Cow reduction

There is indisputable evidence that the massive growth of intensive diary farming has contributed hugely to the deterioration of the water quality of many lowland rivers. Despite this the present government as well as the agricultural industry wants to further increase cow numbers and is trying to ignore the further deleterious effect this will have on water quality.

Worse still is the recognition that such an increase relies heavily on water abstraction from nearby rivers. How such reduced flows can cope with even more nutrient loading is conveniently sidestepped by the proponents.

Much has been made of riparian planting and fencing to minimise water pollution from nutrient run-off. However, one would have to be totally deluded to believe that such narrow margins planted with a few natives were capable to intercept and lock up the massive and continuous stream of nitrogen migrating from the paddocks towards an adjacent stream.

It is unfortunate and shortsighted that in this increasingly heated national water debate farmers cop most of the blame. It was not so many decades ago when a diary farmer could make a decent living from about 100 cows. To do so today requires a much larger herd of high yielding animals producing huge quantities of milk.

Why is this so? For an answer one needs not look any further than the farmers’s own processing company, Fonterra, which still converts a large percentage of this ocean of white gold into cheap, bulk milk powder instead of into high value, low volume innovative products.

With higher ‘‘value added’’ milk processing farmers could make a good living with fewer cows, fewer overheads and less public condemnation. (Abridged) Herb Spannagl New Plymouth

SH3 safety

Just read Jim Tucker’s opinion on the road improvements on SH3 north. Yes the NZTA have ‘‘temporarily fixed the potholes and rough seal’’ over Mt Messenger.

A sign at the side of the road about one kilometre south of Mt Messenger and another at Hanna corner north of the Awakino Gorge tell us that this section of road is having safety improvements made on it. I think the NZTA have found a good use for recycled old cars. They are filling up what narrow shoulders there are on just about every bend on the road from Ahititi to Mahoenui with steel railings .

It must be a problem that only affect this section of highway. As travelling north from Waitara to the mountain and from Mahoenui north to Te Kuiti there are very few other railings. The railing north of the Ahititi School gate has made a safe section road a worse safety problem than before’ as now a car turning into the school only has about 50m to get off of the roadway.

I have been travelling the road from Mokau (28 years and Waitaanga 16 years) to Waitara and there has not been many accident were the new railings are being installed. If a car runs off the road and into a paddock it usually results in minor injury.

With the railings the vehicles will end involving other vehicles on the road with far more serious injures I agree with Jim Tucker and wished that NZTA use the money for more passing lanes.

To be adding one more passing lane each way over this section of highway will not make the drive north any safer than what we have now. Trevor Walshaw Mokau

No sealing needed

I write to congratulate Dante Gryphon on the ‘Letter to the Editor’ (TDN September 11) on the possibility of the remaining shingle section of the Tangarakau Gorge being sealed. Having been brought up in eastern Taranaki and taught to drive on ‘metal’ roads I would like to add my feelings to those that would prefer to leave this section of SH43 unsealed.

Unsealed roads are becoming rare. They are cheaper to maintain than a sealed road. They teach drivers to counter-steer if they should get into a skid. All this section of road needs is more shingle to prevent mud-holes from forming and more frequent grading to keep the surface rounded and allow run-off of heavy rain. If drivers get into a skid on corners it means they are going too fast. Slow down and enjoy the drive but don’t blame the road when it is ‘driver error’ that caused the problem. John Hill Urenui