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Forestry standards
It’s a bit like trying to compare pinecones and cowpats, when putting the brand new National Environmental Standard for Plantation Forestry against the draft Southland Land and Water Plan (September 20).
The objects might be the same colour, but everything else is different. For instance, the NES prevents logs being hauled over streams more than 3 metres wide during harvesting. The L&WPlan is silent on such activity and just about everything else to do with forestry.
For most forest management, and for most places in New Zealand, the NESPF imposes a far tougher set of environmental rules, over its 106 sections and four schedules, than the previous collection of strictly local requirements.
Southland currently has few rules.
Plantation forests are not underlain by clay tile pipe drains and don’t leach nitrate or leak E.coli.
If, for example, the catchment of the highly valued Waituna Lagoon was in forest, be it plantation or native, then it wouldn’t have anything like its severe contamination problems. Peter Weir Chair Environment Committee Forest Owners Association
Continuing revolutions
I see in Gwynne Dyer’s column (September 19) that another revolution is heading your way. (Not mine; I’m far too old). He mentions the millions of workers in the oil and transport industry who will be unemployed or unemployable.
Having now lived through several of these so-called revolutions and knowing from my readings of history that they are as common as cow pats in Southland paddocks, I’m sure that within a very few years whole industries at present unknown will be developed and grow to unimaginable scales. Probably within the timeframes he mentions; eight to perhaps 45 years.
Consider the first major change in transport almost wholly within my lifetime, from the horse and dray to tank transporters carrying 30/40 tons within less than 20 years, accelerated obviously by World War 1 (10 years before my time). Then the second ‘‘to-doo ‘‘ which put us into space, in a manner of speaking.
As a boy I can remember watching funerals using four beautiful black horses, plumed and all, in front of the carriage, gleaming glossy black and, to my innocent mind, fit for a king. Huge loads of steam boilers 100 tons or more, trundling along behind steam engines at a stately walking pace. I think the way we are going we may well revert to those modes, possibly with a sense of relief. Judging from traffic reports each morning, Auckland may already be there. Michael Irving Invercargill
Rrrrrugby
I have just finished watching Southland Rrrrrugby reach yet another below-par performance. What a complete shambles this team is in 2017.
Apart from renaming the team ‘‘Spikers’’ (as their gonads obviously haven’t dropped) I am at a loss to comprehend the total lack of skill and commitment from the players and coaching staff. This team lacks discipline, can’t catch, can’t tackle, is unfit and has absolutely no direction. The best thing for this selection of players is to switch codes and go and play for the Warriors, as the skills they are showing will fit in perfectly. Being beaten (well beaten) by another lower union 57-0 is a total disgrace and the management of Rrrrrugby Southland need to sort this out ASAP or they will again start to lose income as in a previous year under Clark’s Leadership. Nonperformance leads to lack of support and loss of ticket sale and loss of income. I doubt the NZRFU will bail them out again.
Heartland Rrrrrugby is not the key. Playing Rrrrrugby with some heart is! Steve Fagerlund Winton As the retired senior pastor of Invercargill Central Baptist Church I write to support the endeavours of Number 10 One Stop Shop and the Invercargill Secondary Schools Network to remain at their current location, 10 Deveron St. The current location of these organisations and their partnership with Central Baptist is ideal for their purposes. I urge the council to heed the voices of those asking for these youth services to remain at Number10. Brian Kenning Invercargill