Latest news with #CycloneGabrielle
Scoop
2 days ago
- Science
- Scoop
Winners Of 2025 Science Journalism Awards Announced
Press Release – Science Media Centre New Zealand Science Media Director Dacia Herbulock said theScience Journalism Awardsare a unique new opportunity to celebrate the quality science journalism being done by reporters of all stripes in Aotearoa. The winners of this year's Science Journalism Awards cover the dark side of solar storms and explore the impacts of putting rivers in a straitjacket. Kate Newton of RNZ won this year's Established Professional category for her In Depth article, ' Room for the river, ' with designer Hingyi Khong. It looks at the artificial narrowing of the Ngaruroro River channel and its impact on groundwater levels, the braided river plain habitat, and flooding during Cyclone Gabrielle. Judges found it 'beautifully told, deeply relevant well beyond the immediate impact of extreme weather.' Fox Meyer of Newsroom won the Emerging Journalist award for ' Inevitable solar storms will be catastrophic for energy supply.' The third-party nominator said, 'Fox's compelling article was a great invitation to look beyond the stunning auroras and to support mitigations in the face of potential widespread disruption.' Judges were impressed by this under-reported angle on auroras, and commended the 'excellent combination of complex information that clearly outlined why this matters.' New Zealand Science Media Director Dacia Herbulock said the Science Journalism Awards are a unique new opportunity to celebrate the quality science journalism being done by reporters of all stripes in Aotearoa. 'It's been an absolute pleasure to come back for a second year to read, watch, and listen to the 70 submissions for this year's awards. The SMC and the judges had a real challenge whittling these entries down to the final winners.' The awards were designed to cover effectively any topic involving science and its impacts on the communities it reaches. 'Even if a reporter doesn't see themselves as a science journalist, there's a good chance they have covered one or more of the subjects in the wide-ranging criteria for these awards,' Dacia said. 'We look forward to seeing your nominations when submissions open again next year!' Thank you to the judges: virologist Professor Jemma Geoghegan, the latest winner of the Prime Minister's Science Communication Prize; science writer and editor Veronika Meduna; and journalist and editor Alison Harley. And thank you to all those who took the time to nominate their favourite science journalism piece for the 2025 round. Full profiles of this year's finalists are available here. Rebeka Whale, who said she enjoyed thinking about how moss would be like trees for the fascinating little creatures. We were also delighted to host NIWA researchers last night, demonstrating their clever climate change game Future Coasts Aotearoa. Scott Stephens, chief scientist for coasts and estuaries at Niwa, invited awards night attendees to 'experience the squeeze' of rising sea levels for themselves. You can try it out in your own web browser here.
Scoop
2 days ago
- General
- Scoop
Cyclone Recovery Projects Benefit From Special Lotto Draw Funding
Two years on from Cyclone Gabrielle, communities are now stronger and more resilient following the distribution of $11.77 million raised through a special Lotto draw. More than 560 groups and organisations have received grants that have allowed them to rebuild and prepare for future adverse weather, with much of the funding coming from the Lotto draw on 18 March 2023. Funds raised from the draw were passed by the Lottery Grants Board to the Cyclone Gabrielle Appeal Trust for distribution to the community. 'We're incredibly proud to have played a role in this vital recovery effort and very grateful to our players for rallying around to help support those worst affected by the cyclone,' says Lotto NZ Chief Executive Jason Delamore. The Cyclone Gabrielle Appeal Trust funded hundreds of grassroots projects to help restore and strengthen other hard-hit areas, most of them rural. Examples include: $18,509 to the Ahuroa Community Hall to purchase a generator, marine VHF radios, a storage container and emergency supplies $28,000 to Te Ahi Kaa Training and Social Services Centre to purchase satellite phones and handheld radios, ensuring the Kennedy Bay community on the Coromandel Peninsula can stay connected in the aftermath of an emergency $30,000 to Te Rawhiti Work Trust to purchase a container, trailer, and essential emergency equipment — vital tools to help them respond quickly and effectively in future crises Many of the grants have focused on funding equipment and infrastructure that will enable community organisations to withstand another severe weather event more effectively. Delamore says the team at Lotto NZ leapt into action to support communities affected by the cyclone. 'When the cyclone hit, our role was clear. As the national lottery, we were in a unique position to offer a way that Kiwis could contribute towards relief for those in need and to help them get back on their feet in the long term.' The special draw was part of the overall cyclone recovery effort and complemented the work done by the government, charities, mayoral relief funds, corporate partners and local fundraisers in raising money to help with response and recovery in the aftermath of Cyclone Gabrielle. Project spotlight: Solar on marae More than 70 organisations received funding for new solar and battery installations to enable them to remain open to their communities during power outages. In one of the affected areas, Tairāwhiti, 21 marae received a combined $856,979 in funding for solar panels, helping build resilience both within the community and against any future events like Cyclone Gabrielle. The project includes marae locations from Pōtaka in the north through to Te Araroa, Rangitukia/Tikitiki, Ruatōria, Waipiro Bay, Tolaga Bay, Makauri, Whatatutu, and Muriwai with the allocation of funds overseen by Trust Tairāwhiti. 'Our marae has always been a natural place of gathering for our whānau, especially in times of crisis,' says Matahi o te Tau Marae Trustee and Secretary Campbell Dewes. 'When the cyclone hit and the power went out, we were cut off. 'Having solar and battery storage now means we're not only able to keep our freezers full of kai and meet our day-to-day needs — we're also less dependent on the grid, more resilient, and doing our bit to reduce our carbon footprint. 'As one of the first places in Aotearoa to see the sun, it's only fitting we can harness some of its energy to power our future,' says Dewes. Trust Tairāwhiti General Manager Audine Grace-Kutia says the 21 marae are being equipped with 28 to 40 high-efficiency solar panels and a battery averaging just over 20 kWh in capacity. 'These systems are expected to cover more than 50 percent of a marae daily energy needs and will save them $100's a month on power bills — all while giving the marae greater energy independence, which is especially important in remote or outage-prone areas,' Grace-Kutia said. 'It means they're able to meet their cultural obligations in times when communities, whānau and hapū need support in the face of extreme weather events and the like.' Notes All funds raised from the special draw went to support communities affected by Cyclone Gabrielle. The Cyclone Gabrielle Appeal Trust was established by the Crown as an independent entity to distribute funds raised in the Cyclone Gabrielle Appeal. The Trust allocated $14,511,916 in total to help recovery efforts, of which $11,770,000 came from the live Lotto NZ draw on 18 March 2023.
RNZ News
4 days ago
- Business
- RNZ News
Inland Revenue finds $45 million of undeclared tax in horticulture industry from last 10 months
Inland Revenue was pursuing the contracting firms through audits and prosecutions with nearly 100 such audits active at the moment. Photo: Supplied Inland Revenue has found $45 million of undeclared tax in the horticulture industry in just the last 10 months. Spokesperson Tony Morris said they were seeing concerning practices in the sector, that included people being paid under the table. He said some in the sector were still recovering from Cyclone Gabrielle, and dealt with increasing compliance costs and labour shortages, so paying tax could become an afterthought. Morris said Inland Revenue was also seeing cash sales not being reported correctly and withholding tax not being deducted on payments made, deducted at incorrect rates or not being reported. Growers typically hire labour through contracting fims and Morris said it's these firms that try and hide payments. Photo: 123rf Inland Revenue was pursuing the contracting firms through audits and prosecutions with nearly 100 such audits active at the moment. "While many growers are doing things right, they typically hire labour through a contracting firm, which then frequently pays the labourers in cash. Some of these contracting firms then use convoluted business structures to try and hide those payments," Morris said. "Not only does this mean they could avoid their tax, but it also means the labourers can get benefit payments they aren't entitled to or avoid their child support or student loan payments. "Inland Revenue is cracking down on this by requiring many contracting firms to withhold tax from their labourers payments, and pay that directly to IR. Where Inland Revenue identifies growers and other payers not correctly deducting or accounting for the tax, we are also following these up." Morris also said due to the high use of cash and migrant labour in the horticulture industry, it was a sector open to the abuse of workers. He said Inland Revenue worked with other government agencies to address such issues. "Alongside Hort NZ and Zespri, we work hard to ensure growers and contracting firms are aware of what they need to do to get things right, and appreciate the efforts of the many who do get it right." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Scoop
13-06-2025
- Business
- Scoop
Farmers Still Rushing To Convert Land To Forestry
, Producer/Presenter Whole farm-to-forest conversions continue, according to a new report released by Beef and Lamb New Zealand. The research, carried out by Orme and Associates on behalf of Beef and Lamb, found close to 40,000 hectares of sheep and beef farms had been sold for forestry since September last year. The report also confirmed 29,518ha had sold in 2023 and 30,483ha in 2024. It brings the total amount of farm-to-forestry conversions since January 2017 to more than 300,000-ha. Beef and Lamb estimates this has resulted in the loss of more than 2 million stock units since 2017. Chair Kate Acland said the data underpinned longstanding concerns about whole farm-to-forestry conversions. "The numbers show whole-farm sales for conversion to forestry for carbon credits are continuing at pace," she said. "What we're really concerned about is whole farms, really good productive land getting planted into trees." The research showed Hawke's Bay, Wellington and Wairarapa remained preferred locations, while Southland had also seen a notable increase. There was a significant slowdown in the Gisborne region, likely due to the environmental impacts of adverse weather events such as Cyclone Gabrielle and tightened harvesting conditions being set by regional councils. Acland said they were not against incorporating forestry within farms, adding if most farmers planted 10 percent of their least productive land in trees, they could still maintain production. "We're very supportive of incorporating trees within farms. and I think there's a real opportunity here for farmers to be part of the solution." This week the government introduced new legislation to restrict farm-to-forest conversions on Land Use Classification (LUC) 1-6 land. Under the changes, which will retroactively take effect from December last year when the policy was originally announced, up to a quarter of farms can be planted in forestry for the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS). There will also be a ban on full farm-to-forest conversions entering the ETS for actively farmed land and an annual cap of 15,000ha for forestry entering the ETS for lower quality farmland. Acland said while the government putting restrictions around whole farm to forest conversions was positive, she wasn't sure it went far enough. "Anecdotally we're still hearing of a significant number of farms being sold this year, despite the government announcing the limits last year. "We're concerned that some sales are continuing on the basis of intent to purchase land before the limits were announced. We urgently need the government to tighten the criteria around proof of intent to purchase." Additionally, she was particularly concerned about class 6 land, which she said was "some of the most productive sheep and beef breeding country". Acland said carbon forestry had a comparatively "short-term return" when compared to sheep and beef. "I think we need to recognise the importance of the red meat sector for the economy of this country." Federated Farmers national president Wayne Langford echoed some of these concerns, saying the country was approaching critical mass for sheep production. He said the new forestry conversion rules were moving "slowly". "We're gonna see more processing plants close, we're gonna see a lot more communities close down unless we do something about this issue across the country." The legislation is now before Parliament and is to come into force October 2025.
Scoop
12-06-2025
- Business
- Scoop
Transpower Proposes Further Investment In Power Supply For Hawke's Bay
Once the Commerce Commission approve the proposal, Transpower expects to start the work in October 2026 and finish by December 2027. Transpower plans to invest $47.0 million to rebuild its Redclyffe substation to better protect Hawke's Bay's electricity supply against flooding and earthquakes. The national electricity transmission grid owner submitted a proposal to the Commerce Commission today for approval to rebuild the main 220kV switchyard on the existing site, raising essential equipment out of the reach of potential flood waters. Transpower's Executive General Manager Grid Development Matt Webb said this is another aspect of the work to rebuild the substation after it was flooded during Cyclone Gabrielle in February 2023. 'After Cyclone Gabrielle, we made a commitment to the people of Hawke's Bay to make their region's power supply more resilient to extreme weather and seismic events,' he said. 'Residents can be confident that our interim upgrades have protected their power supply, and the work we're proposing now will make Redclyffe substation flood resilient to a 1-in-450-year flooding event and much more resilient to earthquakes. 'For the people of Napier, Hastings and surrounding areas, that would mean the power is more likely to stay on during catastrophic weather events like Cyclone Gabrielle.' Mr Webb said Transpower has already completed significant work at Redclyffe substation to improve security of supply in the region since Cyclone Gabrielle. Interim upgrades to the 110 kV switchyard were made in 2023 to make the equipment there more resilient to flooding, and an interim 220 kV control room has also been installed above the flood level. A new 220 kV/110 kV interconnecting transformer is currently being installed that will significantly boost reliability of electricity supply in the region. Under New Zealand's electricity transmission regulatory framework, the Commerce Commission reviews and approves Transpower's work plans to ensure investment is cost-effective and in the long-term interests of New Zealanders. 'We've engaged extensively with local communities on our plans for the region alongside our local lines company partner Unison Networks,' Mr Webb said. 'We believe this is the most cost-effective approach that also takes into account growing demand for electricity in the region. We have strong support from key stakeholders for our proposal and we look forward to the Commerce Commission rigorously testing our plans and costings.' Once the Commerce Commission approve the proposal, Transpower expects to start the work in October 2026 and finish by December 2027. The work can be completed without any impact to local electricity supply, Mr Webb said.
