‘Rural proofing’ key to protecting community
The launch was welcomed by Rural Women New Zealand national president Fiona Gower, who said the guide would go a long way to alleviating poor policy development and service delivery.
‘‘Understanding the impact that government policies, service delivery and business behaviour have on our rural communities is not only vital to the success of the rural economy, it builds and maintains our rural social fabric,’’ she said.
‘‘RWNZ has been calling for rural impact analyses to be carried out in both the public and private sector because decisions have, and are being made that have a detrimental effect on rural communities.’’
RWNZ had been a member of the advisory group which worked on the guide and the final document was encouraging, she said.
New Zealand Rural General Practice Network chief executive Dalton Kelly said the commitment to ensuring rural communities were actively considered in policy development would reduce the risk of rural communities being overlooked in the discussions that mattered most. Futuristic masks which deliver blue light to a cow’s eye could provide a sustainable boost to milk production, the developer says.
Dr Barbara Murphy, chief scientific officer and founder of Irish company Equilume said the technology had increased milk production in grass-based herds by 9 per cent during testing in Ireland.
The masks contain lightemitting diodes (LED) which deliver low-intensity blue light to the animal’s eye, suppressing melatonin production and increasing the growth hormones that stimulate milk production.
‘‘It matches with a sustainable approach to agriculture because instead of increasing your herd size by 9 per cent, your herd produces more milk,’’ Murphy said.