate tangible gains, the enthusiasm to build on it won’t carry through.
“I think in the longer term we’re going to see people far more satisfied with their environment and enjoying it more. As an analogy, you’ve just got to look out and see how many people are using the cycle ways now and yet they were never participants before.”
Open space covenants Troy Duncan is the Hawke’s Bay rep for the Queen Elizabeth II National Trust (QE II), which partners with private landowners to protect special land features for perpetuity, such as Maori middens or forest remnants, through open space covenants. There are about 250 registered in Hawke’s Bay, with a gradual increase of 3-4 on average per year. Te Mata Park has a QE II covenant. In Hawke’s Bay 40% of our native forest remnants are on private land, along with two thirds of our remaining freshwater wetlands, so significant gains in biodiversity protection will depend on such partnerships. “In Hawke’s Bay we’re fortunate that HBRC has been contributing to this, so the cost of establishing a covenant (principally, fencing) is split three ways. But a covenant is quite a responsibility; it has to be feasible – farmers have to see a reason for doing the work. “The biggest limiting factor is the genuine offering of private land, which is where most of the ‘good stuff’ is. We have to generate the interest in it, otherwise the strategy will be like trying to have a game of rugby without a rugby ball. Organisations can collaborate all they like but if they haven’t got land to work on it’s a zero game.” Duncan hopes the strategy will bring greater understanding between rural and urban communities (he sees some mutual suspicion and misconceptions), and that more good news stories will be told to acknowledge the work that’s already happening, “those who’ve been swimming against the tide, quietly getting on with it.” With the biodiversity strategy, as with the QE II model, the work done won’t all be on display. Lots of it will be on private land or on land that’s not openly accessible to the public. Duncan sees a risk of “getting sucked in to the big, sexy projects” at the cost of these smaller, less visible ones, or “over-promising, taking on too much. We have to be realistic about our capacity. This is a long-haul project; we can’t afford to burn out.”
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“One of the appealing aspects about the strategy is that it’s not legislative, but then you can’t legislate for biodiversity because creatures are not confined to property boundaries. It’s more a philosophical, ethical issue: people have to want to come on board. A challenge for many is that the value of land is so high.”
Photo by Sarah Cates
Biodiversity advocates: Brett Gilmore, Des Ratima, Vaughan Cooper, Joyce-Anne Raihania, Tim Sharp
At the landscape level
Engaging new audiences
Brett Gilmore (Hawke’s Bay Forestry) says, “When you plant a forest, you plant for a minimum of 30 years – that’s 10 election cycles and about 20 changes to the RMA, so we’re already thinking on a wider span than most.” From a management perspective, “to maintain returns on productive land you need to build resilience, and biodiversity’s one of your metrics for that.” So pest control, for instance, has been a big part of most forestry practice for years. In Hawke’s Bay, forests have been planted exclusively on regenerating farmland, which has left fingers of secondary native bush in the deep incisored gullies. Gilmore estimates, “there’s roughly 11,000 ha of indigenous forest within plantation forests in Hawke’s Bay, so in many ways, we’re one of the largest private sectors that hold huge quantities of native bush.” Gilmore says there are some outstanding examples of conservation and environmental management on farmforestry blocks, and that boundaries between the different land-use provide for rich biodiversity. The key is to link these across the productive environment. The strategy enables knowledge to be shared, and ideas to be seeded within different organisations, which is a big win, in Gilmore’s view. But “the real opportunity is this landscape-level dealing with problems”, such as goat control, possums, noxious plants and mustelids. “One of the appealing aspects about the strategy is that it’s not legislative, but then you can’t legislate for biodiversity because creatures are not confined to property boundaries. It’s more a philosophical, ethical issue: people have to want to come on board. A challenge for many is that the value of land is so high. We need to be realistic about expectations.”
Personally, Joyce-Anne Raihania (Department of Conservation) will be signing up to the Biodiversity Accord because she wants to ensure a healthy future for her prospective mokopuna. Professionally, “Biodiversity is core business for DOC; it’s our job to maintain our taonga, be it animals, birds or plants. DOC celebrates HB’s Biodiversity Strategy, as it’s clear its objectives, which align directly with our own, will assist us in bringing new people on board to help grow our native species and ensure a culture of ecological change. “We know that when individuals and communities understand the need for biodiversity, this forms the fabric of their lifestyles and practices. The strategy allows us to think of those audiences we’ve never engaged; it provides opportunities for dialogue.”
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Enhancing both Maori and Pakeha views Des Ratima points out that Treaty settlement groups will play a crucial role in the region, with nine local claims to be settled by 2016. This will see millions of dollars returned to iwi, along with large forestry blocks and farmland. The largest settlement group, He Toa Takitini (Heretaunga-Tamatea), hope to settle theirs next year, and have negotiated with the Crown for somewhere in the vicinity of $2 million to help clean up waterways. The strategy will be valuable for ensuring that such efforts are not disjointed and there’s continuity over the years. It’s had to be kept quite generic to be inclusive and to capture a wide range of customary practice, but Ratima says Maori are confident they can work with it going forwards. He sees the strategy as a way of enhancing both Maori and Pakeha views: cultural perspectives and values can complement each other. The history and stories of the area, for example, are part of us all.
At the last of four public hui on the draft strategy in December, Ratima concluded with this message: “What is often missing from these discussions is the recognition of the intrinsic connectivity between people and the environment. Nature gives us tremendous uplift, with healing effects that can ripple out through our relationships and communities. Too often, we don’t regard it for what it actually does – there’s a terrible habit of disconnect when we talk of the environment in terms of figures alone. So fixing it, it’s not just a money problem or a people problem, the work begins with healing our own hearts.”
What next? Responding to the public feedback gathered last December, HBRC senior planner Tim Sharp is aiming for the strategy to be finalised by February. Then all key organisations working on biodiversity will hopefully sign on to a Biodiversity Accord, in each case indicating the commitments or initiatives they will undertake to advance biodiversity in the region. With the Accord in place, supporting organisations can then begin to sort out a more concrete plan of action that identifies priority species and habitats where collective efforts would have greatest value, as well as the broader public education and involvement opportunities that should be implemented. Finally, a Biodiversity Trust will be established in hopes of attracting greater public and private financial resource to support biodiversity enhancement in the region. And of course, the public will have the opportunity to further advise HBRC on its own role in this endeavour when the formal consultation process begins in April/May on the council’s next long term plan (LTP). You can visit the HBRC website (www.hbrc.govt.nz, keyword: biodiversity) to download the HB Biodiversity Inventory and draft HB Biodiversity Strategy.
Islam in Hawke’s Bay STORY MARK SWEET Salaam alay-kum Peace be with you All over the world, at the core of every Muslim community, is the mosque. An elegant hip roofed building in Hastings, originally built for the Church of Christian Science, serves that purpose for the 500 or so Muslims living in Hawke’s Bay. Islam is the fastest growing religion with nearly two billion followers in over 60 countries, comprising 25% of the world’s population. And wherever they may be, Muslims are called to prayers five times a day with the same chant. Allahu Akbar God is Great Ashhadu an la ilaha illa Allah I bear witness that there is no god except the One God. Ashadu anna Muhammadan Rasool Allah I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of God. Testimony of Faith, Shahadah, is the first of the Five Pillars of Islam. Traditionally, the call to prayers is chanted atop a minaret, from which a beckoning voice reaches the most ears, and these high towers, often of exquisite architecture, are a powerful symbol of Muslim devotion in following salaat, prayers, which is second of the Five Pillars of Islam. In Hastings there’s no minaret. The call is made inside the building, and as I discovered when my interview with Baghdad-born Abdul Al-Alansari came
to an end, there’s now an app that alerts devotees via their mobile phones. “In Iraq,” Abdul said, “a town like Havelock would have three or four mosques and Hastings size would have six or seven.” Salaat is built into the fabric of Islamic culture. “You might be having a coffee at a cafe, be at home or work.” But when the call to prayers comes, “You see streams of people walking to the mosques.” Before prayers, ablutions are performed. It was on my third visit that a recent convert from the Cook Islands took me through the ritual. We’d met after prayers on my first visit. When I asked him for an interview he declined, but he said he would point out other people I should speak to.
Overcoming distrust One was a young Maori man elegantly dressed in white and black. I introduced myself, and gave him a copy of the latest BayBuzz. Earlier I had sat with the five members of the mosque committee of five different nationalities, including current secretary, Uzbekistan-born Djavlonbek Kadirov. They said they would consider my request for help in doing a story. I was to return a week later. The Maori Muslim said he didn’t trust reporters because the Hawke’s Bay Today (3 November 2014) article headlined ‘Hawke’s Bay Muslim backs Isis’ misrepresented the opinions of Te Amorangi Kireka-Whanga. “Supporting an Islamic state is not the same as supporting what ISIS are doing,” he said. And he told me Te Amorangi’s family had been hounded by the media, upsetting the children to tears, and
45,000 Muslims live in New Zealand, and that 0.001% of their number can taint the lives of the vast majority of peaceful, lawabiding citizens is more a reflection of the hysteria whipped up by the media, than the reality of any threat. distressing everyone. Detectives had visited homes. When I returned for my second visit the elders had made their decision. They would assist me as long as my story wasn’t negative, and they asked I avoid politics, but that request was implausible given the current situation. The war in Syria and Iraq against ISIS has reached New Zealand, and the Government says 30 to 40 Muslim Kiwis are on a watch list of radical sympathisers, requiring emergency legislation – Countering Terrorist Fighters Legislation Bill 2014 – to increase the power of the SIS to surveil without warrant. 45,000 Muslims live in New Zealand, and that 0.001% of their number can taint the lives of the vast majority of peaceful, law-abiding citizens is more a reflection of the hysteria whipped up by the media, than the reality of any threat. Malaysian-born Thahirah Jalal was living in London during the 9/11 attacks and she told me, “I got extreme reaction from people. Total strangers were abusive to me. I couldn’t understand how people could be nasty to me when
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Shimul Islam Student, 19, born in Bangladesh
“A lot of boys ask me about being Muslim and I answer as well as I can, and hopefully break the barrier that the media has created between the truth of Islam, and what is portrayed.”
“I guess people just need to be more aware about Islam. It’s about etiquette. Even if your neighbors are not Muslim we are taught to treat them with the utmost respect. If you see they don’t have something and you can help them then you give to them. As neighbours they have rights upon you. Doesn’t matter they aren’t Muslim, you still have to talk to them and care about them. It’s all about brotherhood in our religion. It doesn’t matter who you are or what is your position in society, whether you be poor or rich, I only see someone as better than me when they are more righteous than me; when they are more God-conscious than me. When I know someone has better etiquette than me, then I can say, they are better than me, otherwise we are all equal. It’s not just a Muslim brotherhood. Everyone is brother to everyone in humanity. We have to look at the big picture and it’s not about he’s Muslim and he’s not Muslim. We should all be brothers in humanity and strive for the common goal of peace in all the world.
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A lot of people think woman is subservient (in Islam) but that is not true. The Prophet always consulted women in making decisions, and so it is the same today. The Prophet was asked by a companion, ‘who should I respect most among people’ and the Prophet said ‘your mother’. Then he asked ‘who after that’, and the Prophet said, ‘your mother’. The man asked, ‘who after that’, and the Prophet said for the third time, ‘your mother’.”
they don’t know me.” On the other hand, she said, other people expressed their understanding that the behaviour of 16 radicalized extremists was not a reflection on Islam. Nineteen-year-old Hastings Boys’ High student, Shimul Islam, who was born in Bangladesh said, “A lot of boys ask me about being Muslim and I answer as well as I can, and hopefully break the barrier that the media has created between the truth of Islam, and what is portrayed. I just want everybody to know the truth of Islam and hopefully one day the barriers will be broken.” Egyptian-born Hany reinforced Shimul’s sentiment when he said, “Islam never hurt anyone. People misunderstand Islam. Like the word ‘jihad’. ‘Jihad’ means to fight or struggle with yourself. Inside not outside. You killing what is bad inside you. If you’re stealing, and stop, that is jihad. If you drinking or taking drugs, and stop, that is jihad.”
Ablutions At the Mosque, my Cook Island guide, who goes by the name of Junior, takes me through the ablutions ritual. We sit on low stools in front of a long stainless steel trough with taps fixed to the wall, and he shows me how to first wash the right hand, then the left. Next the forearms up to the elbow, then the head, and neck, and feet. Lastly he cups water in his hand, taking some into his mouth and a little up his nose. Each cleansing is performed three times with each hand. Inside, fifty-plus men form lines. They are facing in a precisely calculated westerly direction which, if you walked, would be the shortest direction to Mecca, the holiest site of Islam. Each man briefly cups his hands behind his ears. Djavlonbek said this gesture meant, “I’m throwing everything away – putting everything behind me – moving everything back in singular devotion to Allah during prayer.”
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Djavlonbeck Kadirov Senior Lecturer in Marketing at EIT, 39, born in Uzbekistan
“My reason for coming was for education and New Zealand is a peaceful and safe country. Now my kids are more Kiwi than Uzbekistan.”
“I grew up under the Russian Communist education system, but Perestroika started in ‘85, and those times were really good. Before that we weren’t allowed to practise our religion. My grandfather would pray and read the Quran but he wasn’t allowed to teach us. If he taught us anything it had to be in secret otherwise he would get into trouble. We weren’t allowed to study the Quran. We didn’t know how to pray. But with Perestroika there was freedom to learn and follow our religion. Things became very liberal, until Gorbachev left office, then many things went back to the old totalitarian system. I came to New Zealand by chance. After I finished my Masters [Salford University, England] I went back and taught marketing in Bukhara. I was always interested to do a doctorate and talking to my professor in the UK, Richard Varey, he said he was coming to New Zealand to teach. He got a professorship at Waikato, and he said you should come. When I got the application form everything was in English and Maori and I assumed Page 56 • Issue 21 • Jan/Feb 2015 • BAY BUZZ
English was the second language and most people would speak Maori. Before I finished my PhD I got a job offer from EIT to teach marketing and now I’m involved in the Masters of Applied Management programme. My reason for coming was for education and New Zealand is a peaceful and safe country. Now my kids are more Kiwi than Uzbekistan. We are the only family from Uzbekistan [in HB] but we don’t feel isolated because we are part of the Muslim community. The Muslim community has become our whanau.”
Somalia-born Farah Abraham leads the prayers, and three times the participants kneel and touch their foreheads to the ground. Outside, Junior introduces me to a Pakistani man, immaculately dressed, with a stern expression on his handsome face. “Why should I talk to you?” he said after I introduced myself. I told him I was interested in Islam and people’s stories, not politics, which wasn’t entirely true. He spotted my duplicity, and said, “I’m not convinced. How can I trust the media?” So I told him how fascinated I was to learn that the black box structure, Ka’aba, which is a core symbol for pilgrims to Mecca, is covering a hut built by Abraham, and his son Ishmael. Hajj, pilgrimage to Mecca, is the fifth Pillar of Islam. “There have been 124,000 prophets,” he said dismissively. But he went on to explain that in Islam, the Quran is the final word of God passed down through Muhammed, who is the last prophet in a lineage that includes all the Old Testament prophets. He named some. Adam, Abraham, Noah, Moses. And after saying each name he said, “Peace be with him.” “And Jesus?” I asked. He frowned. “Yes, Jesus, peace be with him, is a prophet (of Islam).” That Jews, Christians, and Muslims share many of the same prophets and holy sites show they have much in common. But this is not what is played out politically in the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, and the escalating war of West meets East, on the battlefields of Syria and Iraq. As Abdul pointed out, most wars are a fight over resources and trade, and he said, “When it comes to history it just needs a single person to create chaos. It happened in Germany with Hitler, and in Iraq it happened with Saddam, and in Iran with the Ayatollah Khomeini. It was nothing to them to throw all those millions into the fire of war. Same
Ka’aba is the most scared site for pilgrims to Mecca.
with the Americans. It needed someone as crazy as George Bush to invade Afganistan and Iraq.” Certainly, one of the unforeseen chaos’s of the US/UK invasion of Iraq in 2004 was the emergence of Al-Qaeda, which had no presence in Iraq under Saddam. He was loathed by Osama Bin Laden because his Baath party was Communist, and Saddam more atheist than Muslim.
perpetrating violence at home. I witnessed one aspect of police engagement when I was invited to a meeting having no idea they would be
“Supporting an Islamic state is not the same as supporting what ISIS are doing.”
ISIS emerges ISIS was spawned from Al-Qaeda, and now New Zealand has joined the fight to halt their plans to establish an Islamic state, a caliphate, from Syria to the Mediterranean Sea. And our Government is taking measures to monitor and control Kiwi Muslims from joining ISIS, or
there. Five uniformed and two civiliansuited police sat around a table in a pleasant room with comfortable couches and lots of embroidered cushions. And the only thing of interest I heard, before I was told my presence wasn’t wanted, was a conversation about the French satellite
contracted to track passports through their imbedded chip. The hostess of the house, Jameela, was profusely apologetic that I might feel offended. Even more so, she was indignant a policeman told her husband “to hurry up” with showering and changing after his day’s factory work. “He’s the man of the house and they’re our guests,” she said. Her husband, Hany, soon came out of the bathroom. He and Jameela exchanged a knowing look, and Hany said, “I know, I have to bite my lips.” But instead of joining the meeting Hany sat down beside me, and said, “We can talk now.” I first asked about the police, “They come to see how they can help with our local converts,” Hany replied.
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Abdul Al-Ansari Lead radiologist in HBDHB cancer services, 61, born in Iraq
“Yes, there’s great sadness in me about what happened to my country. We were a rich country, not only oil, but agriculture, and our civilization is ancient.”
“I was 27 when I left Iraq in 1979. It was a golden age in my country. I’ve never lived anywhere since that is better than Iraq in the 70s regarding infrastructure and the main provisions, like education and health. Both were free. My basic medical training was in Baghdad and post-graduate study in Dublin, and after working in several cities in Ireland I moved to the UK, and different countries in the Middle East – Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and then came to New Zealand in 1990. Yes, I intended to go back to Iraq but unfortunately by the time I finished studying it was the Iranian-Iraq war. If I’d gone back then I would have had to go to the front line to fight. Then after that war there was the Gulf crisis, and then the invasion. Yes, there’s great sadness in me about what happened to my country. We were a rich country, not only oil, but agriculture, and our civilization is ancient. The Sumerian era was the
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beginning of writing (5000 BC). But because we are such a rich country, empires from the East and West have always fought for control of Iraq – the Romans from the West, Persians and Mongolians from the East, all fighting for this rich piece of land. And it’s still going on. The Americans destroyed the infrastructure in Iraq. Americans are very good at destroying, but not so good at rebuilding. Two million Iraqi police and army were stripped of their jobs, and replaced with what? Iranians now control the streets of Baghdad.”
And for half an hour he told me his story of meeting Jameela in Cairo and marrying, and of coming to New Zealand as a chartered accountant, but finding his qualifications unrecognized, he worked in orchards and processing plants. “A Muslim man will do any sort of work to support their family, except work with alcohol or pork, and of course not sell drugs … we don’t believe in WINZ … men should work.” And he told what being a Muslim meant to him. More people were arriving at the house as we spoke, and I recognised Junior and the young Maori man I’d met at the Mosque among the visitors. When Hany decided it was time he joined the meeting, I stayed and talked with Jameela, and her daughter and niece, all dressed in flowing gowns with covered heads, the familiar dress of Muslim women. Two babies played together on the floor, older children watched TV with the sound turned down, and while the women cooked they told me about the charity they established just over a year ago. “It’s called Bayt Sadaqa or House of the Charity.” Zakaat, support of the needy, is the third of the Five Pillars of Islam. “We get support from FIANZ (Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand) and people donate food and clothes. Look,” Jameela said pointing to racks of neatly hung clothes filling half the room. “And the garage is all taken up. We use a lot of our own resources.” The meeting was running an hour over schedule and the women of the household lamented their food getting cold. A bain-marie especially set up for the occasion didn’t work. But, when at last we all gathered to eat, the feast of six different dishes was superb, especially the Egyptian-style moussaka. One of the police, a high-ranking officer from Wellington, told me the meeting went well, and its purpose was to communicate face-to-face with the Muslim community about their concerns.
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Thahirah Jalal Asset Intelligence Specialist at Unison, 35, born in Malaysia.
“Women are encouraged to cover their heads because they don’t want to be deemed as an object of beauty. It’s about modesty.”
“I like to place myself globally. I’ve got a world-class degree [Masters, Oxford, England; PhD, Canterbury, NZ] and it’s important I work in a world-class company like Unison. They’re leading technology, very forward thinking.” Women are encouraged to cover their heads because they don’t want to be deemed as an object of beauty. It’s about modesty. We only cover in public but not in the home. I have worn hijab since I was a girl so it’s ingrained in my personality. When we marry we don’t have to change our name. There’s no change of ownership. Woman are unique individuals and in Islam it’s the man who gives a dowry to the woman. When Islam was established – we call it Jahilia, the ‘age of ignorance’ – they treated women very badly. It brought shame to have a girl and they buried babies alive. The Prophet gave status to women, and when you read how in some Muslim countries women are oppressed, that’s cultural, to do with that country. It is not Islam.
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When I won [Young Engineer of the Year], obviously judges didn’t see me as a Muslim woman, they see me for my own merits. And in Tokyo [representing New Zealand], I forget the fact of being Muslim. I was just being myself and they elected me as one of their three leaders [from 65 delegates from 32 countries]. Now I’m actively involved with the International Electrotechnical Commission who write standards for the world. In Tokyo there was an African girl but she was representing Norway, and there was a guy from the UK with a different accent. He was Polish. And I think that’s how the world is becoming now, becoming a global community.”
Later, a cop from Napier, whose sweet tooth saw him take second helpings of an enormous strawberry meringue, and sticky coconut pudding, looked around at police and Muslims sharing food and talking, and said, “This would never have happened when I first joined.” And he echoed what the officer from Wellington had said, that Police are working hard at being proactive by reaching out to the different communities for dialogue and cooperation. Before I leave I arrange with Jameela and Hany to return on the weekend. I want to ask them about Ramadan, the fourth Pillar of Islam, which is the month of devotion when Muslims don’t eat or drink from sunrise to sunset. In the meantime another headline in Hawke’s Bay Today (28 November 2014) has the Muslim community in the spotlight again, and Jameela texts to say she can’t meet up; she needs to give time to her family and her health is suffering. Te Amorangi Kireka-Whanga has posted on his Facebook page, and the Today story begins; “A Hawke’s Bay Muslim man is calling on ‘souljahs of Allah’ to make their way to Hastings and join him in forming the Islamic State of Aotearoa.” Maybe the reporter is too young to recognise that ‘souljah’ isn’t a new word for jihadist, but comes from the Bob Marley song ‘Buffalo souljah’, and while Te Amorangi has opinions unpalatable to many, until he breaks the law, he is entitled to express himself as he pleases. And no doubt he is being closely monitored by police. Freedom of speech is a fundamental right of our democracy, and in these unsettled times for our Muslim community, it’s important to remember that the opinions of a few do not represent the vast majority of peaceful followers of Islam in Hawke’s Bay. Salaam alay-kum Peace be with you
2015 is the year we all decide. This year you will be asked to vote on the amalgamation of our five councils into one council representing the whole of Hawke’s Bay. It’s the most important decision you’ll make for the future of your region, your kids, and you. The Hawke’s Bay we all love and care about is failing under the current system. We sit at the bottom, or close to the bottom, of every major economic and social indicator. We are one of the worst performers in health, employment, crime, productivity and household income. Great things will happen with one team working for the benefit of all. ▪ One council, one strong voice, one regional plan. ▪ Less talk and more action in getting things done. ▪ Stronger representation of community interests through Local Boards empowered to make decisions on issues affecting their areas. ▪ Savings of $260 million over 30 years invested back into our region.
It’s time to stop the senseless rivalry and start working together to achieve our real potential.
amalgamatehb.co.nz Authorised by Alastair Mackie, 50 Ossian Street, Napier.
Amalgamate.
Political Buzz
BY TOM BELFORD ILLUSTRATION BRETT MONTEITH PHOTOGRAPH TIM WHITTAKER
POLITICAL BUZZ
What does CHB’s s**t tell us about amalgamation?
Will ‘floating wetlands’ clean CHB’s mess?
This ‘episode’ of Political Buzz focuses on the final reorganization proposal put forward by the Local Government Commission, and features several articles making the case for amalgamation. The advocates are Chris Tremain, former MP; Rebecca Turner, chairman of A Better Hawke’s Bay; Chris Joblin, Wairoa businessman and former councillor; and Di Peteresen, former CHB councillor. But before getting into the proposal itself, it’s timely to consider the latest “$6m Blunder” (as Hawke’s Bay Today headlined) by the Central Hawke’s Bay District Council (CHBDC).
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t’s hard to imagine a more compelling example of the need for amalgamation of the region’s five councils than the debacle over Central Hawke’s Bay’s failing sewage treatment systems. In December, the first – appalling – monitoring results from CHB’s ‘floating wetlands’ sewage treatment system came to the Regional Council. This new system was installed so that CHB could meet tougher environmental standards requiring better clean-up of effluent from Waipawa and Waipukurau sewage systems before discharge into the Tukituki. Mind you, the new standards, which took effect 1 October 2014, were originally issued by the Environment Court back in 2006 (over the opposition of both CHBDC and HBRC). So CHB has had plenty of time to get it right! As CHB weighed its options regarding the clean-up system to adopt, the Regional Council weighed in with a proposal to disperse the effluent on land, which HBRC would purchase and plant in trees, virtually eliminating discharges into the river. So confident was HBRC that CHBDC would accept its wisdom, the Regional Council went ahead – without any formal agreement from CHBDC – and bought the land and planted the trees! But then, literally at the midnight hour, CHBDC announced its decision to opt for ‘floating wetlands’, leaving HBRC holding its … plantings. Now, it turns out, the ‘floating wetlands’ are failing to get the job done. The quantities of E. Coli, ammonium nitrate, and phosphorus being discharged into the Tukituki are vastly over the new limits … by orders of magnitude.
Work is feverishly underway at CHBDC to figure out if the new system can be made to deliver the required results. By the time you are reading this, it’s expected that the December round of monitoring will have found the system still vastly exceeding the limits, putting CHBDC officially in non-compliance status. To which HBRC must respond as ‘enforcer’ of the pollution limits.
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BRC staff say the standards are “non-negotiable”. But beyond that, it’s unclear what actions HBRC might actually take to address the situation. You see, HBRC, with its depth of environmental science and engineering expertise, cannot dictate what measures CHBDC adopts to clean up its s**t. So, what do we have here?
Two councils have different responsibilities with respect to cleaning up sewage entering the Tukituki. Council A, of dubious competence, ignores the advice of, perhaps, better informed Council B … and indeed, gives a two-finger salute to Council B, which has spent a gob of money on land and trees to facilitate a more proven solution. Council B makes the mistake of trusting Council A, instead of getting a commitment in writing. Council A builds a system that winds up non-compliant. When asked to explain by HB Today, the mayor of CHB has ‘no comment’. Council A presumably has trade waste by-laws that require the ‘stuff’ that’s allowed to enter its sewage (and wastewater) system to be properly treated (what’s coming into the ‘floating
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POLITICAL BUZZ
Local Government Commission Proposal Now, it turns out, the ‘floating wetlands’ are failing to get the job done. The quantities of E. Coli, ammonium nitrate, and phosphorus being discharged into the Tukituki are vastly over the new limits … by orders of magnitude.
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wetlands’ system seems to be a key part of the problem). Council B has no authority over those by-laws or their adequacy. Indeed, Council B says, not ‘our’ job to instruct them how to do ‘their’ job. So now Council B does what? Suggest alternatives Council A has no obligation to accept? Fine Council A? Take them to court? If you are unfortunate to live and pay rates in CHB, you are paying for both these councils to sort this out! Surely you’re paying for competing staffs (and councillors). Perhaps for competing
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outside experts. Perhaps for competing lawyers! And meantime, the river remains polluted. A ridiculous situation. In a unitary authority, the alternatives would have been thrashed out internally, with properly resourced expertise, a recommendation brought to the governance level, the public properly consulted by those ultimately responsible, needed funding arranged, and one set of councillors – who could subsequently be held accountable – would make the decision. End of story.
t’s clear that in the case of cleaning up the CHB sewage mess, if the decision on how to get the job done were made originally in this manner, CHB’s effluent would now be getting spread on land under trees. And mind you, if this mess, involving only two players, isn’t cleaned up, what confidence would you have that HBRC would be able to clean up the mess caused by major intensification of farming (with potentially hundreds of farms leaching pollutants) if a dam proceeds? But I digress. Some people naively believe that the Regional Council, left apart from any amalgamation, would be better able to act as a ‘check’ on district councils running amuck and ravaging the environment. But the CHB sewage story reflects a different real world situation, as it exists in Hawke’s Bay today. Responsibilities and decision-making authorities that could be better exercised in one set of hands, with clear accountability, are in multiple hands, with blurred or only partial responsibility, mutual fingerpointing, and weakened accountability. The same kind of discouraging story could be told about any sector in Hawke’s Bay where concerns and needs cross current governance lines – business, sport, arts/creative, tourism, social service NGOs, contractors … you name it. This is the principal reason I support amalgamation. And I’m unapologetic about using the pages of BayBuzz to make the case for readers to consider. In the pages that follow, four fellow supporters of amalgamation make the case as they see it – Chris Tremain and Rebecca Turner from the perspective of leadership and shared purpose; Chris Joblin and Di Petersen from the perspective of how their communities could attain a better future in a unified region.
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POLITICAL BUZZ
I Want To See Change BY CHRIS TREMAIN
Sometimes leadership is about defending the status quo. However, more often than not, leadership is actually about challenging the status quo and pushing new boundaries. More often than not it’s about managing the process of change, it’s about improvement and shaping a vision that people can grasp for a better tomorrow. Often leadership can be extremely lonely. Pushing for change when the majority of people in your work place, your city, your country, don’t want that change, can be daunting, even frightening. The easier road to follow is to say the majority don’t want change, so we’ll stick with the tried and true. During my time as a parliamentarian I faced many of these challenges. The anti-smacking legislation, the seabed and foreshore legislation, and the gay marriage legislation are cases in point. In each of these new laws a significant number of the population were opposed to change, yet we as leaders stuck to our guns, saw that change through, and those changes are now history. Interestingly, the voices of opposition in each of these cases have now proven somewhat inaccurate. Few parents if any (as far as I am aware) have been jailed for smacking their children since the antismacking legislation was passed. We can all still access our beaches since the seabed and foreshore bill was passed. And New Zealand’s moral fibre remains intact since the passing of the gay marriage bill. Some of the most vociferous opposition to change came when Helen Clark announced her Government’s intention to ban smoking in bars and pubs. A majority of the public were opposed. It’s kind of
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laughable now that significant numbers of people (including non-smokers) actually opposed that change. I understand, back in the day, there was an outcry when it was suggested that the Waipukurau Borough would be merged with the Waipawa Borough. There was similar opposition to merging Taradale with Napier and Havelock North with Hastings. No one that I know of is now advocating to reverse these changes.
“While I am Napier born and bred, I have never viewed our province in silos.” Recently I attended a meeting of the Better Hawke’s Bay team who are advocating for the amalgamation of local government across Hawke’s Bay. Many residents oppose the intentions of Better Hawke’s Bay. Given my political colours are pretty clearly nailed to the fence, it was interesting to see the likes of Mike Williams and Anna Lorck at the same meeting. Mike has successfully run three campaigns to win national elections for the Labour Party, so clearly this Better Hawke’s Bay meeting was no political party gathering. In fact the meeting was a gathering of like-minded people advocating for change across Hawke’s Bay in our local government structure. Given the tribal nature of central government politics, I found the meeting extremely refreshing. Most of you will know my own position on local government in our province. I’ve
been advocating for change for years. In fact, before the 2011 election I took out a number of full-page advertisements setting out a new vision for change. At that time I was not fixed on amalgamation, just some lesser form of merged governance. Since then, my thinking has firmed up and I see amalgamation as the best step forward.
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or me the reasons for amalgamation are pretty simple – leadership, vision and implementation. Too often the reasons are painted with the negative economic and social statistics that straddle our province. I’m not going to rehash those statistics here other than to say they are very real and that they need to be addressed. I accept that local government amalgamation will not be the silver bullet to solving these issues, but in my opinion it will take a significant step towards it. No, today I’m not going to focus on statistics. As I began this article I want to focus on leadership and vision. I ask you to now turn your mind to the most successful organisation that you can think of. Any sports team, any government, any NGO, literally any one. Ask yourself … in any of those organisations, did success come from poor leadership, a disjointed vision, and a lack of clear priorities? The chances are that leadership was pivotal to the success of the organisation. No doubt leadership was not the only reason, but I bet you that in most cases it was central to the success. I guarantee you that the leadership of any of these successful organisations did not include five mayors, five chief executives, and fifty-plus councillors sitting
POLITICAL BUZZ
around five different tables trying to debate strategy. In my opinion, a clear vision and a clear set of priorities for Hawke’s Bay is an oxymoron with the current local government structure we have. I don’t blame our elected councillors and mayors. The fact is that they have been elected to represent and defend a small portion of the Hawke’s Bay pie. Until the system is changed and councillors are elected in a system where they are required to represent the whole pie, things just won’t change. The status quo in my opinion is a recipe for stagnation, not only for current generations, but for our grandchildren and great grandchildren.
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o what I really ask you to focus on are the opportunities for our province if we really got our act together, elected ourselves one leader, and one council to give strong representation across our region from Wairoa to CHB. The recent Local Government Commission proposal provides us with a model to do just that. I challenge you to think expansively about the kind of vision we would come up with for the Bay. What would be our shared priorities? Where would we take our region if we were all paddling in the same direction? Over three years ago, I suggested a list of 21 priorities to stimulate discussion. A representative version of that list adjoins this column. Some of the original ideas have already been progressed. I don’t pretend to be the bastion of good ideas so clearly the list needs to be updated and refreshed. A new council would do that, consulting on a much wider basis, including
many fantastic ideas and dropping others. Personally, I’d add a cycle trail from Napier to Gisborne into the mix. No doubt others would oppose this vociferously. Good – that’s democracy in action. The key difference is that, after consultation, a decision would be made by one leadership group, not five, and then we’d get on with the job. I want Hawke’s Bay to be the very best it can be. While I am Napier born and bred, I have never viewed our province in silos, Editor: A Selection from Chris’ 2011 List 1. Working with DOC to create NZ’s largest predator-proof eco-system on the Mahia Peninsula while still allowing existing farming property rights. 2. Changing the HB Power Consumers’ Trust so that dividends can be used for public legacy assets such as swimming pools, theatres and sports facilities. As a first priority we would build an Olympicclass regional swimming pool.
as Napier, Hastings, Wairoa and CHB. I’ve always just seen us as ‘the Bay’! I’ve had businesses across our province, owned property in both our major cities, sent my children to school in both our major towns. For the life of me I can no longer see why we need five separate councils, five CEOs, and fifty-odd councillors to lead us into the future. So, I do want to challenge the local government status quo. I do want to see change. I do want to see a new future for my children and grandchildren across the Bay. 7. Work with central Government to purchase Waipatiki Campground to hold in public hands. Look to similar opportunities at Ocean Beach and Waimarama.
8. Build a Bay-wide network of highly connected innovators, entrepreneurs, artists and exporters to grow an online and face-to-face community which attracts others of this ilk to the Bay. 3. Working with central Government to Encourage these people to start and upgrade State Highway 38 from Rotorua invest in a ‘HB Business Incubator’ and to Wairoa allowing tourist bus access. a ‘HB Venture Capital Fund’ focused on 4. Working with iwi as key investors and the clean/greentech space. DOC to build tourist eco-hotels at Waikaremoana and Morere Hot Springs. 9. Work closely with the Ministry of Fisheries to improve the sustainability 5. Building Maori tourism with an urban of the HB fishery with consideration of marae and concert hotel at Wairoa, additional Marine Reserves. together with replica pa sites at Petane and Otatara. 6. Continue to develop Marine Parade and Art Deco Napier as the “jewels” in our tourism portfolio.
10. Continue to focus on lifting water quality in our rivers and lakes with a special focus on the Tukituki, the Mohaka and Lake Tutira.
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Page 67 • Issue 21 • Jan/Feb 2015 • BAY BUZZ
POLITICAL BUZZ
2015 Hawke’s Bay at the Threshold BY REBECCA TURNER, CHAIRMAN, A BETTER HAWKE’S BAY
tim.co.nz
2015 will be an extremely important year. The time has arrived for Hawke’s Bay to make one of the biggest decisions of a generation, and I’m confident that together we’re going to get it right. The very idea of amalgamating the region’s five councils into one unitary authority has been a highly charged and heavily debated issue here for the last couple of years. The proposed changes will mean significant differences to the way things have always been done. But that’s the point really. We need a major change if we’re to effectively start addressing the current situation and the even more concerning direction the region is heading in. There is so much to love about Hawke’s Bay. From the wonderfully innovative and passionate people who call this corner of the world home, to the climate, the top-shelf growing conditions, the natural beauty, the ever increasing multiculturalism and our rich heritage. This is why it’s heart-breaking – and
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inexcusable – that we’ve reached the point where this region has slipped to the bottom of the pile. Recent statistics reporting on the 16 regions in the country show Hawke’s Bay’s appalling performance in a number of social and economic indicators: Throughout our region total crime reported – 16th. People feeling safe – 16th. Productivity (GDP per capita) – 12th. Youth not in employment or education – 15th. 25-34 year olds with trade qualifications or degrees – 12th. Unemployment – 13th. These statistics are not one person or organisation’s fault. There is not one council or mayor we can hold accountable. All we have is a lot of finger pointing and blaming of others. Add to these clear issues the enormous amount of local businesses frustrated by the dysfunction of multiple councils to deal with; the different consenting processes; the duplication and waste across all departments in all councils; the lack of new business and economic development in the region; and the absence of a regional plan, a region-wide vision and regional leadership to move Hawke’s Bay into the future, and you get a fairly gloomy picture of the status quo. It’s not working.
We can do better and we should do better. Under strong, cooperative leadership a lot can change. The benefits of collaboration and coordination are many and varied. We are one region with countless strengths, challenges and opportunities, and together we can develop the best ways to face these. We can have a much better unified approach, rather than the current fractured one, to water management, preparation for natural disaster/civil defence, climate change and rising sea levels, poverty, the increasingly aging population, sustainable population growth. Think about what a future-proofed, sustainable region would look like for you and your children and their children. We’ll be able to attract new business and development, ensuring more jobs and a stronger regional economy. Businesses will be coming from Auckland to Hawke’s Bay, bringing opportunities to local people. But we have to make it easy and appealing.
Thriving local identities One of the concerns of many has been that amalgamation could impact on local identity and erode the special character of the various
POLITICAL BUZZ
communities and areas within the region. The Local Government Commission’s latest position paper (released November 2014) has proposed an increase in elected officials compared to the current structure, this isn’t just a ‘reshuffling of chairs’. The dual-level governance structure making up a single authority will ensure there are more voices but less red tape. This means better representation, while the need to increase cooperation and eliminate duplication will still be met. The introduction of Local Boards will enhance communities and allow for people who might not otherwise be interested in standing for office to take on roles to promote their areas and see that they’re well served under the new council. Community identity is about much more than who sits around the council chambers. In 1989 Havelock North Borough Council was merged with Hastings County Council, and since then we’ve seen the look, feel and brand of Havelock North go from strength to strength – a reality that’s a far cry from the feared notion of the smaller community being swallowed and silenced by the larger one.
The same success can be seen in Taradale, which merged with Napier in the same round of amalgamations in 1989. I’d challenge anyone to argue that Taradale, with its relaxed, welcoming and family-friendly feel has been ‘taken over’ by Napier or that it’s become just another suburb. In fact, with all the variation in Hawke’s Bay, there really is no example of ‘just another suburb’, as far as I can see. Over the last few years I’ve met countless people and had discussions on the future and current state of the region, and how we relate to it. What I’ve discovered is that people identify themselves as belonging to not just Napier or Hastings, Wairoa or Central Hawke’s Bay. Almost without exception, they talk about their neighbourhood. My own neighbourhood is on the Cape Coast, in Hastings District and out here we break down our home community even further than that, to Te Awanga, Haumoana, Clifton, each with its own distinct identity. In Central Hawke’s Bay there are vast complementary differences between the settlement at Kairakau Beach, the village of Otane and the largest town,
Waipukurau. People who live in Nuhaka consider themselves and their community different to those in suburban Wairoa and the residents of Mahia. And likewise, Ahuriri, Napier South, Greenmeadows and Westshore each have their own special character and identity. My point is that we’re a region made up of many more than four parts, and there’s richness and potential in that. Hawke’s Bay is a mixture of rural and urban, coastal and inland, Porangahau and Bluff Hill. By coming together under a cohesive structure, we could put all our strengths to work for the betterment of the whole province. We could support, complement, promote and enrich each other. We need to change what the future looks like. It should be bright and prosperous. This is something I and all of us work for and towards every day. I believe a single council for the region will help achieve this future. I hope that you’ll start to ponder Hawke’s Bay’s future too, discuss it with family and friends, and look forward to a stronger, more sustainable region. Then when we have the chance to have our democratic vote, let’s get there together.
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POLITICAL BUZZ
Getting in Touch with Reality BY CHRIS JOBLIN, WAIROA BUSINESSMAN AND FORMER COUNCILLOR
Led by a crusading mayor and fervent group of senior staff, the Wairoa District Council (WDC) has flatly rejected the Local Government Commission’s reorganisation proposal for HB. “Leave us out of your Napier /Hastings scrap,” they say. “Wairoa can look after itself.” We will reverse our population decline, attract new business and become “the Global Mecca for bright young minds”. Is there a genuine belief that an autonomous WDC can not only arrest, but actually reverse the district’s current dynamics? Is this simply a cynical attempt by the leadership to preserve their power and well-paid positions? Or is this an ill-informed, poorly conceived and perilously quixotic mission with the potential to destroy the best chance Wairoa may ever have to secure a decent platform for future generations? The latest Census tells us that, like the majority of rural districts losing population due to the global phenomenon of urban drift, Wairoa’s population is also becoming older and poorer. And we are already nearer the bottom of the heap in the social deprivation stakes than virtually all of our provincial peers.
Council fantasy The WDC knows full well that Wairoa cannot continue down this path. With our shrinking ratepayer base living on reducing, often fixed incomes and facing the increasing cost of maintaining an independent Council administration, our Council is marching inexorably towards the tipping point of unsustainability. The WDC imagines it can attract new industry and more people to Wairoa for lifestyle (so far largely limited to a few highly paid additional Council employees like a ‘Transformation Manager’), but it will never stop our local young people and young families leaving for the better paid employment opportunities and bright lights of the bigger centres. We cannot
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guarantee to attract new industry to an isolated region that can’t provide a stable, sustainable workforce. And we certainly can’t stop central government burdening us with the increased cost of meeting more regulatory obligations. The latest WDC concept - to generate a new identity for Wairoa facilitated by international consultants with the support of a unified community - is aspirational, but the reality is that the vast majority of Wairoa residents won’t actually feel that Wairoa needs a new identity. Bluntly, Wairoa will not be socially engineered into the utopia visible perhaps only through the new chief executive’s rose-tinted specs. The doom merchants tell us that amalgamation would mean the loss of Wairoa’s autonomy and demotion to poor relation status under the political dominance of Napier and Hastings. Wairoa’s identity would be lost and our needs ignored at the Council table as the bigger centres of Napier and Hastings capture all the development capital. Our financial reserves would be taken from us and our enhanced government subsidies diminished. Amalgamation would “Tear the heart out of Wairoa,” the Mayor implores. Is this the enhanced clarity of an enlightened few, a well-intentioned but misguided perception, or simply baseless scaremongering calculated to convince the less informed that the independent research, and somehow history itself, is wrong?
Reorganisation benefits Apart from an umbrella when times get tough, the most tangible benefit of amalgamation to Wairoa would be the reduction in cost of local administration, resulting in the mitigation of rates increases.
Regardless of anyone’s view of the Auckland “supercity”, it is undeniable that the proposed rates increases of their eight legacy councils have been halved under the new structure, whilst concurrently billions are being invested in long neglected infrastructure development. Auckland is moving forward, leaving the rest of us behind. Rather than become the poor relation languishing in neglect, the 4,120km2 Wairoa district can become a significant element in a unified HB region. Already contributing a major component of the region’s agricultural GDP and dominant in forestry, the district also holds largely untapped horticultural and dairying
The latest Census tells us that, like the majority of rural districts losing population due to the global phenomenon of urban drift, Wairoa’s population is also becoming older and poorer. potential. The iconic Lake Waikaremoana and Mahia Penninsula offer the province’s premier outdoor settings, with attendant visitor and tourism venture potential. The long overdue initiatives that Wairoa needs to take around agriculture, horticulture, tourism and social development are far more likely to be successful under the combined resources of a unitary HB Council, with a single vision to grow the region, than they ever will be under a isolated and underresourced WDC attempting to go it alone. Rather than becoming a minor partner
POLITICAL BUZZ in a unitary authority, with no control over Wairoa’s destiny, the reverse may well occur. A unitary HB Council will be a coalition governance structure within which no single ward will hold a majority. The updated proposal before us allows for two councillors each for Wairoa, CHB and the new Ngaruroro ward, with six each for Napier and Hastings. Logically, no one area can dominate. With only six votes apiece, even Hastings and Napier will need the full support of two of the smaller wards to gain a majority for their causes. The smaller wards will often hold the balance of power and accordingly, Wairoa’s representatives will be in a position to negotiate favourable attention to our needs. That’s Politics 101.
Local board The updated LGC proposal now proposes a Local Board structure for each ward, so Wairoa will have an eight member board replacing our current Council, comprising six elected members plus Wairoa’s two elected HB Council members. Local Boards cannot be disestablished by Council and must have delegated responsibilities along with negotiated funding from Council. They will be established with the maximum possible
level of power and responsibility for decisions affecting their areas. In practice, the Wairoa Local Board will be responsible for the decisions that will affect the Wairoa community, while the HB Council will be responsible for high-level matters affecting the whole region, including regulatory policy. So with eight elected representatives plus a local council office, Wairoa will not lose local representation. And what we will gain is region-wide responsibility for the funding of future infrastructure needs. Our Wairoa “identity” is the nature of our environs and people, and that won’t change any more than Havelock North or Taradale did with amalgamation, will it?WDC shouldn’t risk our future. So is it responsible – ethical even – for the WDC to reject out of hand the opportunities that becoming part of a unitary HB could actually offer? In taking its official anti-amalgamation stance under the guise of “providing leadership to the community”, Council is clearly and cynically trying to influence the voters to its own end. The issuance of misleading and emotive propaganda in contravention to the official WDC policy of providing factual information is frankly, immoral.
There is only one position Council should take – that of neutrality. The WDC wants to play Russian roulette with ratepayers’ funds and our residents’ futures. Whatever its motivation, Council is gambling with the future of our district, keeping us out on an isolated limb in a downward spiralling environment that history and independent experts tell us is irrevocable. To seriously consider the opportunity to join a new authority at its birth, where we will come to the same table at the same time and on the same footing as all the other councils, without the baggage of significant debt, and in a strong position to negotiate the best position for our future generations, is the safe, and therefore the only legitimate position for Council. There have been 152 council amalgamations in NZ over the last 25 years. Without exception these amalgamations are now considered to have been logical, essential, and absolutely none have asked to be de-amalgamated. This includes the amalgamation of the Wairoa County and Wairoa Borough councils. So history tells us we have little to fear in change beyond change itself. This is a logical evolution of local government – it’s not a conspiracy, and certainly not rocket science.
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POLITICAL BUZZ
A CenTRAL HAWke’S BAy VoICe foR AmALGAmATIon BY DI PETERSEN, fARMER & fORMER CHB COUNCILLOR
I believe that amalgamation is the right thing for Central Hawke’s Bay. And the changes most recently proposed by the Local Government Commission confirms my opinion. First, let’s look at the changes as they affect CHB. The major one for us is the increase in representation from what was originally presented. The new proposal is for two councillors to represent CHB, plus a local board of eight, two of which will be the councillors. This gives us eight elected representatives. At present we have eight councillors plus a mayor, so no one can say that we are not being represented fairly! The retention of an area office in Waipawa as well as the existing service centre in Waipukurau negates the argument of not being able to access services locally. The services which should be provided locally are information on infrastructure services (roading, water and wastewater), planning and non-regulatory activities,
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community services and facilities, general council news and information, and public consultation exercises. CHB is a rural community of 13,500 people with high rates. In my opinion, we are unsustainable as a council as we have a small rating base (6,000 ratepayers) and do not have the capacity to do much more than maintain the status quo. This will become even more difficult with the proposed cut in subsidy by the NZ Transport Association. The declining population in CHB will lead to the existing council being unviable, resulting in declining infrastructure maintenance, a drop in the level of service, or having to increase debt and rates beyond the ability of the declining and ageing community to pay. We already have had many amalgamations to form the present Central Hawke’s Bay District Council – Waipukurau Borough Council, Waipawa Borough Council, Waipukurau County Council, Waipawa County Council and
Patangata County Council. At the time people were apprehensive, but it has been successful. Debt was ring-fenced to those wards for quite some time. How often do you hear in the present arguments that there will be a loss of identity? This hasn’t occurred here and in fact I have never heard anyone say that these mergers shouldn’t have happened. Quite the opposite – it has probably enhanced the uniqueness of our villages and smaller communities. We need to embrace and celebrate our differences, not only locally but also regionally. Every district in Hawke’s Bay has its own character which contributes to ‘team HB’ – Wairoa has the Lake to Lighthouse; Napier, Art Deco; Hastings, Horse of the Year; and CHB, Lamb Country – all contributing to Hawke’s Bay’s image. So why do I believe that amalgamation would benefit CHB – particularly as on the surface there looks to be very little change for us from what we have now?
POLITICAL BUZZ Need united voice I do not believe arguing the ‘savings’ that can be made will win over the majority of residents. To me, the important issue is that unless we go forward as a united Hawke’s Bay, our whole province will stay at the bottom of the regional authority ladder, thirteen out of fourteen, where we now sit (BERL 2014). This is simply extremely poor economic growth. The rural community is a huge contributor to the economy of Hawke’s Bay and employs a large amount of staff. In fact, in Hawke’s Bay 11.7% of jobs are in the agriculture, horticulture and viticulture industries (BERL 2014). Moreover, urban areas do not exist separately from rural parts of the region; they benefit from the flow of goods to the port and airport, from export earnings and from the services and jobs required to support the rural area. A declining rural area impacts on the prosperity of Napier and Hastings. This all points to a very much needed reorganisation of local government in Hawke’s Bay. We already have regional cooperation and ‘mergers’ in things such as health, sport, newspapers, service clubs, police etc. We need a united voice to lead the whole of Hawke’s Bay, with strong leadership that can represent us all. A united HB must forge a better relationship with Central Government, who in turn would be more inclined to listen and help the region. I also believe that with a unified approach it will help with improving and preserving the quality of the environment and that
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“... urban areas do not exist separately from rural parts of the region; they benefit from the flow of goods to the port and airport, from export earnings and from the services and jobs required to support the rural area. A declining rural area impacts on the prosperity of Napier and Hastings.” it will provide the opportunity for Maori to contribute to better decision making processes, rather than working with five different entities. Under the new proposal there is a Maori Board which would provide advice to the new council and assist it to meet its statutory obligations. We have a high proportion of Maori in CHB and it is important that their voice is heard regionally. We need a regional strategic plan and region-wide standardisation of regulatory policies, providing consistency across the whole of Hawke’s Bay. This will eliminate the duplication of the consultation and compliance process which happens at present. Why would people or companies want to invest in the Bay when there are five annual and five long-term plans across the region? We need to remove the unnecessary barriers and impediments to making Hawke’s Bay a more vibrant and economically viable province. A unified approach would mean long-term decisions based on the interests of the entire region. This will help provide increased employment opportunities and greater depth in the labour market, helping us to have a real stake in our future and to contribute to our communities. It will also provide an incentive for people to stay and build their future in the region. Central Hawke’s Bay would benefit from a vibrant and exciting Hawke’s Bay … and the reverse is true as well. And wouldn’t it be lovely to hear us say proudly – I live and work in Hawke’s Bay, the best province in New Zealand.
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ARTS and LIFESTYLE
EAST 2014
BY ROY DUNNINGHAM
The range of venues in Hawke’s Bay where serious artists can show their work has shrunk in recent years. The closure of the admirable Black Barn Gallery and a seeming lack of enthusiasm from MTG for the work of Hawke’s Bay artists increases the importance of East 2014 now showing at the Hastings City Art Gallery. Curated by Linda Tyler of Auckland’s Gus Fisher Gallery, East 2014 features the work of 41 artists from Hawke’s Bay or with strong local connections. While some purists may grumble at the mixed nature of such a show, I enjoyed the richness of variety and the consistency of the selection. Even with works that roused questions in my mind it was possible to see why the selector had chosen them. A concern for the human condition is a feature of this exhibition, headed by Elham Salari’s extraordinary statement on the loss of rights and identity of women in male dominated seclusion. The artist, originally from Tehran, does this through the image of a girl entering a Persian harem, but the message is much more universal than that. The look of dawning shock on the girl’s face is chillingly acute and all the more effective for its understatement.
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Alongside Salari’s work, Leah Marshall uses the Icarus legend to ponder the future of a vulnerable adolescent boy. The bare-chested figure lying on the grass, surrounded by paper darts suggests the potential and the aspirations of youth and also the attendant risks of failure and disaster. Julian Maher’s Blue Spaces is a beautifully painted insight into the loneliness and anxieties we can encounter in the domain of our own inner mind. There is controversy too, as some tertiary tutors felt that Helen Kerridge’s meticulously rendered polemic on the lack of employment open to debt-laden graduates was an unjustified criticism of the tutors’ integrity. Amongst the more abstract work it was good to see something from Anthony Chiappin. There is nothing quietly regional about this artist. The brash colours and
harsh light are from Australian suburbia (nothing wrong with that, of course – he is Australian). This work bursts with the dynamism of a comic book hero as the artist juggles a demanding range of media and somehow achieves that satisfying balance of spontaneous application with artistic control. Jane Gray’s Lucky also impresses through the sheer assertiveness of its design.
The look of dawning shock on the girl’s face is chillingly acute and all the more effective for its understatement. Amidst all this, sculptor Ricks Terstappen provides a nice touch of tongue in cheek with his Man Watching Prize Winning Sculpture. Terstappen has us looking at art about people looking at art! Fane Flaws, too, shows a sense of irony and optimism, using recycled debris from suburban demolition. Panels from old buildings, rejected and no longer wanted are dignified with words evoking our creative aspirations, art, music, God,
ARTS and LIFESTYLE
LEFT Matthew Couper Quanta Biombo, (2012) Oil on five sheets of metal 590 x 1400mm Courtesy of the artist and PAULNACHE, Gisborne
ABOVE Jane Gray Lucky (2014) Acrylic and oil on PVC support, 1200 x 1200mm RIGHT Elham Salari The day I entered the harem (2014) Oil and acrylic, 560 x 710mm BELOW Helen Kerridge The Cost of Being Somebody (2014) Acrylic on canvas, 457 x 914mm
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sex, light, hope, love etc., and he resolves it all into beautifully composed, formal abstractions worthy of the de Stijl artists. A number of the artists consider the environment. Linda Bruce’s impossibly cranky mechanical cloud of pipes, which suggest water conveyance but are unlikely to ever deliver, reminds us of our increasing manipulation of water sources and the dubious practices which threaten its availability and quality. Kathy Boyle’s circle of attractively simulated river stones is intertwined by a river which is interrupted and going nowhere. Remember those lovely summer days at the Tukituki so long ago? ‘Nuff said! The title of Lex Benson-Cooper’s Quota suggests our exploitation of the sea. Certainly, his wading figure has a sense of urgency and apprehension. What is he doing and what is he looking at beyond those McCahon-like rocks? This is a powerful piece of pictorial theatre. Wellesley Binding shows a rural landscape with shadowy, corporate figures increasingly replacing the idealism of the individual farmer. Even the clouds seem to reverse their role in the picture space. This painting is enigmatic, but superbly enigmatic. Sometimes you have to read a painting like a book. If you don’t do that with Matt Couper’s Quanta Biombo you could have problems. If you take the trouble to piece together the pictorial clues that he offers you can construct a sort of narrative of value and values as the artist draws upon images ranging from Spanish colonial folk art to current events and institutions in this allegory of contemporary life. Couper, who is forging a growing international career, lives in Las Vegas, a place he has described as the most honest city in the world as it is completely open and
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ABOVE Julian Maher Posed Precariously (2014) Acrylic on board 910 x 2000 x 40mm BELOW Wellesley Binding The Front (Business is Business) (2014) Acrylic, charcoal, and chalk on canvas 1675 x 1215mm
unashamed in its venality. As an alternative, you could enjoy the quiet formality of Jonathan Brough’s painting or the sophistication of Marion Courtille’s furniture design. For natural beauty try David Shennan’s Cloud Valley or Annette Bull’s thoughtful evocation of landscape in her ceramic set Clifton to the Cape.
Paula Taafe takes us into a much more uneasy world with her Second Nature. Like Dr Moreau she has ‘genetically engineered’ a strange menagerie of creatures, part humanoid and part animal but somehow being neither. They are reminiscent of curio specimens from the depths of 19th century museums or the demons of mediaeval religious festivals. Somehow the common materials used and the almost kitsch/ cute look make them even more sinister. Is this what happens as we ever more recklessly look to manipulate nature or is it just our own hidden dark side? Schools Out by Peter Baker is a very complete work of sculpture as the artist plays games with time and space. On the wall is the (almost) flat image of time past, a school bell and building seen against a Chris Perkins-like Mt. Taranaki, so immutably fixed and set. In front is the broken ‘real’ bell of the present breaking into rings (but unable to ring) with its support structure. Yet within the debris there is new life: a light source. The suggested scenario is a complex one of past and present enhanced by the artist’s ability to use the sculptural elements of spaces, planes, volumes, lines and materials in an interesting and cohesive way. As much as anything in the show, this work engages the intellect and pleases the senses. Interestingly, there seemed to be fewer works that referenced Maori culture or issues than in East 2012. There were, however, more works that addressed environment issues and insights into the human psyche. East 2014, which runs until 15 February 2015, is our major celebration of Hawke’s Bay art and re-affirms Hastings City Art Gallery as its spiritual home.
Ahakoa he iti, he pounamu Although it is small, it is very precious.
ARTS and LIFESTYLE
Gold of the Kowhai One piece of the Hawke's Bay Museums Trust collection can be visited without paying the MTG entry fee, and it certainly poses no storage issues: a four metre high gold and brass kowhai flower has blossomed on the corner of Tennyson and Herschell Streets in Napier. The Gold of the Kowhai is created by Palmerston North artist Paul Dibble. It was purchased by the life members of the Hawke's Bay Museums Foundation Trust (aka MTG Foundation) and unveiled by Minister of Arts, Culture and Heritage Maggie Barry in December.
Among the 6,000 pieces in the MTG's Maori taonga collection, Tryphena Cracknell has her favourites. "I really love the Kiwi feather boa from the 1920s matched with the kiwi handbag with albino tufts!" she laughs but she also has a soft spot for a very old, quite small wooden carving. "My favourite piece in the collection is A1, that's his record number, he was the first taonga to come in to the Aetheneum collection. He's old – pre-contact old – early 18th century, and he's beautiful." Cracknell is the new curator of the taonga collection, moving from a role as kaitiaki. She is of Ngati Kahungunu and Rongomai Wahine (Mahia) descent. "My role has shifted from collection and management, to research, writing and exhibition development," she explains. Her first task at MTG was leading the packing of taonga into specially made boxes for storage, each item needing to be careful wrapped and crated. Now that the MTG is open her role is to coordinate exhibitions of works. Her first show is Pounamu, open now and running through to April. There are 150 pieces of pounamu in the show, one-third are from Hawke's Bay,
but all the original stone comes from the South Island. "The story of pounamu is an incredible story of trade because every piece has had a journey of exchange," says Cracknell. "Its first use was in tools. It was the hardest and most useful stone and although it was functional there was a drive to do something more, to make it beautiful. Then once tools were used and worn, they were cut down and used as adornment. Humans spend a lot of time making things beautiful." Alongside exhibition work Cracknell is working with communities and individuals to protect items in private homes. "We are doing a lot of outreach work with people on preserving taonga, while still using the items, usually for special celebrations of family events," Cracknell explains. Pounamu takes visitors on a journey from the greenstone as a river boulder, through its carving and uses, to people's personal stories of their own pounamu pendants and other items. "What I hope is that I will win people's hearts with Pounamu and then they'll be open to other ideas, they'll trust what I've done and be brave enough to explore new things with me," says Cracknell.
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Tangata Whenua
Seven years in the making, Tangata Whenua is the story of Maori in Aotearoa New Zealand, told from the perspectives of history, archeology, traditional narratives and oral histories, and grounded in specific localities across New Zealand. Authors Atholl Anderson and Aroha Harris worked on the book with the late Judith Binney who was also an instrumental component in bringing the manuscript and photographs together. She passed away in 2011. Working with a team of historians and researchers, the authors have drawn from a wide range of stories and perspectives. The images contained within are numerous and diverse, and tell stories themselves, alongside the considerable narrative. A beautiful, rich book of over 500 pages it is a joy to consume. Of interest to Hawke's Bay readers are stories of land, agriculture, education, music and sport. The earliest Hawke's Bay stories told
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in Tangata Whenua are of 1860s land sales, Superintendent of Hawke's Bay Donald McLean, and the introduction of Native Land Courts. The change of land use is recounted as agricultural industry moved into the area, with the tragic draining of swamps and loss of valuable food sources like eels and birds. Further on in the book there are stories of Te Aute College and its notable graduates, the Moteo Jazz Band of Hawke's Bay, and legendary rugby fullback George Nepia. Of particular note are the striking, early daguerreotypes of the 1850s capturing Maori women in formal western dress. The accompanying description and
commentary gives a robust context into which such portraits can be placed. As a foil to the stoic formality of early portraiture is the candid proof sheet of photos from a 1970s hui. This gives readers a 'behindthe-scenes' look at more contemporary marae life. With many threads of history entwined, Tangata Whenua tells a thorough and multi-faceted story, and is a treasure for all New Zealanders. Tangata Whenua: An Illustrated History follows the footsteps of Maori from Asia and the Pacific to the present day. It is written by Atholl Anderson, Judith Binney and Aroha Harris, priced at $100 and published by Bridget Williams Books.
ARTS and LIFESTYLE
NEW TO TRY Summer KEEPING IT LOCAL
DrinkS
Hawke's Bay's Origin Earth milk has benefited from a delicious collaboration with other local producers. Naked Honey Pot and La Petite Chocolate have thrown their lot in with Origin Earth to produce a knock-your-socks-off chocolate milk. It has half the sugar and half the calories of a certain big-gun choc milk whose release onto the market in 2014 saw shelves stripped and queues around the block to get hold of a bottle. "We are up against bigger players but we're keeping it local," says Joanie Williams of Origin Earth. The chocolate milk is currently only available from the Hawke's Bay Farmers' Market.
BEST SERVED COLD A nice hot cuppa is being replaced by a chilled alternative thanks to First Hand Coffee in Clive. The roastery is producing Cold Brew coffee in a smart bottle and available in selected cafes around the Bay. The coffee grind is brewed with cold artesian water for 12-18 hours to extract a flavour that's not as bitter as coffee drinkers are used to. It's fruity, crisp, clean and has no acidity. "People who like black coffee will like it but it also encourages people to expand their flavour profiles," says Al Borrie, originator of Cold Brew. Cold Brew is a drink to savour rather than knock back and can be served over ice with a slice of lemon. "To make it is quite labour intensive, but that's part of it. It's a handmade product," Borrie says. "It's part of what we stand for: provenance, quality and all things local."
PASSIONATE ABOUT FLAVOUR Freshly brewed authentic Indian chai, made from scratch with organic ingredients, has been available at Hawke's Bay markets for two years. Now Mister Chai is making take-home packs and cafe-only blends so you can enjoy chai more often. There are four 'flavours' of loose leaf chai, plus choco chai (spiced hot chocolate) and masala ground spice mix. Mister Chai is being served by cafes in Wellington and Palmerston North, and here in the Bay at Little Black Bird in Hastings and Onekawa Coffee Corner. Teas come from India and South Africa. Spices come from all over the world but mainly India, Sri Lanka and Egypt. Cocoa for the choco chai is from the Dominican Republic. "We buy the bulk ingredients then blend or grind them all by hand. It's very much an artisanal process – we don't use any machinery except a bag sealer. Even our bags are hand-stamped!" says owner Jess O'Sullivan. "We're passionate about the flavours and health benefits of real chai. It's a worthy beverage in its own right rather than an alternative to coffee," explains Jess. "Most of the beverages sold as 'chai' in New Zealand are about as close to real masala chai as Pam's instant coffee is to a barista espresso. Our mission is to rectify that!"
PERFECT ANTIDOTE This Hawke's Bay fermented probiotic drink has been around for a few years, but if you haven't tried it, do. It's the perfect antidote for caffeine overload. There are four types: Berry, Ginger, Lemon & Lime and Balance. Their website – kombuchaking.co.nz – is a delight for its descriptions of the drink’s many health benefits. Blows iced tea, energy drinks and alcohol out of the water.
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ARTS and LIFESTYLE
Six Pack to Share We've tracked down six new places to pep up your summer entertaining duties. 1. Little Black Bird
is sparkly and fresh with a healthy and delicious menu. Smack in the middle of Hastings, it's the place to bring the girls for a long lunch. Granola is good at any time of day and mushroom pies make eating pie okay again, after years as a truckies’ staple. Not a great choice for a date with the hungry caveman in your life. A recent male companion of mine commented: "All I wanted was a full English breakfast." But just the ticket for post-yoga yummies. Market Street South, Hastings.
2. Hugo Chang
is the new brain child of the Mamacita crew. Open now for six months, Hugo is proving to be a player in the Havers scene. Its dumplings-todie-for followed by creme brulee says more about its vibe than anything the rather thin backstory can conjure up. The real authenticity comes from the staff, whose hospitality chimes so beautifully with the sumptuous surroundings. Reminds me of that lost night in Sydney popping edamame at Uncle Ming's. Joll Road, Havelock North Village.
3. Monica Loves
is the brand new laneway bar offshoot of Mister D, the must-do destination for relaxed all-day dining in Napier. The name comes from the famous Romeo and Juliet's wall where 3,000 love messages are left every day. Monica Loves serves everything from prosecco to craft beers with delicious bar snacks such as corn dogs with Monica's sweet chilli sauce and salt and pepper prawns. This buzzy bar is a great addition to the growing Tennyson Street precinct. Tennyson Street, Napier.
4. The Artisan Cafe
is diminutive in form and in fanfare but big on flavour. It is tres-French with its delightful display of petite fours, baguettes and salade du jour. The coffee is excellent and I was particularly taken by the baristas' novel approach to turning a long black into a scull-able bevvy – icecubes. Breads are made in Havelock North by the baker at Te Mata Bakery and delivered fresh each morning; salads and sandwiches change daily. The only down side is the lack of seating, but this does make it perfect for SSR (silent-sustained reading!) without interruption.
5. Crazy Good
is new to Ahuriri. Tucked into the block of shops up from the jetty it's an off-shoot of Box Coffee in Clive serving single-source beans, roasted in Clive by First Hand Roastery. Crazy Good is simple: no fuss coffee service that's fast and efficient. They are very particular about the milk they use, local Origin Earth, so if your standard order calls for 'skinny' or 'trim' take it elsewhere, full flat real milk is the only thing on offer. True coffee connoisseurs can have their obsession satisfied thanks to a very knowledgeable barista and a full range of boutique coffee paraphernalia. Bridge Street, Ahuriri, Napier.
6. Sushi Club
has sprouted up in Havelock North serving the most delicate little parcels of fishy goodness possible. Hawke's Bay has a bevvy of good sushi bars but this one brings the fine art of nigirizushi, makizushi and temaki to another level of craftsmanship. A swim at the Havelock Pool or a meander through the shops can now be rounded off by the fresh, healthy energy booster contained in every perfect package. Te Mata Road, Havelock North Village.
Queen Street East, Hastings.
What we'd like to see in Hawke's Bay next: A real Italian restaurant, a build-your-own sandwich shop that is not Subway, a cocktail bar, a liquid nitrogen ice cream parlour, and a five-star hotel that serves high tea.
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ARTS and LIFESTYLE
Live Vibe
Nothing is more perfect than lounging about on the grass listening to live music in the company of friends and a large picnic hamper! This summer Creative Hastings is hosting a series of concerts in Cornwall Park and in the Havelock North Village Green with just that vibe in mind. The Cornwall Park concerts have been running every year for 15 years, but the Jazz on the Village Green series is new for 2015. "This is a great way for local musicians to have the opportunity to develop new audiences," explains Pitsch Leiser, Creative Hastings manager, "And for local parks to be enjoyed by the wider community." The double-the-fun musical extravaganza kicks off on Saturday 24 January with Jazz on the Village Green then runs every Saturday in Havelock and every Sunday at Cornwall Park in Hastings until Sunday 25 February. Saturday concerts are from 4pm-6pm and Sunday concerts are from 3pm-5pm. "We've programmed the concerts at a time of day that encourages afternoon picnics and people getting together to enjoy the sunshine," says Leiser. Music covers a range of genre from traditional and contemporary jazz to swing and big band.
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WHAT'S THE PLAN? The Plaza is open but weeds are coming up between cracked tiles, guano is collecting under columns, part of the fabric roof has come away and flaps in the wind, the carpet in the ticketing office is bubbling. It's a sad state of affairs for a building reopened only eight years ago after a $12 million rebuild. As you know, the Hawke's Bay Opera House is closed as Hastings District Council and civil engineers work out what to do about earthquake strengthening. In February 2015 Holmes Consulting, who won the structural design contract,
What I did on my holidays If you have friends and family coming to stay over the summer, you should have these two tools in your kit. The HB Visitor Guide is a sizeable 'things-to-do' booklet that gives you plenty of ideas as well as some snippets of history, and info on activities and events. The Hawke's Bay tourism website (www.hawkesbaynz.com) is a 'one-stopshop' to everything worth seeing, doing,
will come back to HDC with a concept and preliminary design work for the HBOH. This report will provide information on the costs of different strengthening options. It will also give Council the information required to make decisions on how much money to allocate to the work in the next Long Term Plan, which will be finalised in June 2015. Council has allocated $1.5 million for this project in the 2014/15 financial year, and a provisional allowance of $7 million in the 2015-25 LTP. Engineering advice received in March 2014 resulted in the closure of the theatre, followed shortly after by the closure of other public spaces in the Municipal Buildings. The building is likely to be closed to the public for around 18 months to 2 years while strengthening options are considered. The Plaza – with flapping roof – remains available for events and bookings, and Opera Kitchen continues to trade from their premises in the complex.
tasting and experiencing in the Bay. Handin-hand they can turn any half-hearted relliehost into a bona fide tour guide. The new guide has fewer maps, reflecting a market that sees most visitors using a map app on their smart phone. The extra space allows for more attractions and lots of big pics so you know what you're up for before heading out. The guide is also excellent fodder for the kids' ‘What I did on my Holidays’ scrapbooks! Download the guide at hawkesbaynz.com or pick one up from your local i-Site.
ARTS and LIFESTYLE
Creative talent in the regions Maggie Barry recently spent a long weekend in Hawke's Bay and as the minister responsible for arts, conservation and seniors she had a full plate while she was here. BayBuzz caught up with her at the Hastings City Art Gallery, where she was shown through East 2014 by gallery director Kath Purchas. Artist Ricks Terstappen also accompanied Barry as she visited his show of large metal works, Rust Never Fails. "The Arts are part of our national identity and to be able to come to Hawke's Bay and to be here in this gallery and be able to go and see David Trubridge we can really get a sense of the creative talent that's here in the regions," Barry said. The visit was a brief interlude before a tour of Trubridge Studios ahead of Barry's unveiling of Paul Dibble's The Gold of the Kowhai in Napier. "I am a major fan of street art," said Barry. "Whether it's in a garden environment or it’s lining the streets, it adds a phenomenal dimension. Having works outside, watching them evolve as the seasons interact with the materials they are made of is part of the charm. It doesn't stay the same. I like that evolving, organic element of art outdoors." Barry spoke of the wealth Maori performance and visual arts brings to the region, and the benefits of galleries working in collaboration with iwi.
"We need to support and nurture our arts sector. When it comes to people like David Trubridge, he's clearly very aware of what opportunities exist for funding, and others who see what he does can also access that." "The Maori cultural component is something that is particular to Hawke's Bay. To have community involvement and to partner with local iwi, to reflect the culture – not to put it in a ghetto somewhere separately but to integrate it – then we've got something to entice people into the gallery all the time," she said. "You want to get people engaged constantly and that partnership with Ngati Kahungunu is really going to help that side of things," she said, referring to the iwi cultural centre being proposed as part of a refurbishment of the Hastings City Art Gallery. Barry also talked about the need for regional arts to find funding streams and to have a commercial arm alongside an artistic one. "When you're outside a city environment – where you've got a lot of people coming through and therefore a lot of opportunity for artists to make a living out of their work – in the regions it must be that much more difficult to earn a living. I think the starving artist in the garret fable is not something that's part of the modern era if we can possibly help it," said Barry. "We need to support and nurture our arts sector. When it comes to people like David Trubridge, he's clearly very aware of what opportunities exist for funding, and others who see what he does can also access that. But to be able to have a bread and butter line must be a very helpful thing for artists in a regional environment," Barry said. Page 83 • Issue 21 • Jan/Feb 2015 • BAY BUZZ
TasTe Hawke’s Bay BY kent BAddeleY PHOTOS SARAH CAteS
Kent Baddeley takes stock of the food ‘industry’ in Hawke’s Bay, with help from his friends.
The Hawke’s Bay food world has had a very interesting year. Some ups, and certainly some downs. It all started out good. Rock star economy was mentioned; but was it? As it is in most election years, restaurant spending was slight leading up to the election. But this year was different. As a campaigner of a dozen or so election years, I felt there was a deeper rift in the pool. The first half was a winner; by September we saw a mini-collapse. The meteoric rise of food prices across the board was staggering. As was trying to find real local product at affordable prices. Thus, the rise of Swedish meats and Australian meats to compete at a lower price. Is this a good thing or simply inevitable? Supermarket prices through the roof, all supermarkets. Unbelievable greed! Restaurant menu portions decreased and
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prices increased. Fast food as a meal option has definitely increased. This has confused the dine-out market a lot. I hear a lot of talk that fine dining is in trouble. I believe it is more the formulae of some establishments are dated and tired. There is, and should always be, ‘fine dining establishments’, and these are suited to being in wineries in Hawke’s Bay as the overall business helps sustain them. The stand-alone small fine diner will slide away in this region. It’s truly a case of ‘If you don’t use them, you will lose them’. Our local tourism office had a very busy year playing with our very fragile restaurant economy. At a glance, F.A.W.C. is an awesome product and, for a few, a great thing to do. However, our industry suffers with the pre-sale of ticketing on the cusp of difficult trading periods. For a lot of small restaurants, the four weekends of F.A.W.C. in the middle of the winter deliver a bitter blow to their dining rooms. Anecdotally, in a small region with very few real diners, taking the cash flow from the
local market to give to big brand locations and big brand celebrities when the region needs it most, hurts! The white knight rode into town and snapped up failing restaurants to fail anew and left town! Mexican everything finally arrived in Hawke's Bay in earnest.
Restaurant menu portions decreased and prices increased. Fast food as a meal option has definitely increased. This has confused the dine-out market a lot. The global nature of shared pictures and food porn is very pronounced. Social media is really helping business – we now can post events that will be seen by our aficionados and become subscribed overnight. But
ARTS and LIFESTYLE
harming it too – with the increase of competitors surreptitiously torching each other on review sites. In terms of the wine vintage, awesome! Great to see Hawke’s Bay being noticed globally, and Craggy Range regarded as the best ‘New World Winery’ is fantastic news for the region and will result in increased visitor numbers. But that’s just my opinion. I asked a few opinioned food friends of mine to contribute to this ‘scorecard’.
Lauraine Jacobs Food columnist, NZ Listener; President of the International Association of Culinary Professionals
fancy foams etc to more honest “deconstructed” foods. 5. Diners expecting more value now – at all types of dining and price point. 6. More use of economical cuts of meat – including some “nose to tail dining … Slower cooking, more flavour. 7. More interesting vegetables, better prepared – they are more often the hero of the dish. And this is in all types of restaurants, not specially vegetarian restaurants (Do we need them any more?) 8. Ethnic food continues to be popular – especially Mexican and Asian. Expect more from Korea and the Philippines. 9. Some more specialist restaurants eg, desserts.
1. Two things that make me really happy and very proud are: The use of brilliant fresh seafood on our menus, everywhere. And the stunning winery experiences, especially in many of the winery cafes and restaurants, that showcase locally sourced food designed to match our superb wines.
10. Continuing focus on dietary fads – gluten free etc, but sensing a backlash against this.
2. What makes me sad is so much tourism effort spent on cycle tracks and Hobbits when our food and wine experience should be one of the top reasons to visit NZ. Hawke’s Bay is the exception that embraces that premise, has led the way and is to be congratulated!
12. More variety of ways food is served – not just the normal sit down restaurant – pop ups, food trucks, take out, stand up at counter, eat and run.
11. But service still struggling. Not enough people with passion for food and caring for people. Suspect it is more of a NZ cultural cringe thing.
13. Foods for 2015 – bitter tastes, seaweed, broths (bone broth anyone?), spicy ramen, insects for protein, more obscure grains (kaniwa or teff anyone?).
Ian Thomas Aromatics Ltd, Hawke’s Bay Paella A Go Go
@hbbornandproud
1. We saw a plethora of very average Mexican restaurants open.
The food industry is booming in Hawke's Bay. If I am asked to suggest to people on where to dine, I just can’t decide, with the multiple options on offer from vineyard restaurants to cafés all offering their finest cuisine. This summer the markets in Hawke’s Bay can’t be missed – Napier Inner City Market, Hastings City Night Market, Hawke’s Bay Farmers' Market, Saturday Hastings Growers Market and Black Barn Market. The markets should be on everyone’s ‘To do’ list. It’s a great opportunity to buy local produce but it’s also awesome to be able to meet the grower who produces the fine produce. My top places I recommend for this summer are:
2. Saturated fat isn’t the bad guy. 3. Continued rise of celebrity restaurateurs and their sycophantic groupies. 4. ‘Superfoods’ – anything that is natural and unprocessed. 5. My Food Bag and clones. Shopping and menu service!
Greig Buckley Kai Artisan Foods 1. More use and promotion of local foods. Naming the source – provenance. 2. More restaurants with own garden (the ultimate local supply). Surprising more don’t do this in NZ. They can do it on rooftops in London and NYC. 3. Smaller plates and stronger flavours. More than just tapas and dim sum. 4. Less fussy food – move from 4 star
Our fantastic cheerleader of goodness
1. Taco Tuesday at 1024 in the rustic courtyard in Pakowhaishire 2. Hugo Chang on a Friday evening, sitting in the relaxed classy-styled lounge drinking Asahi with dumplings and spring rolls. 3. Locals night at Valley D’ Vine overlooking the vines in the valley.
The meteoric rise of food prices across the board was staggering. 4. The Pipi Truck at the perfect spot of Cornwall Park. 5. Licorice ice cream for dessert at Craggy Range Terrôir restaurant with an outlook of the lake. 6. Pad Med Ma-Muang from Thai Silk with a BYO Hawke’s Bay wine. 7. Drinks after work with nibbles on a Friday at Emporium. 8. Grilled chicken burger from Thirsty Whale whilst sipping a white wine on the deck in the scorching sun.
My Lawyer … Asked to be anon :) 1. Highest note – soft shell crab at 1024. 2. Lowest point – no ‘rock stars’ in the Bay. Stagnant economy, less discretionary funds to dine away from home. 3. Second to lowest point – it’s cheaper to feed your kids Coke and McDonalds than milk, meat and veggies, but we had an election focused on bloggers while words about child poverty were thrown around. 4. Still thinking about that soft shell crab! 5. People who come to Hawke’s Bay love our food and wine, but I don’t think that this is enough in itself to get them here. Nor do I believe trotting around the same ‘celebrity’ chef is going to get them here. 6. And lastly – 2015 – will be interesting to see how the new driving limits will impact on restaurants. Let’s hope all it does is create a boom for taxi drivers! Editor: Did you have a different taste for Hawke’s Bay food in 2014? Let us know.
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Photo by David Trubridge
The righTs of naTure Last November, David Trubridge was invited to speak at the ‘A Place to Live’ conference in Whanganui which “focused on ways of improving the environments and economies of our regions and smaller centres, and the human need to connect with the natural environment.” Here is his response to what he heard, particularly to the opening address by Dame Anne Salmond called ‘Rivers – Give Me the Water of Life’, which was the fourth of her 2014 Rutherford Lectures, ‘Experiments across Worlds’. (They will be available on RadioNZ as podcasts.) In 2010 Bolivia made history by being the first country to pass into law the universal rights of nature. Described as being one of the most radical environmental bills in global history, it enshrines the rights of nature to life, regeneration, biodiversity, water, clean air, balance and restoration. It is based on indigenous concepts of nature as a sacred
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home, stating “Mother Earth is a living dynamic system made up of the undivided community of all living beings, who are all interconnected, interdependent and complementary, sharing a common destiny.” Ecuador followed with something similar (though it does not seem to have held them back from drilling for oil in the Amazon rainforest).
Does that sound just too way out and “new age”, something that would never happen here? Think again. The foundation of the Deed of Settlement between the Whanganui River iwi and the Crown is the recognition that the river is a legal entity, in other words, a personality, which is known as Te Awa Tupua (the giant river). This is seen as groundbreaking, particularly because it was made by the government of a country still nominally overseen by the Queen of England.
P
reviously in BayBuzz I wrote about “the great divide that slashes right through our society, not just in New Zealand but globally. On the one side personal gain, on the other side caring – settler mentality versus the ecologist; business profit versus environmentalism.” You could say the past versus the future!
Are we at a turning point in the global zeitgeist where the old western attitude of nature as a resource to be exploited is being replaced by a greater sensitivity to our balance with nature? The conference in Whanganui opened with a brilliant lecture by Dame Anne Salmond in which she discussed this issue. She described the radical split in western society between nature and culture, and how this developed during the Age of the Enlightenment, just when Cook was setting out for the South Pacific. At that time, life on Earth was arranged into ‘The Giant Chain of Being’, a pyramid with man as the culmination at the top who had dominion over diminishing layers of animals, insects, plants and finally rocks at the bottom. As new lands were ‘discovered’ they were divided up by surveyors’ grids. The overall entity of nature was broken into square parcels of land – commodities which could be bought or sold and used as a resource.
D
ame Anne described how, in Maori cosmology, matter has never been dead or separate from people. Maori do not control nature; they believe
“Mother Earth is a living dynamic system made up of the undivided community of all living beings, who are all interconnected, interdependent and complementary, sharing a common destiny.” that lakes, rivers and forests have their own right to life. In particular, the mauri, the spirit of fresh water, is regarded by mana whenua as the basis for all wellbeing. They have no neat single theory of everything – instead, “ancestral Maori concepts exist in the spaces in-between where dimensions intersect.” Maori stories and chants do not express a different opinion or explanation, they describe a wholly different world. This is neither utopian nor idealistic; it is necessary for the health of the people and of the land. So this new river settlement law represents a tectonic shift away from the old hierarchical European legal system. Instead of encouraging settlertype exploitation of the land, it starts to recognise the balance of all living things and that we have some responsibilities for nature. It is moving towards the Bolivian law that embraces the very different world view of indigenous peoples.
And in doing so it opens up exciting environmental possibilities. Imagine the consequences: if a company can be convicted because its pollution damaged my health, then the same can happen if it affects the health of the river.
H
owever, in a sense we have already been acknowledging nature’s rights. The large amount of public money that was used by DoC to save the Chatham Island robin and to bring back numbers of takahe and tieke (saddlebacks) is in effect a recognition that these creatures have a right to exist. Humans are only one tiny part of nature – we have no god-given powers over others. Only nature can take away a species’ existence, like it has done to all those now extinct. If by our actions we endanger a species, it is our duty to respect the equal rights of that species and to protect it. Sadly, despite the river settlement, our government has shown little commitment to the environment. It prefers to protect a few fishing jobs in favour of the right of the Hector and Maui dolphins to exist, and refuses to admit that off-shore oil drilling and seismic testing are serious threats to oceanic life, as scientists have shown. There are many people who already feel that nature has a life of its own. Who has not hiked along a river for hours or even days and been overwhelmed by its presence? On long hikes I have got to know the character of South Island rivers as I learnt to pick angled shallow bars to make the many crossings. I have slept with the roar or chuckle of the Mohaka in my ears, been moved by its raging froth and tranquil swirling silence. As they say on the Whanaganui, “I am the river and the river is me”. At the Barlow Hut on the Makaroro River I have anxiously watched the rising waters during a storm, and hurried off down the only exit along the river in predawn light before it got too deep. Now the Makaroro’s life is threatened by the Ruataniwha dam. Anne Salmond also described how Maori say that they are the fresh water as it twists and braids out into the salt waters of the oceans, which they see as the pakeha who came on its waters from afar. We all mingle together at the great mouth of the vortex which breathes the winds and tides of the oceans. The rivers and seas are all totally interconnected. So where does this end? Will we one day recognise the rights of the oceans? Their right not to be turned into a junk heap, their right not to be overheated and overfished? If we can’t do this, there is little hope for our future as we know it now.
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Page 87 • Issue 21 • Jan/Feb 2015 • BAY BUZZ
Sponsoring insight into smart farming in Hawke’s Bay
Reading the ‘tRades’ BY TOM BELFORD I’m blessed to live at an ‘RD’ address. ‘Rural Delivery’ means I get the farm ‘trades’ every Monday – Rural News, Farmers Weekly, NZFarmer and, less frequently, Federated Farmers’ National Farming Review. The last of these I simply toss, having long given up on Fed Farmers ever saying anything forward-looking to farmers. The others I devour. Some recurring themes are enshrined in these publications, especially over the past year. Here are some of the more notable.
Few young people in the ‘agriculture’ pipeline Last year, out of 25,000 bachelor graduates, only 350 had a primary sector bent. Rural News complained that 120 degrees in acupuncture surpassed only 100 in agricultural science. Only 2.3% of year 13 students study agriculture. Two worries here. First, the aging ag academic community, with its huge accumulated knowledge and expertise, is now retiring. NZ is failing to fill their shoes. Moreover, young people are reluctant to pick up the plow from their parents – rural flight by the young is well-documented. Minister Nathan Guy recently told a ‘boot camp’ of farming leaders that the greatest challenge was attracting young people to make a career in agribusiness. “Young people won’t want to work in an
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industry they think is dirty, degrading to the environment or cruel to animals.” He called for industry-funded scholarships and ‘primary sector ambassadors’ to talk up farming opportunities in the classroom.
Stubbornly slow take-up of ‘best practices’ Every edition of the farm trades features some standout, forward-looking farmer. NZ-acclaimed farmer Doug Avery writes in NZFarmer, “Every day I celebrate the decision I made back in 1998 to totally embrace change.” But while there are heaps of model farmers out there with proven superior productivity and profitability, too many laggard farmers stoutly resist adopting their methods. Of many examples, a Massey ag professor recently pointed to the slow uptake of ‘precision farming’ techniques – sophisticated use of right inputs at the right time and place – as a key obstacle to improving farm performance. When even a terrifically successful dryland farmer like Avery cannot convince his own neighbor to change his ways, it’s not surprising that farmers resist advice from more ‘suspect’ sources. The mantra in farmland seems to be: “You can’t tell them what to do.” Occasionally an entity like Fonterra does prescribe: “Produce your milk to these more demanding standards or we
won’t buy it.” Farming needs far more ‘incentives’ like that. Twice, by 5-4 votes, HBRC has voted down my proposal to sponsor a forum on ‘smart farming’ practices, drawing upon NZ-wide expertise. One opposing Napier councillor claimed we have all the know-how we need right here in Hawke’s Bay. Uh huh.
Decreasing price competitiveness Even as the government pushes to double farm exports by 2025, NZ farmers are lagging in competitiveness. In every farm sector, global competitors are gaining price advantage. They are becoming more efficient while we face higher land, energy, input and transport costs. Even in dairying. “No room for complacency” said a recent Farmers Weekly story. ANZ’s top agbiz expert noted that compared to NZ, in more efficient US dairy operations, cows were producing two and a half times the volume of milk per cow, and double the fat and protein. He estimated NZ’s cost advantage at only 60¢/ kg MS, and threatened. Smart NZ exporters – like Firstlight Foods, JB Bostock and many of our winemakers – know they must compete on a premium product basis – pure, safe, green – targeting upscale niche markets. Survey research completed in the Bay indicates overwhelming public support for keeping our region GE Free as a key pillar of any premium positioning. Most of the biggest players in HB’s farm sector have signaled their agreement as backers of Pure Hawke’s Bay.
Dairy price/payout freefall How low can it go? According to NZFarmer, Sinlait Milk warns its milk solids payment next season will be “starting with a four”. At this writing, Fonterra was expecting to downgrade its payment. Hazards of a ‘one trick pony’ economy.
Apprehension about foreign ownership One of the hottest topics has been purchases of farm properties by overseas buyers. In Hawke’s Bay, alarms sounded first with acquisition of the Crafar farms by Shanghai Pengxin for $200 million (8,000 hectares carrying 16,000 cows). Now Pengxin plans to add the larger Lochinver Station, straddling the Taupo and Hawke’s Bay districts. This issue divides the farming community. Fed Farmers is loathe to suggest that farmers are not free to do whatever they want with their properties. Others see fresh capital entering our farm sector as potentially fueling productivity gains. But others regard farmland as the nation’s prime asset, economically and ‘spiritually’, and not a source of profit to be exported with little benefit to New Zealanders.
‘Farm Environmental Management Plans’ (FEMPs) in place by 2018. By 2020, farmers must show that their plans are in fact mitigating environmental impacts. Farmers can view their FEMPs as opportunities or albatrosses … their choice. But they must comply. However, farmers are not solely responsible for waterway degradation – Napier stormwater discharges into the Ahuriri estuary and CHB sewage discharges into the Tukituki are two cases in point. So, it’s a legitimate question whether HBRC should financially aid improvement of farm practices in some way – e.g., FEMP preparation, riparian planting assistance, incentives to improve soil quality and erosion control.
“Smart NZ exporters know they must compete on a premium product basis – pure, safe, green – targeting upscale niche markets.”
Antagonism towards ‘greenies’
Concern about mental health
The farm trades – much more than their readers – generally reflect begrudging acceptance that environmental practices must improve. As farm consultant Alison Dewes wrote in the last BayBuzz, smart farmers have figured out that better care for and use of their water and soil yields better productivity with less environmental cost. In Hawke’s Bay, about 1,000 farmers in the Tukituki catchment must have
The issues raised above cause worries for any farmer. Add ‘uncontrollables’ – like climate change, hail storms, a seasonal drought, biosecurity threats, or what some far-off country or corporate might do to depress markets and prices – and one begins to realise the stresses under which farmers operate. The worst indicator of that stress is the rural suicide rate, 50% higher than amongst the general population. The farm trades consistently promote
mutual support and proactive vigilance – help lines, socialization (as opposed to isolation), alertness to symptoms by primary physicians, and the like.
Feeding the world Without question, the farm trades are filled with farming aspirations. There’s a stalwart conviction that it is New Zealand’s destiny, almost, to feed and stock the planet. Typical headlines: “Tell New Zealand’s great story”, “Global food crisis looming large”, “China to take more Kiwi wood”. A recent column by MPI Minister Nathan Guy is titled, “Regions will be booming”. Trade Minister Tim Groser notes that trade with China has grown five times since the 2008 free-trade agreement, with agribusiness “the jewel in the crown”. As BayBuzz has reported before, according to the Riddet Institute New Zealand produces enough food (calories) to feed around 20 million people, enough protein to supply the needs of 45 million, and enough dairy products to meet the consumption of 165 million. Realistically, New Zealand is not going to feed the planet, as much as we might like to view ourselves heroically. But with better practices, we can produce more than we do now. Coriolis Research points out that Canterbury is the size of Denmark, but Denmark produces over twice as much food and beverage as all NZ, with only a slightly higher population. The Riddet report suggests our sweet spot: “New Zealand can be a high value niche producer, targeting small affluent populations, and/or a supplier of high value (preferably branded) nutritional ingredients to improve the nutritional value of food in developing markets.” Quality, not quantity, is where a smart farming Hawke’s Bay must focus.
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IT’s TIME TO sELL THE PORT BY paul paynter PHOTOGRAPHS tIM WHIttaKer
“Ladies and Gentlemen, we regret to inform you that your flights to Westport, Whakatane and Kaitaia have been cancelled – forever.” That was the recent message from Air New Zealand. The poor quality of roads in the provinces and the difficult terrain, means these smaller centres will instantly become quite isolated. The justification for this move was that the small 19-seat aircrafts that service these towns were inefficient and were losing $12 million a year. That may be so, but in the face of such a burden, our flag carrier’s recent full-year ‘normalised profits’ were up 30% to $332 million. So flush with cash is Air New Zealand that they’ve paid out $111 million worth of dividends to their shareholders. This might be a snapshot of capitalism in
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all its brutal efficiency, except for the fact Air New Zealand is majority-owned by the government. I’m sure there’s an emphatic argument that the economic benefits of reliable air services to these provinces is vastly more valuable to their communities than the $12 million annual cost. So why does the Government need to control our national airline? They (we) bailed them out because they were about to go broke is what most people say. But excepting their ill-fated venture into Ansett Australia, Air New Zealand has enjoyed a long and prosperous history.
went broke, failed to declare neutrality and was invaded by the Germans. Their owners Lufthansa had the good sense to keep the brand and are doing very nicely out of the deal. When you board their flights, you’ll still get a polite Grüezi. To the casual observer everything is as Swiss as the day they started. Probably the government retain control of Air New Zealand because it’s popular to do so. The current crowd favour popularity over principles, but that’s not an entirely rational reason for anything. The best basis for the public sector to own something is that there are key public good obligations,
“The Port needs patient, long-term shareholders; preferably ones that don’t rely on the annual dividend.” If they went broke someone would buy them and almost certainly hold onto the brand, such is its standing. The best example of this is Swiss Air – once dubbed the flying bank – who essentially
or that the assets are a critical part of NZ’s infrastructure. Both of these aspects seem to have been ignored by Air New Zealand in their latest decision. They’re going to press on and maximise profit.
Why own the port? The rationale for public ownership can also be questioned in our own backyard. Why does the Regional Council (through its subsidiary HBRIC) own Napier Port? The answer appears to be the same as for Air New Zealand – because it’s popular and they like the dividend. The port executive is under no illusions about this – their Statement of Intent is explicit: “The Napier Port notes the Shareholder’s desire to receive a specified dividend flow…” Such an objective is politically sound. Nobody likes a rate hike and that is a certainty if the Port fails to deliver the dividend. Using the port as a cash cow is neither the right approach, nor is it likely to be sustainable. What should be front and centre for all publically held assets are their public good obligations; and this well before profitability, dividends or growth. In 2011 the Ministry of Transport released a report on container productivity at New Zealand ports. A key measure of performance for container traffic is the ‘Crane Rate’ – the number of containers that cranes move on and off a ship in an hour. When compared with five other domestic ports and five from Australia, the Crane Rate at the Port of Napier was the worst. That’s really important because it’s a key consideration for shipping lines. The more freight you can load and unload in a given time, the more money they make. They don’t want to call at ports that are inefficient. Slow loading rates are not the end of the world though. In New Zealand we have more flexible labour conditions and lower wage rates which help profitability. The port management and directors also seem to have excellent long-term plans in place and have significantly improved their productivity since the report was released. Often a poorer performance on this sort of metric only indicates that a port lacks the container numbers that would justify investment in more efficient loading systems.
The Port of Napier is small and not easily comparable to larger ports across Australasia. The preferred port infrastructure makes use of straddle carriers and gantry cranes, like you can see at Ports of Auckland. Here we use giant forklifts and more conventional cranes. They’re not as efficient, but they’re a whole lot cheaper.
The threat on the horizon is brought about by the irrepressible trend towards containerised shipping. If this continues at the current rate, the pressure to invest in gantry cranes will mount. Such an
short-sighted and unreliable bunch. Many people in NZ like the idea of government ownership as they see the public sector is benign and caring, while the private sector is soulless and greedy. A tenminute glance at any history book might be enough to demonstrate their faith in the public sector is misplaced. If the port were owned by the businesses that used its services, the port activities would be much better aligned. Moreover these businesses have the long-term thinking and depth of capital to invest in infrastructure should it be required. I’d suggest a model where companies
investment is vast (upwards of $95 million) and would require the port to take on a great deal more debt. It might be prudent in such a situation that they reduced or suspended dividend payments to allow for rapid debt amortisation. In the HBRC, I don’t think we have a shareholder with an appetite for such decisions. The Port needs patient, longterm shareholders; preferably ones that don’t rely on the annual dividend. Recently retired chairman of the Port of Napier, Jim Scotland, has spoken openly about the potential for additional port shareholders, citing iwi as one good prospect. The best port shareholders would also be those that are committed to the port’s public good obligation – to serve the needs of the industries that make our regional economy tick. Perhaps that should be our local body politicians, but they can be a
could only be shareholders if they used the port services and with each individual shareholding capped at 5%. Such measures, enshrined in the port’s constitution, would protect against corporate raiders and profiteers. Similar structures exist already in companies like Zespri and Fonterra. Under this model the port shareholders might include Watties, Mr Apple, PanPac, Villa Maria, Progressive Meats and a raft of smaller players. Such a diverse base would ensure a stellar board of directors and extremely robust shareholder meetings. Incoming port chairman Alasdair Macleod hasn’t shown his hand on these matters yet. “I really want time to think it through,” he said. “I’m certainly a fan of local ownership and control of important regional assets.” Me too. So let’s sell the port to the best Hawke’s Bay custodians we can find.
Investment vs dividend
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Opening the DOOr tO Better hOusing BY ANNA LORCK PHOTOGRAPH SARAH CATES
Residents of state houses “must not complain”.
I agree with Hilary Clinton, it takes a village to raise a child. We all have a role to play in reducing child poverty in New Zealand, but I don’t believe we will be able to make a difference until we first sort state housing. State housing is an asset, but given the appalling condition of thousands of these government-owned houses, they have instead become a liability and an excuse the Government is now using as a reason to get rid of them – we’re hearing things like they are in the wrong places; we need more two, not three bedroom ones; they are surplus to requirements. As these houses are sold off more people in need will miss out on the same opportunity John Key and his mum got. Selling these houses from under our noses is evidence that we appear to have lost touch with the true purpose of social housing and,
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in abandoning it, we’ve instead created an unheralded level of disrespect, held by both the government and the public, towards its economic and social value. Over years of successive governments, these assets have been poorly managed and neglected to the point where some are now in disrepair. But what’s worse, there are also now thousands of houses in sick condition, where people who have no other option are living – putting up with abysmal conditions because ‘you must not complain’. Instead, they are told, ‘you should be grateful for the government putting a roof over your head’.
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n Hawke’s Bay I could give you several examples of houses where families are living for years with dampness, poor heating, rotting floorboards, leaking taps, mould and condensation dripping down the windows and walls, with no curtains
or insulation. And yet, most of these houses have good bones and with some basic maintenance could quickly become respectable, healthy homes again. The only time improvements appear to be made is when a family moves out. Then, as quick as a flash, the state spends a bit of money sprucing them up for potential sale. Why they don’t do this while families are living in them beats me. I encourage you to take a walk through a state housing street, knock on a few doors and talk to those who live in them; most are very friendly and happy to chat. You will see the blindingly obvious – how a little help could go a long way to improving the state housing standard of living. Yes, it works both ways. You need to respect the house you are renting, but if the landlord doesn’t care about it, what example does that set? Even if you have excellent
housekeeping standards, if the wallpaper’s falling down, if the carpet is threadbare, if the Government doesn’t care, what are you expected to do? Selling off these houses is a cop out. When you don’t want to deal with something the easiest thing to do is make it someone else’s problem, wash your hands and walk away. And don’t worry about picking up the pieces. Week on week, more state houses are being sold, even with families still in them and sadly most are quickly snapped up by rental property investors who are cash buyers. Bought at bargain prices, and then often with little improvement they are then re-rented out at ‘market’ rates. There is no requirement on private owners to bring these houses up to standard, again because the Government has led by example. The sale of state houses is another opportunity to make money from the poor. Yes, I will say it, property investors can use their tenants to get more off the welfare system. How? If the new landlord increases the rent, and the tenant can’t afford it, they can ask for an increase in accommodation allowance. And if the tenant can’t get it, they will be forced to move out and more families become homeless, or live in garages, or with another family in overcrowded rooms, which leads to greater poverty and sickness. So while we allow the sale of state houses to carry on, the Government feeds more poverty.
“In Hawke’s Bay I could give you several examples of houses where families are living for years with dampness, poor heating, rotting floorboards, leaking taps, mould and condensation dripping down the windows and walls, with no curtains or insulation.” know, no matter where you come from, there is always something better out there, if you are prepared to work for it.
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e should and can develop a progressive model of social housing that meets today’s challenges head on. We should not be afraid to do so, even it means making changes in welfare reform. Today, it has to be far more than putting a roof over a head, it needs to be about creating a settled and secure environment to raise our children and for parents to parent, and in doing so supporting families out of poverty and dealing with today’s social challenges. To work, this model requires a partnership of ownership and responsibility between
everyone involved. But it must be led by a government prepared to get involved. And investment will be needed to support those whose job it becomes to deliver the resources and tools for those most in need, so they can progress in life. As I see it, the model must provide a mixture of options, short-term, long-term rentals and, yes, even ownership. It must include far easier and greater accessibility of facilities and resources wrapped around these housing areas – primary health care, early childhood, primary, secondary, and even tertiary and home-based education. There needs to the opportunity to work (voluntary or paid) so everyone is contributing. And there must be an end result, so these families can see a better life for themselves and their children – a way out. Yes, it starts with parents, our children are our responsibility and we must do our very best. But as each and every parent knows, regardless of your personal and financial circumstances, we all need some help and support along the way. Helping children out of poverty starts at home. We have the answer on our doorstep; all the Government has to do is open the door – instead of closing it. Then, success will require central and local government, state and community agencies, volunteers, iwi and business leaders and the people who live in the houses and their neighbours to work together. It will take a village.
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ventually hard-working New Zealanders will pay through their taxes for the Government’s damage, because as more families live in poverty, it will cost and put more pressure on state welfare, education and health. We will all suffer the consequences of this short sightedness. I just don’t get why on earth it’s being allowed to happen, it makes me want to shake a few heads together and say just open your eyes – wake up to reality. We are an innovative country of thinkers and doers and we all want our children to have opportunities in a future where they
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Easy ChoiCE: GEt Fit or DiE Early BY DAMON HARVEY
Hine Taylor and Jill Shaikh aim to get fit. “Hi, I’m from Hawke’s Bay. We’re that awesome little lifestyle region on the east coast of New Zealand.” “It’s where the sun’s always shining, the people are always smiling and where Aucklanders like to come to and sip our fine wines and taste our bounty from the land and sea. “You know, where great things grow and sadly where great people die too early.” Yes, unfortunately Hawke’s Bay people die younger than anywhere else in New Zealand. Our life expectancy is 77.7 years for males and 82.3 years for females. The average is 80 years compared to the national average of 80.9 years.
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That might not seem to be too much of a difference, but it gets worse – if you’re Maori, life expectancy at birth for males is 71.1 years and 75.6 years for females. And that’s just one of the dire health and social statistics that we are at – not near – the bottom of. It’s a sad state and one that I’m sure the Hawke’s Bay DHB doesn’t want as the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff. The Health Equity Report released by the HBDHB revealed that of the 49 indicators examined, Hawke’s Bay is worse than the New Zealand average in 15 areas! For example, compared to New Zealand, Hawke’s Bay has:
• more people dying at younger ages; • more people with poor self-rated health; • more people who have had a diagnosis of one of the common mental disorders; • more regular smokers - both adults and year 10 students; • fewer people who are physically active; • more people drinking hazardously; • more teenage pregnancy; • more people who find it hard to get help from a GP when needed; • more people who see dentists only for emergency dental treatment; • more people who have been seriously assaulted requiring admission to hospital.
In the executive summary of the report, author Dr Caroline McElnay says “one of the most unexpected finding was that people living in Hawke’s Bay are less physically active than the average person who lives elsewhere in the country, despite all the region has to offer.” She goes on to say: “I was so surprised at this finding I had the data revalidated. Lack of physical activity links directly into our obesity rates. Two in three Pasifica and one in two Maori are obese in Hawke’s Bay. Obesity increases a person’s risk of dying young; it increases the risk of cancer, heart disease, diabetes and a raft of other related medical conditions.”
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ithout question, lack of physical activity is having a significant impact on the health and well being of our people. It’s a very sobering report, released on the day that Sport Hawke’s Bay was celebrating 25 years of providing sport and health programmes to the wider community. We were side swiped by the startling health statistics – that portrayed the region as the unhealthiest in the country. Sport Hawke’s Bay is a fantastic organisation and has had a tremendous impact on the community. It is one of the leading regional sports trusts in New Zealand and I’m sure that most if not all of the community have benefited by the work our highly capable staff do. We were all patting ourselves on the back for a job well done, but we must take stock of the DHB report. Because, despite all our efforts, the shocking health statistics prove much more work needs to be done, and sport can be valuable tool in the fight against obesity. For a difference to be made we must tackle this collectively, and take responsibility as a community. Although our statistics are worse than other regions, the trends aren’t any different. Immediately after the general election John Key brought attention to the rise in obesity and subsequently appointed
Dr Jonathan Coleman to the dual ministry portfolios of Health and Sport. Presumably there will be much more alignment between the two ministries in an attempt to combat obesity and reduce the anticipated cost reliance on health interventions. On a local level – what role can Sport Hawke’s Bay play? The organisation has the knowledge, expertise and connections into the community to make a difference. I have no doubt that sport and recreation can assist in turning around the health indicators. For many years the organisation has delivered the health programme Green
“One of the most unexpected finding was that people living in Hawke’s Bay are less physically active than the average person who lives elsewhere in the country.” Prescription (GRx), which is a ‘script’ written by health professionals advising a patient to be physically active. It’s usually prescribed by a GP, practice nurse or other health professionals. However GRx is more of an intervention for those already diagnosed with health problems such as Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, obesity and high blood pressure. Although GRx is a successful programme, it’s unfortunately an intervention programme rather than an initiative to prevent these health problems from occurring in the first place.
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hat’s where physical activity and sport comes in. By promoting the benefits of sport from a young age, there’s the opportunity to ‘have a go’ and enjoy the many benefits of being active. As my wife can attest – there’s nothing worse than a grumpy inactive husband. She
sees the mental difference in me, when due to an injury, I’m less active. Obviously diet has a major part to play in our health, and sugar deserves the hammering it gets. In my opinion we need to find a way to curb our growing reliance on it. During a recent conversation with two fellow fit and healthy 40+ year olds, I raised the poor health stats and we wondered why this has happened. The immediate answer was diet and what all three of us had observed. The likes of service stations and bakeries offering combo deals of pies and energy drinks, children walking (well I suppose that’s exercise!) to school chomping on hot chips and slurping on 2 litre bottles of Coke and Fanta. A recent news article described a oneman experiment to see what impact sugar would have. The 50-year-old American decided, after getting a clean bill of health from his doctor, to document his health changes after introducing 10 cans of CocaCola a day into his diet for a month. The result – a whopping 10.5 kilograms weight gain and a body fat increase from 9 to 16 percent! Although this is very much at the extreme end of the scale, I’m sure we’ve all seen examples of children drinking too many fizzy sugar drinks. When it comes to diet, I believe moderation is the key and coupled with physical activity, then that will go a long way to preventing some of these health issues. That said, I’m off to walk the dogs!
Physical Activity The recommended guidelines for physical activity are at least 30 minutes of exercise on 5 or more days per week. Only 42.9% of the HB population meet these guidelines, a decline of 12.8% since 2006. This figure is significantly lower than the NZ average of 53%, with both men (49%) and women (38%) in HB lower than the NZ averages (men 56.6%, women 49.6%).
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NO NEWS IS GOOD NEWS BY Brendan weBB The Head of TV News and Other Light Entertainment did not look up as the young woman entered his office. Its walls were lined with framed awards for BestDressed Male Presenter, Best-Dressed Female Presenter, Best Hairstyle, Best Suit, Best Tie and Best Teeth. He was scanning YouTube for clips of runaway shopping trolleys, turtles on trampolines or hedgehogs riding skateboards. Every few minutes he would shout “awesome”, “brilliant” or “no way!” The young woman coughed gently. “Who are you?” he asked without looking up. The young woman said she was the new TV reporter. “What is your journalistic background?” he asked, downloading a clip of a dog falling off a surfboard. “Six months at Auckland Journalism School and two days on a community paper in Kaitaia,” she replied. “Car Tyre?” said the Head of TV News and Other Light Entertainment. “Where’s that? West Auckland?” The girl opened her mouth but he held up his hand. “Doesn’t matter. What’s important is you’re a brunette,” he said. The girl blushed and touched her fringe. “Yes, both my mum and dad still have very dark hair even though they’re really old . . . like in their mid-40s.” “No worries,” smiled the Head of News and Other Light Entertainment. “We’ll have you blonde in no time. Corporate colour for female TV reporters you know. “Have you done any hard-news stories?” The young woman gave a shy smile. “I covered the Kaitaia Dog Trials on my second day, a golden wedding and interviewed a really old man, he was like, 60-something, who rode his scooter into a parking meter.” “Excellent!” said the Head of News and Other Light Entertainment. “Now what about the weather?” The young woman looked blank. “It was nice and sunny over on the North Shore this morning although I did see a small cloud when I was coming over the harbour bridge. It reminded me of a McDonald’s ice-cream.”
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“Good,” said the Head of News and Other Light Entertainment. “A sharp eye for detail. But what I meant was, could you cover big weather stories? For instance, we give extensive coverage to the first snow of winter on this channel every year. We have film crews on the Desert Road getting shots of kids throwing snowballs and for our South Island viewers, extensive footage of sheep standing in the snow and cars sliding down icy Dunedin streets. “And on really hot days we like plenty of footage of people lying on the beach with Rangitoto Island in the background.”
“And on really hot days we like plenty of footage of people lying on the beach with Rangitoto Island in the background.” The girl gave an uncertain nod. “I guess so,” she said. “I’m sure you could,” said the Head of News and Other Entertainment. “We think it’s important that our reporters stand outside in howling gales and sleet, brushing strands of wet hair out of their eyes and shouting at the camera, while dodging flying sheets of corrugated iron. It makes it more hard-hitting.” “The congregated iron?” asked the girl. The Head of News and Other Light Entertainment was about to answer when he heard a voice booming down the corridor. “Come in Dunedin!” called the voice. “Time to put the old dog inside the shed and throw another log on the fire. Get out those winter woollies and put the jug on cos’ Jack Frost’s ready to nip us in the . . .” The Head of News and Other Light Entertainment jumped up and slammed the door. “That’s our bloody weather guy warming up. Drives me nuts,” he hissed. “It takes him three appearances on our prime news hour each night before he gives us tomorrow’s forecasts.” The young woman smiled.
“It’s probably because he’s old and forgets stuff,” she said. There was a knock on the door and several people began to file into the room. The Head of News and Other Light Entertainment gestured towards the girl. “Our new Weather Reporter. She’s sitting in on our daily news conference. So what’s our top story for the 6 o’clock news?” The Political Editor brushed an imaginary speck of lint off his immaculate sleeve. “The Government’s about to conclude a huge bilateral trade agreement with India,” he murmured. “It’s worth billions to the economy and will be a major boost for our struggling exporters”. “Boring,” yawned the Head of News and Other Light Entertainment. “I understand the PM will be wearing a traditional Indian suit for the signing ceremony,” added the Political Editor. “Ah, now you’re talking,” said the Head of News and Other Light Entertainment, sitting up. “Make sure we get plenty of footage of the PM dressed up in a turban or sari.” The Parliamentary Chief Reporter raised her hand. “I’m right across the story about the Housing Minister announcing a new scheme to build 10,000 houses a year for a decade. It would mean a huge increase in jobs in the building sector,” she said. The Head of News and Other Light Entertainment frowned, then his face lit up. “Talk to the Opposition. Find somebody who thinks it’s going to destroy the rain forests and ruin Auckland property prices.” He glanced at a list on his desk. “Right, that’s politics covered. What else have we got?” The Environmental Reporter put down her recycled cardboard coffee cup. “The Department of Conservation released some kiwi chicks in a remote part of the Ureweras today,” she said. “I’ve got a 12-minute in-depth piece showing the kiwis being put into boxes and fantastic shots of the helicopter flying over native bush.” “Brilliant!” beamed The Head of News and Other Light Entertainment. There was a slight cough and heads turned towards the Overseas News Editor. “I’ve got footage of renewed fighting in the Ukraine, a massive earthquake in China which has killed 1,200 people, the Ebola epidemic is widening and scientists are predicting the complete meltdown of the polar ice cap by 2020,” he said. “Oh, and I saw a six-second clip of a car being sliced in half by a goods train somewhere in Texas.” “Sorry, no room for all that,” replied The Head of News and Other Light Entertainment. “At this rate we’ll have more news than adverts. And we’ve still got 22 minutes of sport previews to fit in. “But I’ll take the train clip.”