BayBuzz May/Jun 2014 by BayBuzz

top 25 dam questions diabetes

wonder woman end of the

railroad line?

MAY/ JUN 2014

INCLUDING GST

bike buzz

taste te mata

proud to own a bar 03

772253

262009

The $600 Million Dam Man Can he jump the financial hurdle?

ATTN14GEM35

The Woodford House Chapel (built in 1925), has been earthquake strengthened to proudly stand the test of time for many generations to come.

ISSUE No.18 : MAY / JUN 2014

THE DAM 14

TUKITUKI PROTECTED … BUT WHAT ABOUT THE DAM?

may/jun 2014

By Tom Belford

THIS MONTH

The dam is front and centre. Skeptics abound. What you should know. A rescue party tries to save the railroad. Diabetes caregivers battle … what’s the fuss about? Are councils botching everything?! Plus home design, cycling and food.

FEATURES 8

CAN THE RAIL LINE BE RESCUED? By Keith Newman It’s Regional Councillor Alan Dick against the Government to save the Napier to Gisborne rail line.

DIABETES WONDER WOMAN? By Tom Belford One doctor has caused a commotion in Hawke’s Bay diabetes care? How important is this?

show us the money By Mark Sweet

DOES THE IRRIGATION SCHEME WORK FOR FARMERS? By Barrie Ridler

ALTERNATIVES TO THE DAM By Garth Eyles and Chris Perley

MAURI ORA KI TE RANGI By Ngahiwi Tomoana

CAUTION! THE DAM IS A RISKY PROPOSITION By Pauline Elliott

only 25 questions left! By Tom Belford

Mandy Jensen phone 027-593-5575 Mandy Jensen 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.

ISSN 2253-2625 (Print) ISSN 2253-2633 (Online)

ISSUE No.18 : MAY / JUN 2014

may/jun 2014 contributors >

50 IDEAS & OPINIONS

CULTURE & LIFESTYLE

dam remains a MOVING TARGET Tom Belford

They're back Kay Bazzard

I’M PROUD TO OWN A BAR! Roy Brown

bike buzz Damon Harvey

getting hawke's bay youth to work Claire Hague

SINGLE MEDICAL ID GOOD FOR YOUR HEALTH

TASTE te mata

BUSTED!

Prue Barton

Paul Paynter

BEYOND REASONABLE DROUGHT Tom Belford

PUTTING THE BUZZ INTO RESIDENTIAL DESIGN Thom Craig

THE VILLAGE … LIFESTYLE + BUSINESS Adrienne Pierce

HANDMADE, UPCYCLED, RE-USED Jessica Soutar Barron

64 This publication uses vegetable based inks and environmentally responsible papers. The document is printed throughout on Sumo K Matt, which is FSC® certified and from responsible souces, manufactured under ISO 14001 Environmental management Systems.

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.

Keith Newman

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 manager with the Metropolitan Police Service. She also produces Fruit Bowl Craft Jam and Pecha Kucha in the Bay.

MYSTERIES OF THE MAUSOLEUM Brendan Webb

THE BAYBUZZ TEAM > EDITOR Tom Belford Senior writers Jessica Soutar Barron, Keith Newman, Mark Sweet, Tom Belford columnists Brendan Webb, Claire Hague, Damon Harvey, David Trubridge, Kay Bazzard, Paul Paynter, Phyllis Tichinin, Prue Barton, Roy Dunningham, Sarah Cates editor’s right hand Brooks Belford photography Tim Whittaker, Sarah Cates ILLUSTRATOR Brett Monteith creative, design & production Steff @ Ed art assistant Julia Jameson advertising sales & distribution Mandy Jensen Online Mogul business manager Bernadette Magee printing Format Print

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, and is due for publication early 2014. 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 publishes BayBuzz, writes an acclaimed blog for professional NGO fundraisers and communicators in North America and Europe, and is a HB Regional Councillor.

BAYBUZZ POSTAL: PO Box 8322, Havelock North

All BayBuzz magazine articles are archived 30 days after publication at: www.baybuzz.co.nz

FROM THE EDITOR

At the moment, Lawrence Yule seems like the man to beat! BayBuzz also queried about amalgamation, simply asking: Do you support the One Council approach, or would you prefer no amalgamation? Respondents favoured One Council by 55% to 40% (5% other), including 34% supporting in Napier, while 18% oppose amalgamation in Hastings. Obviously this is not a scientific survey, as respondents were self-selected. That said, the poll was evenly promoted across the two population centres, and with 650+ respondents, it is not a bad indicator of where the more politically aroused in our population stand. History suggests that more than half of those eligible, won’t vote.

Dam remains a moving target BY ~ tom belford

The two most contentious issues before Hawke’s Bay, amalgamation and the dam, will be in the spotlight in May and June. On the amalgamation front, the Local Government Commission is conducting hearings throughout the region, listening to individuals and organizations that have already filed written submissions. This process is slow moving, with the real action not occurring until after the national elections. However, BayBuzz optimistically leapt ahead in our last edition and launched a straw poll for the First Mayor of Hawke’s Bay. We’ve received over 650 responses as I write, with 51% from Napier, 38% from Hastings, and 10% from CHB and Wairoa. We first asked if folks would prefer an ‘experienced hand’ to guide us through the transition to one council, or a ‘fresh face’ dedicated to change. ‘Experienced hand’ was the overwhelming choice, favoured by 71% of respondents.

While amalgamation is on simmer; the dam, on the other hand, is on boil. HBRIC has pressed furiously for a positive decision on the dam by 30 June from the Regional Council (now delayed until 30 September). Hence the public consultation process underway. I, together with Councillors Barker, Beaven and Graham, have strenuously challenged this rush to judgment. When we were asked on 30 April by HBRC staff to approve the consultation process, we had seen no confirmed private investors, no money from the Crown, and no signed water purchase agreements from CHB farmers. Moreover, we had seen no business plan from HBRIC worthy of the name; nor a probing or even final review of HBRIC’s case from our independent consultant. What we had received was our consultant’s one-hour verbal assessment of the non-plan, and a verbal presentation from HBRIC itself. And we had received only a cursory verbal assessment of the impact of the Board of Inquiry’s (BOI) decision regarding protection of the Tukituki (and other conditions placed on the dam) on the financial viability or claimed benefits of the $600 million dam ($300 million to build; $300 million in on-farm costs to use). So, I voted not to commence public consultation. A terribly shonky way to conduct public business. But it follows the pattern set by the previous Regional Council, which simply lapped at the feet of senior staff.

Seven ‘candidates’ were offered from amongst Hawke’s Bay’s established political leaders – Barbara Arnott, Kevin Atkinson, Rick Barker, Bill Dalton, Chris Tremain, Fenton Wilson, and Lawrence Yule.

That staff has now spent nearly $14 million in pursuit of its plans for the Tukituki and the dam (including $4 million from central government). A major chunk of this, over $4 million, was spent advocating an insufficient water quality management plan to the BOI, which thankfully rejected it, noting HBRC’s own consultants were inconsistent with their past positions.

Despite the higher ‘turnout’ from Napier, Lawrence Yule topped the response with 45% of the ‘vote’, followed by Dalton (24%), Tremain (14%) and Arnott (11%), with none of the others reaching 10%. Perhaps two points worth noting.

This Regional Council is the institution that Councillors Fenton Wilson, Christine Scott & Co insist is Hawke’s Bay’s bastion of environmental defence, to be protected from amalgamation. Right!

First, Napier-based candidates captured 49% collectively, while Hastings-based Yule plus Atkinson and Barker won 52%. Geographically, a coin toss.

In my opinion, we should not be consulting now on the dam scheme, which is still too much a moving target.

Second, accepting Yule and Dalton as the ‘front-runners’, how did each do on the other’s turf? Yule got 60% of his home base Hastings vote, and 30% of the Napier vote. Dalton got 40% of his home base Napier vote, and 10% of the Hastings vote. Yule drew appreciably more ‘cross-over’ support.

Tom Belford

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Letters to the Editor We encourage readers to criticize, expand upon or applaud our articles as they see fit. All of our magazine articles are published online – www.baybuzz.co.nz – where you can always comment … at any length and as often as you like. But we are also happy to publish a limited number of readers’ letters here. You can email us at editors@baybuzz.co.nz or mail us at BayBuzz, PO Box 8322, Havelock North.

Vegetarianism By Paul Paynter Paul Paynter’s exhortation that we become vegetarians or outright vegans because it’s healthier flies in the face of science, evolution, our connection with the circle of life and taste. The notion that eating meat chews up more resources and degrades the land applies only to feedlot or CAFO situations where mega tonnes of corn and soy grown using chemical-based fertilisers are transported for hundreds of miles from farm to fattening facility. Growing meat in the open on the more natural, diverse diet of mineral dense pastures and shrubs can actually improve soil quality and ultimately pasture production and at a lower cost. From a nutritional standpoint, just taking additional B12 will NOT protect, vegans in particular, from a crippling array of degenerative disorders. Highly unwise to be the child of a pregnant vegan, as there simply is not enough cholesterol and beneficial saturated fat to adequately lay down neuron circuitry. Saturated animal fats have been key to our brain and skeletal development for millennia.

Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

If we profess to care about all forms of life, but prefer not to take the life of another sentient entity in order to feed

ourselves, we’d be limited to eating bacteria. Pretty much every other form of life has complex communication and self-defence systems, enters into cooperative arrangements with a host of other organisms and has an immune system. Where do you draw the line? This ‘no eyes or no mother’ stuff is totally arbitrary. So what’s meant to happen with all the cows, pigs, partridges, goats that we currently feed, keep safe and then eat … they get abandoned or never get born with the concomitant joys of being alive and out in the sun expressing their innate behaviours? We are all part of the recirculating of nutrients in this planetary ecosystem. We eat other organisms in order to live and ultimately we are eaten by a host of organisms. Dying and becoming food for someone else is part of the bargain of being alive. I prefer to strive for a diet that best mimics what our progenitors thrived on because our genes have not changed since the Paleolithic. Improving soil productivity, giving our production animals an excellent diet, a low stress life and quick dispatch to be consumed with gratitude is my way of staying within the circle of life. Phyllis Tichinin

Kudos I have just read your latest magazine and am impressed by the coverage. Concerning one of the two major issues, i.e. the Dam, one wonders how in the past we managed to achieve the building of say the Waikato or South Island electricity systems. Were the present day arguments and objections available then? Have we got the right structures for dealing with them? Your concerns about the Regional Council are also disturbing. Have we allowed the administration to get out of hand? Why has the amalgamation proposal been such an issue? Maybe the perceived benefits were not explained in greater detail and representation given more thought. I seem to have been asking too many questions, but Hawke’s Bay has been my home for 85 years except working in Kenya for 18 months and the occasional overseas trip and one does develop a sense of belonging, so once again thank you for your thought provoking magazine. David Hildreth

Mystery at the Museum By Jessica Soutar Barron

Needless to say, I really enjoy the magazine. It really is unique and so informative. I lived away from Hawke’s Bay for many years, therefore the magazine was a great welcome home. I have decided to up my subscription.

This article is far too long, some vigorous editing is needed (as with some other articles in BayBuzz) and secondly with this museum debacle in mind maybe it is time retired city councillors and mayors (and others) should be required by law to continue to be answerable for any and all cockups they may have been responsible for during their time in office. Culpability should not end with their leaving office. This applies to most other commercial activities.

Margaret Minogue

Kelvyn Stevens

Dear Team at BayBuzz, We have really enjoyed our subscription to BayBuzz … and offer our appreciation for this amazing service you provide for the Bay. Each issue is packed with insightful articles on the many pressing issues the Bay is facing. With a no nonsense attitude it is clear that this magazine is offering some of the best journalism in the country! We really appreciate Tom’s commitment to transparency in the HB Regional Council. So thanks for all you do at bringing the information to the people. Setha Davenport & Reddy Branagan

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Regional Councillor Alan Dick engineers effort to restore the rail line

Can the Rail Line Be Rescued? Keith Newman asks whether Governmentowned KiwiRail is putting profit before regional responsibility by shunting aside a plan to restore the Napier to Gisborne rail link.

Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

The Hawke’s Bay Regional Council (HBRC) is asking for public views on a proposal to launch a private freight company to resurrect the washed out Napier-Gisborne line, despite every Government effort to derail the idea. Since HBRC declared its interest in the Napier Gisborne Rail Establishment Group’s plan to transform the loss-making freight service into a profitable one, efforts to negotiate with KiwiRail have been stalled, misrepresented, mocked and generally fobbed off. The latest jibe has come from Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee saying, if potential investors are so serious why don’t they fix the wrecked rail themselves. The line was ‘mothballed’ after a March 2012 storm caused three washouts along a three kilometre stretch between Gisborne and Wairoa, but within a year KiwiRail was openly encouraging third parties to submit a business case for its reopening. HBRC, the Napier Port and others spent over $70,000 on an engineering and business study confirming that a more efficient freight haul business would be viable, if it was backed by northern timber and produce exporters and private investors.

The NGR, formed with backing from HBRC, claims the re-opening is not only desirable but essential to relieve pressure on State Highway 2 (SH2), which it says will be unable to cope with the imminent produce and timber export boom. Its proposal includes steam train excursions as a tourism sweetener. In the midst of those discussions KiwiRail appears to have settled on lightweight tourism uses, possibly as a delaying tactic until massive northern Hawke’s Bay forest harvests make it worthwhile to repair the line and get back into the freight business. HBRC councillor and former Napier mayor, Alan Dick, had hoped repairs would be well advanced by mid-2014 so seasonal produce and timber exports could be rail freighted to Napier Port from Christmas onward. HBRC, through its 2014-15 annual plan, is considering taking a 51% share in a private rail investment company. Despite being fobbed off by KiwiRail, Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee and both Hawke’s Bay MPs, Dick, interim vice chairman of NGR, insists the plan is robust and has been misrepresented.

Hope beyond heritage The Institute of Professional Engineers (IPENZ) describes the 191 kilometre line, built between 1911 and 1942 over steep hill country and gorges, as a major feat of engineering. It has five steel viaducts more than 60 metres high, a reinforced concrete arch viaduct, bridges, numerous tunnels and heavy earthworks. The line has recovered from major challenges in the past including the 1931 earthquake, two disastrous floods in early 1938 and most recently the washout near Nuhaka. If HBRC and its backers have their way it will continue to be a critical freight link between the two East Coast cities and points between. If, following public consultation, Council approves a regionally-owned enterprise – most likely under the Hawke’s Bay Regional Investment Company (HBRIC) – it would put up half the $11 million to lease, hire or own locomotives, rolling stock and plant. Dick, in his capacity as HBRC regional transport chairman, says funds could be transferred from the now defunct proposal for an inland port at Whakatu. There’s an impressive list of potential customers and he wants the plan given

tim.co.nz

Waiting on the line Transport Minister Brownlee, after taking nine months to get back to NGR, stated in

December last year that the Government wasn’t interested in loaning, investing or subsidising any private company. NGR subsequently rejigged its plan to be fully self-funding, simply asking the Government and KiwiRail to restore the line so it was ‘fit for purpose’ and to sign a 50-year lease at ‘reasonable’ terms. NGR would cover all future maintenance costs and bank a $3 million disaster recovery reserve in case something went wrong … another slip or washout for example. While the venture anticipates losing a couple of million dollars in the first two years, mainly through catch-up maintenance, it expects to be generating several million in annual profits during its first decade. In May 2010, East Coast MP Anne Tolley and Hawke’s Bay MPs Tremain and Foss began urging East Coast and Hawke’s Bay businesses to use the rail service. The Government had budgeted $750 million for KiwiRail over three years, but only profitable business cases need apply. Three months later KiwiRail began talking about inland ports at Wairoa and Gisborne and ramping up the rail capacity to handle a large increase in timber freight. Tukituki MP Craig Foss seemed

conflicted at the time; the thought of freight migrating from road to rail had him predicting “massive” job losses in the trucking industry. Clearly KiwiRail saw the big picture, investing around $300,000 to lower the bed in three tunnels to enable the use of higher capacity 40 foot high-cube containers and then ramping up its pitch for new business. It met resistance until Weatherell Transport chief executive Steve Weatherell stepped up as a freight forwarder, encouraging his larger clients to move to rail. “No one wanted to trust them (KiwiRail) to get it right so I pulled together some numbers … and told my customers that if there were reliability issues I’d back up the rail option with my trucks.” Weatherell, who runs about 80 trucks, was soon filling 20 wagons on three trains a week with squash and other goods, and claims he could have doubled that if KiwiRail had provided a more frequent service. The deal took the pressure off during the peak season; rather than moving 70 loads of squash to Napier by road each week, his trucks spent five hours loading containers and were freed for other work. Rail was allegedly beginning to make Continued on Page 10

Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

urgency “before any super council bumps it” down the priority list. Although NGR was assured KiwiRail would support and work constructively with “a proposal that has merit”, KiwiRail Freight’s general manager Iain Hill says NGR’s case “has yet to be proven”. He told BayBuzz the Napier-Gisborne line is unlikely to be part of planned improvements and growth and any KiwiRail investment, including repairing the track, must be financially sustainable “with commercial opportunity in mind”. Hill said KiwiRail’s analysis of a 10-year business case didn’t stack up with the $4-6 million cost of restoring the track, plus ongoing maintenance and renewed infrastructure. He claimed the potential for forestry growth was “still a number of years away”. There was no certainty that rail would be cost effective for forestry owners and over shorter distances it would be “generally cheaper” for logs to remain on trucks, a point reiterated by Hawke’s Bay MPs Chris Tremain and Craig Foss.

Can the Rail Line Be Rescued?

Timber and containers now arrive at port chiefly by truck tim.co.nz

economic sense for everyone and discussions were underway to increase peak and off-peak capabilities when the washout hit the line in March 2012.

Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

KiwiRail report skewed After estimating repairs would take five months and cost up to $4.3 million, KiwiRail decided there was no money in it. Like a number of provincial lines, the NapierGisborne track had been a loss-maker, operating at a fraction of its capacity, and under threat of closure for some time. Even doubling the $1 million turnover from 2011 wouldn’t stem the alleged annual bleed of $4-8 million. Shocked at the decision to shut the northern link, a group of local businesspeople funded BERL (Business and Economic Research Ltd) and its specialist rail engineering consultancy to review the KiwiRail decision. Its December 2012 report claimed inconsistencies and unsupported assumptions that hid the possibility the rail was nearing break-even. With capital investment, extra customers and a more regular rail service, BERL suggested it might quickly become as profitable as the Kawerau to Tauranga line. It urged the Government and KiwiRail to reconsider, and to channel money back into rail rather than the road, otherwise the line was likely to “deteriorate rapidly”. The report alleged KiwiRail’s ongoing maintenance costs were inflated by as much as 30% and hinted at “double counting” of assets such as locomotives and wagons before actual company “cash flow” was put on the books. BERL stated that rail was part of New Zealand’s core public infrastructure, and like public roads “should not need be make a full commercial return” of 8.9% to KiwiRail. KiwiRail executive at the time, Jim Quinn, dismissed the BERL report as “a brief desk-top assessment of a highly complex business case”.

Alan Dick says KiwiRail’s report was too focused on negative aspects. In its own assessment NGR’s experts found nothing of any significance that would need major work over the next 10-20 years. Everything was up to scratch when the washout happened; besides $4.3 million for repairs was “not a hell of a lot of money in the wider scheme of things”. Nationally, the Government had invested a billion dollars in KiwiRail to get it back to break-even. While continuing to strip out $200 million in spending, it invested $337 million in 20 new locomotives, 300 new wagons and infrastructure upgrades. According to KiwiRail financials, it made $108 million profit on revenues of $727 million in the August 2013 year, largely through growth in the export and forestry sector. Line dance begins The NGR first got on track in March 2013 when a group of rail supporters, headed by Steve Weatherell of Gisborne’s Weatherell Transport, met with Dick and HBRC chairman Fenton Wilson with a strong commercial plan. The group included Graeme Carroll, a business consultant; Neil Buchanan an engineer and recently retired general manager of KiwiRail’s property group; Dean McQuiod, a director with 20-years’ experience in road and rail transport; and Don Selby, a chartered accountant who, along with Ian Welch, owns and operates a short-line rail company in Australia. With commitment from large exporters wanting a more efficiently run freight service, they attempted to engage with the Government and KiwiRail, but met with a stony silence. After nine months, Napier MP Chris Tremain finally brokered a meeting with Minister Brownlee, who flatly refused Government investment. The proposal was rapidly reworked so it cost the Government and KiwiRail nothing but restoring the

track. Again the silence was deafening. When the response finally came on 10 March of this year, NGR was stunned; it was simply a restatement of the Minister’s original rejection. “I thought they’d sent the wrong letter,” says Dick. Brownlee, or whoever wrote his letter, still assumed NGR was asking for “significant subsidies…with no dividend forthcoming” and concluded there was no good case for the “government to invest in the shortline proposal”. A request to lease surplus carriages and locomotives, currently being sold off overseas, was denied. NGR restated its case on March 18 and again in exacting detail on March 24, insisting “verifiable projections” for freight growth in the timber market were “likely to be four times the operating and capital costs”. It wanted no government money and if KiwiRail wouldn’t sell or lease rolling stock, this could be sourced elsewhere. There was no action on requests for an urgent response to meet with new KiwiRail CEO Peter Ready and Brownlee. Wall of wood ahead Despite claims there had only been a handful of extra trucks on SH2 since the rail closure and that only about 2,000 cars used the road daily, NGR and its backers continue to warn major congestion is up ahead if the line remains mothballed. The fragile, steep and winding 215 kilometre stretch of seal is not a favourite with truck drivers or owners; it’s hard on engines and brakes and often on the produce being carried. NGR has letters of commitment to move 30,000 tonnes of freight, including the Gisborne squash trade and claims support from major forestry companies, Gisborne Federated Farmers, Hatuma Lime, Heinz Wattie, Ovation Meats in Gisborne, export produce warehouses LeaderBrand, Four Seasons and Coxco … who all want more economical access to Napier Port. Alan Dick claims that within three or four years log volumes from northern Hawke’s Bay will increase tenfold from about 90,000 tonnes a year to 900,000 tonnes sustained over 7-8 years. Forest Management NZ and the Roger Dickie Forest Partnership, managers of more than 26,000 hectares of forest estate, mostly in the Wairoa and Gisborne regions, have a preference for rail. They expect at least 3.5 million tonnes of logs could be transported between 2020 and 2025. Steve Weatherell suggests SH2 hasn’t got a show of coping. “It’s hard on trucks, is prone to slips and washouts and weather events and NZTA figures say it already costs $3-5 million a year to keep it maintained.” That doesn’t take into consideration

Can the Rail Line Be Rescued?

the risk to other road users as the commercial convoy gets longer or the inevitable increase in the size of trucks to meet growing demands. Currently SH2 is approved for ‘50 max’, a gross weight of 50 tonnes, up from 46 tonnes with even larger and heavier High Productivity Motor Vehicles (HPMV) about to be approved to reduce freight costs. Weatherell warns “the surface will give out” resulting in a major headache for NZTA’s maintenance programme. Besides, he claims there aren’t enough trucks or drivers to handle the projected volumes and argues that ferrying freight to Napier from remote harvest areas is an unproductive use of available vehicles. It’s already challenging finding trucks to haul logs out of Wairoa. “With the shortage of drivers they’ll be struggling. They could be taking a lot more out of some of those areas if there were more trucks and they’d welcome the rail.” Inland rail hubs The approach favoured by NGR is to truck logs from harvesting sites to a rail hub in Wairoa for storage, weighing, batching and de-barking before being put on the rail to Napier. Rather than the lumbering bureaucracy of KiwiRail, NGR would focus on running a tight efficient

“Every $1 million of freight revenue generated would generate another $250,000 for KiwiRail,” says Dick. Social and economic benefits would accrue from re-opening the intercity link, including choice of transport, improved competition, security of access and employment. With Gisborne’s log port already operating at maximum, its win-win for everyone, says Dick.

operation to complement road transport. Rather than a five hour trip to the Napier Port, plus queuing to unload for storage, it might take an hour from harvest to rail head. Just-in time (JIT) management, would carefully schedule rail delivery to coordinate with the arrival of export container ships. In Dick’s words: “A smaller, lighter, tighter and less bureaucratic operation focused on guaranteed delivery of goods to market … and consistency of service … which was not always KiwiRail’s forte.” If the deal went ahead, KiwiRail’s mothball and maintenance costs would cease and it would generate passive income from freight moving onto its network.

Government closes ranks Dick and his crew, still convinced they were in the midst of “sensitive negotiations”, were shocked when Gerry Brownlee virtually mocked NGR for its persistence in a NewstalkZB interview shortly after the draft HBRC annual plan went public. Brownlee claimed he’s already turned down HBRC’s proposal; what part of ‘no’ did Dick not understand? It was all over and to ensure he got the message, another letter was on its way. KiwiRail did not wish to invest in restoring the line to compensate for what was essentially another 17 trucks on the road for two weeks during peak produce season. It is “a line that was unlikely to ever be profitable”. However, Brownlee did concede what many were suspecting … the rail link Continued on Page 12

Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

Can the Rail Line Be Rescued?

KiwiRail trumps freight plan with lightweight tourism offer

Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

Rather than allowing a privately operated freight company to try and turn a profit using its broken asset, KiwiRail wants to repurpose the rail link between Napier and Gisborne for steam excursions and rail cruisers. Ignoring negotiations for a 50-year lease on a fully repaired freight line with heritage steam trains as an aside, KiwiRail is calling for expressions of interest for its own tourist-based line uses. If it could seal a deal with KiwiRail, the Napier Gisborne Rail Establishment Group (NGR) would work with the Mainline Steam Trust in Napier and extend the line beyond Muriwai, 15kms from Gisborne, for the Gisborne City Vintage Railway. NGR, with strong backing from Hawke’s Bay District Council (HBRC), wanted the line restored fit for freight and heavy steam locomotives, which according to chairman Alan Dick, would bring far more benefits to the region than the “golf carts or 4-wheel pushbikes” proposed by KiwiRail. NGR members include Ian Welch, who owns and operates a short-line rail company in Australia and is chairman of Mainline Steam Trust, which has eight steam locomotives and carriages it intends to base in Napier. KiwiRail told BayBuzz there’s considerable interest in the line from various steam and other tourism operators. Rail cruisers; four seater, self-drive railway vehicles, are already using a 66km loop of the line out of Gisborne as an adjunct to existing steam train excursions. KiwiRail cites operations on the Stratford-Okahukura line and the Rotorua branch line using golf carts or similar. “Our intention will be to establish similar

operation(s) on this line,” says KiwiRail Freight’s general manager, Iain Hill. “These types of operations generally do not require the same engineering standards for track infrastructure as rail operations and may not require the same level of investment for the infrastructure to remain fit for purpose.” Meanwhile Napier MP Chris Tremain, in dismissing NGR’s plan for a profitable freight operation, believes “genuine economic growth” could be delivered by transforming the corridor of land alongside the track, similar to the successful Otago rail trail. His thinking is “a unique fly in/fly out trail”. Cycle tourists would fly in to Gisborne, stay at Mahia, Wairoa, Tutira and Napier then fly out from Napier. “That’s the sort of thing we need to be turning our minds to,” says Tremain. It could work alongside rail crawlers and steam excursions and be seen as a cultural trail with options to visit or stop over at the eight or ten marae along the way. “Look what happened in Otago, small communities there have flourished over the past decade.” Tremain’s proposal for a cycle track has also been affirmed by his hopeful National Party successor Wayne Walford, a former supporter of reopening the line to move freight. The cycle track option has however been met with incredulity by Councillor Dick and others, with claims the area is dangerous (including traverses over deep gorges, long tunnels), prone to slips, has little cell phone coverage and would present a nightmare for potential rescuers once they knew something had gone wrong.

might be re-opened if more timber than expected came online. Then Brownee announced during question time in Parliament (10-04-14) that Government investment in restoring the line “would be a tragedy for the New Zealand taxpayer…and a bigger tragedy for ratepayers of the Hawke’s Bay” and threw down the gauntlet to the NGR to pay for the repairs themselves. Meanwhile, local MPs also confirmed that the steam had gone out of the game. Tukituki MP Craig Foss said a long-term economic study supported by Napier and Hastings mayors agreed mothballing the line was the right thing to do. Foss says, Government cannot subsidise an uneconomic option, particularly when there are alternatives available … it was committed to investing in cheaper alternatives. “The Port of Gisborne remains a cheaper option for the export of logs from around the Gisborne area.” Road is the only way forward, he said. NZ Transport had invested $4 million on five new and four extended passing lanes on SH2, giving drivers an extra two kilometres of passing opportunities. Napier MP Chris Tremain, having genuinely wanted to believe, is now convinced the line could never deliver economic growth and there is no case for re-opening it. After all, KiwiRail are the experts, said Tremain; the NGR plan is unrealistic. “If I genuinely thought there could be economic growth I would be supporting it.” Why, he asked, would you think that fixing the line after the washout would make it any more successful in the future? He cited the 2001 Tairawhiti Regional Development Study: the only circumstances where it might become profitable was if Gisborne Port closed. That isn’t going to happen, in fact it is in a growth phase. However, Gisborne regional transport committee chairman Manu Caddie, after attending a series of meetings on transport priorities, lashed out at those who continued to denigrate rail as the way forward. He accused transport agencies of operating from blinkered silos when they could be saving the environment, reducing road maintenance, and cutting export transport costs by getting freight off the roads onto rail. An April, Gisborne Herald poll showed 70% of 500 responses favoured the HBRC shorthaul rail company. Afraid of competition? Alan Dick believes KiwiRail’s focus on chasing profit through new, heavier, higher volume, faster locomotives on the main

Original courtesy of Steve McElney Can the Railphoto Line Be Rescued?

routes is detrimental to enhancing regional lines and branch operations. “Since the washout the firm impression I get is that this was a good excuse to get out of it, and concentrate on main trunk operations.” Steve Weatherell, under whose brokerage the line had been nudging toward viability, believes NGR has been stonewalled because KiwiRail is hedging its bets. “They see this big wall of wood about to come online in three years and won’t give us a 50-year lease in case they want it back.” Ever the optimist, Alan Dick remains convinced NGR’s business case is watertight and may yet find traction that defies the naysayers. Whether Brownlee would stand behind his challenge for NGR to fix the line or was just being sarcastic, Dick took it as a positive and is now working to see if the investors are up to the challenge. The impression BayBuzz gets is that KiwiRail never paid sufficient attention to the service levels required to win the trust of regional exporters. Maybe it doesn’t want to be shown up by some upstart regional company on a line it claims can never drive the dollars? The default appears to that if KiwiRail couldn’t make it pay, then noone can; certainly a good case to make to Government if you’re protecting your back. Certainly the NGR appears to have more

tim.co.nz

... SH2 hasn’t got a show of coping. “It’s hard on trucks, is prone to slips and washouts and weather events and NZTA figures say it already costs $3-5 million a year to keep it maintained.” steve weatherell

committed investors, a more transparent business case and credible potential for job creation than HBRC’s Central Hawke’s Bay dam plan has so far disclosed? Regardless of whether rail or road is used to meet increased output from the north, the HBRC-owned Napier Port will need to lift its game considerably if it’s not to become site of the ultimate logjam. A decision on whether HBRC takes a 51% stake in the stubborn rail enterprise and how that might proceed is expected in June. Meanwhile, Dick warns if the Government and KiwiRail continue to put up barricades and fail to face the real problem, the issue will remain “a festering sore.”

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Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

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Tukituki Protected â&#x20AC;Ś But What About the Dam? by ~ tom belford

Environmentally prudent water management took a leap forward in April when a specially constituted Board of Inquiry (BOI) ordered a stringent regulatory plan for protecting the Tukituki catchment.

tim.co.nz

The BOI, rejecting a softer scheme proposed by the Regional Council, bowed to the scientific evidence and fashioned a plan that limits both the main nutrients – nitrogen/nitrates and phosphorus – that pollute the Tukituki system. This approach was strongly advocated by Fish & Game, Forest and Bird, the Environmental Defence Society, Ngäti Kahungunu and others. At the same time, the Board approved consents sought by HBRIC, the Regional Council’s investment company, which would enable construction of the proposed dam and irrigation scheme. The Board was satisfied that adverse environmental effects arising from construction of the dam itself and its resultant reservoir were adequately offset by compensatory measures proposed by HBRC/HBRIC. In effect, if the dam is to be constructed, the intensified farming that it is intended to promote must satisfy environmental conditions that are much tougher than HBRC/HBRIC sought … and probably anticipated! Whether intensified farming can meet the new environmental ground rules and generate the increased farm incomes to make the dam affordable are the remaining $600 million questions on the table.

So, is the dam viable? While the Board of Inquiry decision sets the stage for a re-think of whether its new environmental ground rules and land use intensification can co-exist, that is only one of the suite of issues that must be addressed as the broader financial case for the dam’s viability and its claimed economic benefits finally come under scrutiny. The articles that follow present the views of skeptics on the matter. BayBuzz is taking this editorial approach for one simple reason. The Regional Council and HBRIC will soon have spent over $14 million making the case for their plans for the Tukituki catchment. HBRIC will continue to promote the dam throughout the public consultation period and, based upon past performance (e.g Tukituki Choices), the objectivity of the Regional Council cannot be presumed. Since Board of Inquiry is the final authority on environmental aspects of the Tukituki and the proposed dam, our focus now turns to financial viability and economic claims. The articles that follow reflect the concerns of observers who have followed closely the development of the dam scheme. The issues discussed include on-farm economics, alternatives to the dam, the Mäori perspective, ratepayer risks, transparency, and questions that still need answers.

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

New environmental rules The new limits on nitrogen and phosphorus are set at a level required to protect the ecological health of the waterways, as are ‘low flow’ levels regarding minimum water volume needed in the rivers. Too low flows can trigger temporary limits on water extraction for irrigation. The BOI expects that nutrient pollution will be mitigated by limits newly set on nitrogen leaching (these limits are set according to various land use classifications) and by requirements to exclude stock from waterways. What this means is that certain land uses, like dairy farming or intensified cropping on highly porous soils, are not likely to be feasible. Nitrate levels already exceed the new BOI limits in 9 of 19 sites presently monitored by HBRC. That reality will require a ‘re-think’ of any expected land use changes that were associated with the dam. Specifically, dairying was projected to more than double within the dam footprint, increasing from 13% of land use currently to 30% (with many observers assuming an even higher percentage). But the issue isn’t limited to dairying; intensified cropping could produce even higher leaching rates. Offsetting these constraining factors, the BOI plan permits an additional 15 million cubic metres of water to be taken from the Ruataniwha aquifer in Central Hawke’s

Bay, with the proviso that such takes do not undermine the required waterway flows. Farm Environmental Management Plans will be required and monitored to ensure that environmental requirements are being met. In setting its plan, the BOI was mindful of the interplay between tougher environmental rules and current farming practices and farm economics, saying: “The Board appreciates that such a regime will involve a cost to farmers. Nonetheless, the Board has concluded that the time has been reached where that cost will have to be met if serious efforts are to be made to avoid further degradation and restore the Tukituki waterways to health.” The Board cited experts proffered by both HBRC and Fish & Game who identified numerous examples of how good farm management practices could be adopted so that both environmental and land use intensification goals could be achieved. On that basis, the BOI concluded: “It [the BOI] also recognises that as a discharger of nutrients and contaminants, the primary sector is no different from any other industry. It has the same obligations to operate within limits and internalise effects, or mitigate those effects where absolute internalisation is not possible.”

show us the money By the time the meeting started there was standing room only. Andrew Newman, then CEO of Hawke's Bay Regional Council (HBRC) chaired proceedings, and the MP for Tukituki sat at the back of the room eating his lunch. by ~ mark sweet

HBRIC CEO Andrew Newman

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

The venue was the Community Centre in Havelock North, and the date – 31 May 2010 – is when the public first heard details “on the proposals to set up a holding company for regional investments”. Although the proposal contained the statement, “The Regional Council’s investments include the Port of Napier Ltd, forestry and potentially the water storage projects,” at no time were ratepayers told that the main purpose of establishing the holding company was to provide a corporate structure for planning the construction of the dam. But as Treasury documents released in November 2013 under the Official Information Act show, government ministers Bill English and Stephen Joyce were briefed on the Ruataniwha dam proposal in October 2009. Seven months later at the meeting in Havelock North, financial adviser to HBRC, Robert Philpott, explained the structure and extolled the benefits of the holding company. He told the audience of ratepayers, "Why settle for 4% return

on assets when you could be getting 9%." He didn't mention the dam. The holding company morphed into the Hawke's Bay Regional Investment Company (HBRIC). Building the Ruataniwha dam is their prime focus, the scope of work undertaken has been prodigious, and whether one supports or opposes the dam, there is no doubting HBRIC's tenacity and determination over the past four years. Unfortunately, the atmosphere of concealment and mis-representation in which the process began, characterises the way in which HBRIC has developed the dam proposal. Much of the criticism leveled at HBRIC would not have happened if they were more forthcoming with information, and open to scrutiny every step of the way. And now, not surprisingly, at the crucial stage of raising the finance, HBRIC finds itself isolated. Construction is scheduled to begin in September 2014, but where's the money, against a currently estimated budget of $275 million?

Trustpower, who were up for $40-60 million, walked away in March, because the investment didn't fit their ‘risk and return framework’. Ngäi Tahu has also been listed for an equivalent investment. However, chief executive of Ngäi Tahu, Mike Sang, was quick to respond to Trustpower's decision. He told The Dominion Post, “We will withdraw without a suitable partner. Our major issue is that Trustpower brought a large amount of expertise in terms of largescale civil-type construction projects.” Moreover, Ngäi Tahu had already indicated they would not invest in the dam without Ngäti Kahungunu's blessing, and that appears unlikely, given the conflict over the consultation process. Trustpower and Ngäi Tahu were anchor investors contributing 30-40% to the cost of construction. Chances are, they're both gone. So, who to fill the void? New investors? Meridan Energy has invested in water storage projects in the past, but it's unlikely to do so now that it is a Private Public Partnership (PPP) with shareholders other than the Government to please. If Trustpower won't expose their shareholders to the risk, why would Meridian, or any other corporate investor? There is Treaty of Waitangi money in the pipeline. The final Crown offer for the settlement of Ngäti Kahungunu ki Heretaunga-Tamatea's claims was sent to the mandated body, He Toa Takatini, on 9 April 2014. The Crown's final offer is $100 million, which includes “all cultural, financial and commercial redress”. In his letter, Attorney-General Chris Finlayson acknowleged, “HeretaungaTamatea requested an on-account payment to initiate a series of water, education and marae restoration initiatives and to allow your participation in the Ruataniwha Water Storage Scheme if you so choose.” The on-account payment is $25 million, but how much might be allocated to the dam is uncertain. Heretaunga and Tamatea have issues to resolve. Tamatea were favoured by HBRC as exclusive partners for purposes of Plan Change 6. They alone have signed up with HBRIC to manage cultural and environmental aspects of the dam's construction in a deal worth around $7 million. Many in Heretaunga are unhappy, and there are underlying tensions in the relationship with NKII, the region’s corporate iwi entity. HBRIC can't expect a commitment from He Toa Takitini before its target date of 30 September for financial closure.

THE DAM

So who's left? The Government are keen supporters of water storage and have earmarked $400 million from asset sales to assist start-ups nationwide. However, obtaining a secured loan from Crown Irrigation depends on criteria HBRIC haven't met, even before Trustpower walked away. The October 2009 Treasury briefing to Ministers, English and Joyce, advised that, “Farmer participation seems desirable. Farmers should be given a first right to shares in the company. The larger the predetermined profit level for early investors, the more farmers will be induced to participate at this early stage.” The Treasury advice makes sense. Farmers are the most important party in the scheme, as their land and livelihoods are

most affected. Public opinion over HBRIC spending $80 million of ratepayers assets might have been more favorable, if, right from the start, farmers were encouraged to make a matching investment of $80 million. Theoretically that is possible. $80 million represents 16% of the $500 million land value of the 25,000 hectares being irrigated (QV advice). Any shareholding in the project promises a dividend once the dam is completed which cushions the cost of water for the farmer. The banks might bridge the gap, but that is doubtful. Why would they take the risk during the construction stage when others will not? HBRIC invited farmers to invest in the Ruataniwha dam in March 2014, and when they did, HBRIC also invited “Hawke's Bay resident individuals or businesses who are ‘eligible persons’ for purposes of the Securities Act 1978.” ‘Eligible persons’ are those who have earned over $200,000 a year for the past two years, or have net assets of at least $2 million. The offer is to buy shares in a Fund structured as a limited partnership with a minimum investment of $50,000. A cash return of 5% starts after completion of construction, and once water uptake reaches a certain point – Conversion Date – profit from water sales will be distributed. The Preliminary Information Memorandum (PIM), inviting expressions

HBRC chairman Fenton Wilson

of interest, does not indicate how much this is expected to be. The risks for investors in the partnership are those associated with construction, farmer uptake, and the unpredictable; the same risks Transpower decided not to take. Considering a current bank term deposit of $50,000 for 3 years returns 5% at minimal risk, it would be surprising if Hawke's Bay's 'eligible persons' beat a path to HBRIC's door, cheque books in hand. If the Ruataniwha dam is stopped, some might blame the Board of Inquiry introducing nitrogen controls. But lest we forget. Before the BOI report, and five months before construction is due to begin, the only money 'on the table' for the $275m project, is $80 million of regional assets, offered by HBRIC on our behalf.

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

THE DAM

Two Views on the Dam

by ~ mark sweet

Kevin Davidson: FOR

algae are provided at ten million cubic metres per year. This must be costed into the equation adopting HBRIC's current value of water – 10 million x 23 cents = $2.3 million. Add the $1 million or more of HBRIC operating costs, directors fees and salaries, which wouldn't exist if it wasn't for the dam, and the cost of investing $80 million is likely to be $10 million per year until the dam starts earning.

Kevin Davidson is one of the farmers most affected by Plan Change 6, and the Ruataniwha dam. His 462 hectare dairy farm, which at peak milks 1,800-1,900 cows, draws its water from the Waipawa River, supplemented with bores, and he is, “Definitely interested in investing in the dam.” “It'd be really good if we could get $50-60 million from the land owners, because that would send a message back that we believe in it; long term for the generations to come.” Davidson, and other farmers on the plains, have invested heavily in the dam project. “Last year the additional charges on our water was around $25,000 for research and development.” Also he contributed to the $300,000 cost of employing hydrology experts, Aqualink, to challenge HBRIC's modelling. “What's been agreed is the Ruataniwha (water) might be over allocated, although that's not proved, but it's not over-utilized.” So why build the dam? “To grow it,” says Davidson. “To irrigate more land because Hawke's Bay's not growing and we have to do something.” Like many he doesn't “agree with a lot of the methodology Council has used to promote the dam, but putting that aside, if we want New Zealand to grow we have to invest in agriculture.”

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

But Davison is concerned how the dam will impact on his operation compared to others. He pumps water from a four metre deep trench, which fills from river seepage through the shingle, under the stop bank. The plan is to stop him pumping when the river reaches a minimum flow. “If they (HBRIC) were really worried about the impact on the environment surely they'd discount surface takers first. You'd think they'd have come to us, and said, ‘You've got an existing water right, how about you come onto the dam and we'll give you an incentive.’ Instead they're incentivising the guys who are drawing from 60 to 200 meters down, which could, and probably has, a three or four year lag before it affects the river.” To make the dam viable, Kevin Davidson says HBRIC has to, “Make it more

“Ever since BNZ Advisor's report (2012) it's been known that there has to be public sector subsidy in order to make a business case for the dam.”

Kevin Davidson affordable to farmers, and let farmers have more control, so we keep hold of the land. If we farmers can invest in the dam, then we can have a say, and protect our interests.” Otherwise, he says, “It could be going to China or Germany, but I want to see it stay in the hands of Kiwis.”

Barrie Ridler: AGAINST Farm economist Barrie Ridler has taken a keen interest in the Ruataniwha dam from the outset. The former dairy farmer, and lecturer at Massey University says, “One of the biggest problems is we can't get access to the financial figures," and he's dismayed. "HBRIC aren't even allowing councillors to see the full financial details. It's hard to believe that a company set up as an arm of the Regional Council, and answerable to the Council, who are in turn answerable to the ratepayers, is not willing to divulge the information on which they're basing their business case.” But Ridler works with the figures available (see his article in this BayBuzz) and says, “What we do know is that $80 million is going to be invested, and choosing an interest rate of 7% as an opportunity cost, we have $5-6 million a year of interest foregone by Hawke's Bay ratepayers, but the true figure is nearer $10 million.” As he points out, the water that has a public and environmental benefit. For example, flushing flows to clear away

What concerns Ridler most is the likelihood of construction over-runs having to be met by the ratepayers and the potential erosion of our regional asset base. “It's a complex system. When you put complex systems together in the manner this one has been, it's never going to work in the way you think it will. Any report you read about large projects of this nature, all over the world, you'll find it's common for over-runs to be between 80% and 100%.” While Ridler is critical of the Ruataniwha dam, he has an alternative proposal, which aligns with the late Sir Paul Callaghan's assertion, that New Zealand has reached the point of diminishing returns in agriculture. “I don't think the people who have done a lot of the work about adding a whole lot more agriculture in New Zealand understand the concept of diminishing returns,” says Ridler. “The fact is, we've gone past where more resources should be applied, and once you've gone past the optimal point of resources, two things happen: the economics get worse and worse, and the environment suffers.” The alternative Ridler and others propose for the Ruataniwha Plains is “about encouraging farmers to better use current resources so productivity is increased by using those resources more efficiently.” By using water more effectively, and working with farmers on best practice, Ridler is confident production can be increased, and river flows improved without the dam. “Our problem is we've never been given the opportunity to present our case, and unlike HBRIC, we haven't been given $10 million to research.”

Does the irrigation scheme work for CHB farmers? by ~ barrie ridler

[BayBuzz asked farm economist Barrie Ridler to examine the economic merits of purchasing irrigated water from HBRIC. Barrie was senior lecturer on agricultural systems at Massey for 11 years. He also managed one of Massey’s model farms and owned and managed a 460 hectare sheep and beef farm in the King Country for 17 years. He’s now a consultant specialising in modelling economic and environmental impacts of farm systems. His clients have included MAF, DairyNZ, consultancy firms, regional councils and farms throughout NZ and Australia.] The Ruataniwha Water Supply Scheme (RWSS) seems designed to increase farm production at any cost rather than actually provide any economic gain for the farm. Farms are relatively complex systems. The more complex a system becomes, the more difficult it becomes to manage to full efficiency and the greater the chance for catastrophic failure. Contemplating any change to a complex system requires thorough analysis and persistent attention to identify likely constraint points and thus avoid such failure.

Farmers contemplating using an irrigation scheme should require full comparative farm systems analysis. The use of accurate and unbiased data is paramount given the new complexity being added to what may have been a simple farm system, but such data are difficult to source. Will the water be there? Previous irrigation systems relied mainly on river run systems where flow rates were greater than requirements

for irrigation and secondary to the hydroelectricity generated. However, the RWSS requires a high dam built on a river (Makaroro) that may not be able to supply sufficient irrigation water plus normal flows for environmental river conditions in summer. The Makaroro River flow has not actually been measured at the dam site in the five years since the dam was originally considered. The ‘synthetic’ flow rates used to prepare the HBRIC proposal are open to considerable debate, yet are pivotal to determining the area that can be irrigated and the reliability of supply. Depending on who submitted to the BOI on this matter, the synthetic Makaroro water flows may be as much as 35% overstated, calling into question the surety of water supplies contracted by farmers. If the water is available, is it needed? An HBRC pre-feasibility study indicated:

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

tim.co.nz

THE DAM

• In a ‘normal’ non-drought year all of the Ruataniwha Plains appear to enjoy a moisture surplus throughout the growing season – i.e. no irrigation required. • In a ten year drought, the seasonal deficit ranges between zero and about 240mm. • In a twenty year drought, the seasonal deficit ranges between zero and about 450mm averaging around 330mm. • There is also a significant difference in the average water requirement across zones in the scheme footprint. For example, Zone D in a twenty year drought requires about 240mm, while Zone A requires about 400mm. • The western extents of Zones C and D will not require irrigation in most years, and then only a modest amount, even in significant drought events. This suggests that it would be both uneconomic and unwarranted to irrigate these areas.

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

The data above show that in most years, irrigation will provide little additional pasture when soil water levels are already adequate and the opposite occurs if too much water is applied. Dry summers provide a better response to water than damper summers and this relates to the percent of water deficit in the soil at irrigation time. So consistently dry conditions, as in Canterbury, can be managed and provide better responses than would the Ruataniwha area, which averages between 1,000 and 1,200mm of rain and whose monthly spread is quite uniform throughout the year. Projecting greater farm productivity in CHB based upon irrigation experience in Canterbury is fallacious. The RWSS scheme is based upon a contracted ‘take or pay’ system of 35 years. Farmers in the scheme must pay for their contracted water, each year, whether they actually need and use the water or not, yet apparently are not compensated if water supply is insufficient. The farmer needs to know Any comparative analysis requires all the costs and benefits before any change to be compared to those after the change. There should also be a comparison of what other alternative systems are possible, rather than costing only an irrigation alternative. This step seems to be overlooked in the rush to use irrigation as the only way to improve profits.

Irrigation in CHB Why not compare the farm before and after implementing improved management practices – such as better per cow performance through more precise feeding and lower replacement rates; better use of resources by improving pasture, stock and staff management? Such an analysis may well reveal substantial improvements to sustainability and profit with little or no additional cost, yet provide a more balanced system less likely to suffer breakdown. For the RWSS area, applying known principles of farm management and more efficient resource allocation has been shown to lift profits by 25-40% and provide a reliable system that will withstand dry seasons with relative ease and little decrease in profits. Depending on the input data used for an irrigation option, the improved non-irrigated system may prove far more profitable, if not quite as ‘production rich’, as the irrigated option. So, the key data points for the farmer include: 1. Accurate daily rainfall data from the water catchment over at least 20-35 years. 2. Amount of irrigation water required on a contracted 35 year supply to ensure increased stock numbers and performance can be maintained. 3. Frequency of non-supply. 4. Cost of water (yearly charge increasing with CPI). 5. Full intensification costs.

Note: Any additional cost compared to the improved current system must be charged against the irrigation. Using dairy as an example, due to pasture production increases that may result from more water, stock numbers may increase by 50-80%.

tim.co.nz

The improvements therefore include the on-farm irrigation equipment, larger capacity milking shed(s) and yards, races, water supply, feed pad(s), effluent ponds and system, additional fertiliser and pasture costs, tractors and machinery, sheds, staff housing and more stock (and share) purchases. 6. Additional running costs: interest (what rate charged?); insurances, especially for irrigation equipment; power; repairs and maintenance; and depreciation (what rates?). 7. Need to pump water to farm (or pay 26 cents per cum compared to 23 cents/cum contracted). 8. Cost of pipeline from distribution end to farm. 9. Allowable nutrient loads, as these will limit future production. 10. What pasture response rate to water should be used for the area and soil type? 11. What is the effect on longer term profit if more water than is normally required in an ‘average’ year must be purchased but not used; or is purchased but not available in dry years due to insufficient river flows? Obviously, this is a very difficult analysis to complete without very good data on rainfall, water availability and pasture/crop growth response rates, which fluctuate between and within years depending on moisture deficits. These factors all create a formidable challenge when attempting to assess the worth of irrigation in general. They are complicated further when applied to a particular farm, where shape, contour and variable soil type require costly customisation of the actual irrigation system.

THE DAM

The intensification costs are large and it could be argued that it would be less risky to buy a dairy farm in an area with adequate rainfall. Certainly it would be cheaper to buy an existing dairy farm in another region than to buy dryland and convert to irrigated dairy in the RWSS area. Yet HBRIC projects dairying to be the only land use type that actually grows in CHB post-irrigation. The intuitive urge to assume large increases in pasture and milk production will inevitably result from adding water and that this will equate to higher profit and increasing capital gain is unfounded. For the RWSS, assuming a water price of 26 cents per cum, or about $1,100-$1,600/ ha/year every year for 35 years, whether used or not, a price of $7/kgMS* and current costs for farm inputs and charges: 1. If a more realistic 10:1 response to water (ratio at which added water yields additional dry matter) is used rather than the 20:1 response some submitters claimed, irrigation is not as profitable as an improved existing system. 2. If per cow production of 380425kgMS /cow are achieved rather than 450-476kgMS/cow, irrigation is not as profitable as an improved existing system.

3. If the average rainfall year occurs 50% of the time, above average 25% of the time, dry years 20% of the time and droughts 5% of the time, irrigation is far less profitable than the existing system. 4. If water is not sufficient for full irrigation from the RWSS dam more often than one in 20 years, as projected, then profitability is threatened. 5. If input prices increase faster than output prices (and the trend has always been this way) irrigation will become increasingly difficult to afford unless water is virtually free.

kgMS stands for kilogram of milk solids.

If any one of the above factors cannot meet or exceed the stated expectations of the RWSS promoters, it will render irrigation less profitable than an improved non-irrigated existing system. The complex farm system anticipated from intensification using water is vulnerable to only small variations in any of a number of critical assumptions. If all these are added together, the resulting economic loss will be sufficient to reduce equity at an unsustainable rate and the total economics of the farm may be at risk. As shown above, dairy conversions would be extremely risky. Promoters of the irrigation scheme

could be accused of ‘irrational exuberance’. In Central Hawke’s Bay, farmers would be better served by looking at the known improvements that can be made in current practices to lift both productivity and profitability. For example, 21% of existing land use in the proposed irrigation footprint is in sheep and beef (and substantially more in the rest of CHB). According to evidence provided to the Board of Inquiry by Beef & Lamb NZ: “The [HBRIC] plan assumes that irrigation is essential to increased production from dryland sheep and beef farming. This is not altogether correct as the recent development of lucerne grazing and other novel forages and feed sources has demonstrated. Recent work in this area has shown that equivalent levels of production can be achieved on dryland lucerne as are achieved from irrigated pasture.” In short, prudence dictates seeking improved performances with current conditions before jumping into irrigation as the only cure-all for better farm financial performance. Otherwise the irrational exuberance will evaporate even before the water does. [Editor’s Note: Barrie’s expanded treatment of these issues will be published in the June edition of Primary Industry Management.]

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

alternatives to the dam by ~ GARTH EYLES & CHRIS PERLEY

Garth Eyles

Chris Perley

tim.co.nz

[BayBuzz asked two Regional Council ‘ex-pats’ for their views on the proposed dam. Both are deeply knowledgeable about land use practices and opportunities in Central Hawke’s Bay.

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

Garth Eyles is a land management consultant and former HBRC land management manager (15 years). He is a nationally respected land use expert and conservationist, familiar first hand with the farming environment in Central Hawke’s Bay. In 2009 Garth was awarded one of the Ministry for the Environment’s prestigious Green Ribbon Awards. Chris Perley is a private land use policy consultant. He was Manager Land Management at the HBRC until 2011. Previously, he was a senior policy analyst at the Ministry of Forestry and a researcher on sustainable land use strategy at Otago University.

From Garth Eyles: Of course, with climate change, the region will need to use water more efficiently, to store water, and to conserve water as the region becomes drier. Why then is there this great concern about the proposed dam? What are the issues?

Lack of review of other options More water seems to be the only option being pursued. What would be the result if $80 million was spent on developing dryland farming systems in the region? It could save the total reliance on water that seems to be the imperative. The introduction of dryland pastures such

as lucerne and plaintain could greatly enhance production and require a much lower water need. There appears to have been no serious effort made to investigate these options. A pity, as such an approach would have required smaller storage needs. Other than the risk to dam storage capacity being drastically reduced by a Cyclone Alison event of the 1960s filling the lake with gravel, it’s the effects of downstream land use that are going to have the greatest impacts on the region. Climate change predictions include more frequent cyclones for the region. Gravel and our beaches The Dominion Post (April 5) reporting Professor Paul Komar’s recent report, The Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand: Global Climatic Change and Barrier Beach Responses, states, “attention be paid to rivers, especially the Tukituki, with measures taken to improve delivery of sediment to the beaches”.

THE DAM

The dam built in one of the main subcatchments (the Makaroro) supplying gravel from the ranges will stop any gravel movement entering the river system from this sub-catchment for the life of the dam. Most gravel that enters the river system does so from the ranges during major storm events. This gravel ends up deposited as a fan off the mouth of the Tukituki River. Over time, this gravel is distributed along the coast. The BOI decision requires that 3,400 cubic metres of ‘sediment’ be trucked each year to the coast to support beach profiles at the Tukituki mouth. Who knows whether this be a sufficient offset? Cropping Climate change is going to bring bigger droughts, bigger rains and stronger winds. These factors, combined with the Takapau soil suite containing some of the most wind erodible soils in the country, and the need to remove shelter belts (provided with grant monies since the 1950s because of the soil erosion risk) to introduce centre pivot irrigators means cropping becomes marginal. Irrigation will not stop soil erosion as the cultivated soils will take less than an hour to dry out in a howling westerly, whereas the centre pivot will take up to 72 hours

Makaroro River

19 back. Orcharding and before it circulates viticulture have been limited in the past more by out of season frosts and wind than lack of water. Irrigation will not change these natural limitations. These factors mean the western areas on 19 the Ruataniwha will need to stay in pasture to be sustainable and so, most likely, will go into dairying. Any pollution will pass 19 soils into the aquifers through the shallow or into the streams affecting the full length of the Tukituki catchment. Cropping will be sustainable further east, on the heavier soils, which will require less water and experience lower velocity winds. 19

Hill country fencing The approved plan embraces fencing as the major control for phosphorus pollution in the catchment. Fencing hill country waterways is fraught with problems as most are in narrow, steepsided valleys. Fencing along the margins of the waterways means flood damage with every fresh. Fencing along the top edge of the valley sides means a significant loss of grazing land. The fencing costings provided by HBRC seem very inadequate and appear to be about $3 per metre. A retirement fence costs in excess of $15 per metre. The difference in cost between the HBRC fencing of $10,125,000 and my costings for retirement fencing of $50,625,000 is huge! The plan envisages a fence to control only cattle, hence the low cost, which would comprise a two wire fence. This may keep a dairy cow out but a hungry beef animal – no way. Electric? Okay until the power goes off (in a storm) and the fence will be the last item on the property to be repaired. These retirement costs and subsequent loss of grazing income will be borne by hill country farmers who will gain no benefit at all from the changes, but will bear most of the fencing cost and all the cost of lost production within the retirement areas. Continued on Page 24

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THE DAM

From Chris Perley:

tim.co.nz

The propaganda surrounding the Ruataniwha dam argues that we have two clear options: a life of desperation if we don’t intensify farming more; or an economic nirvana if we do. Both positions are false, and leave no room for thought on what issues and opportunities we have – and we have many.

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

Forget commodity production We should be discussing how farm aggregation, corporate farming, and the loss of local ownership and processing impact on our communities. It is assumed we can do nothing about it. Yet the key to local economies is creating diversity and value within the land, adding value locally through long, local value chains, keeping control of as much of the value chains to the consumer as possible, and retaining the distribution and spending of that money locally. Create, keep and distribute value. Attract enterprises that want to live and be a part of our space. Make our place a great place to live for all. An upward spiral, rather than the downward one we are currently in. Proponents of commodity development also don’t question the assumption that a healthy environment is somehow in competition with the economy. It is not. A healthy environment is the key to both cost reductions and price increases within discerning markets. It also gives us the quality of life that keeps our own and attracts others. This is particularly ironic given that the reaction to the BOI decision on nitrogen limits by some proponents of the dam shows they still persist in believing that more pollution and more land aggregation, with less local processing and more migrant labour, is apparently the only hope for Central Hawke’s Bay. More intensification of commodityfocused, price-taking large-scale sameness, with more pollution, is not the answer. It is the problem. Emphasise quality and diversity Our mistake is in thinking that the solution lies in production of more and more, ever more cheaply. By so doing we de-emphasise quality and diversity, almost treating them as disdainful hippy alternatives. Just pour more fuel on a system that is spiraling downward. It does not matter what new technology or infrastructural investment is promoted to our producers. If the basic strategy of commoditising product, land, people and environment is not challenged, then margins will continue to fall, there will be less enterprise and ideas, less potential

realised within our landscapes, less people employed, and more profits and processing jobs lost from our local economy. Those who benefit from the ideal of producing more are the processors of the primary produce, the researchers (who incidentally don’t get funded for researching ‘agro-ecological’ approaches in New Zealand), the corporate suppliers of the ‘next big thing’, and the middlemen who clip the ticket on the way through. Getting off the emphasis on industrialised cheap commodity and re-focusing on market position and price retention is paramount. What we could have We want an economy where there is high-value local processing and jobs, owned by locally owned small and medium enterprises that spend their profits and buy locally, supplied by family farms whose production holds price or is sold at a premium. We need high social capital, morale and initiative within our people with the opportunity to be creative. We want resilience to market changes, so diversity and differentiation is the key. We also want clean rivers and a landscape that can hold water from our rains to mitigate both flood and drought, provide good things for free, and provide us with a compelling marketing message: Healthy land, healthy food, healthy community … therefore pay more for the privilege. Getting there We must realise the potential within our climatic and landscape systems, both in terms of the land use patterns that create a resilient landscape – economically, environmentally, and socially – and in terms of creating capacities in our soils that

lower input requirements and hold water against gravity and drying winds. Given our climate, and the threats of more extreme weather events in the future, increasing these capacities over the wider Central Hawke’s Bay area is far more important than the 25,000 hectares proposed for irrigation. Water holding increases our resilience to droughts and floods, while at the same time creating economic benefits, increasing biodiversity, economic options, lowering energy needs, and increasing carbon stores. Localising and building on the value off the land is also vital. We should emphasise local processing, decentralised co-operative systems, and control of the value-chain to the end market. Family farms are far more important to a local economy than largescale mechanical enterprises owned out of the region and staffed by cheap migrant labour. The research effort on land should be focused on agro-ecological, not lead by production and techno-fixes. We need to work with climate and land, rather than try to force land areas that are uneconomic in pasture away from the woodlands and wetlands to which they are far better suited. That potential is also critical to the market position of our production. The mega-trends for discerning consumers are tasting the local difference (Terroir), environmental and food quality, and food safety. The idea of healthy land, food and community, with a strong shift away from commodity production, has not been seriously considered by the proponents of the dam. A focus on the one (dam) game in town, public relations, and the bamboozlement of sense by finance, has completely trumped strategic thinking. They are still thinking within the commodity trap, and cannot think themselves out of it.

Mauri Ora ki Te rangi by ~ Ngahiwi Tomoana

tim.co.nz

[When the Board of Inquiry issued its Tukituki decision, the region’s largest iwi, Ngäti Kahungunu issued this statement, reading in part:

The bounties of our ancestors will nourish the lands so all peoples will flourish.

Last month I was in China and spent three days in Beijing with Minister Pita Sharples and Pania Tyson-Nathan, CEO of Maori Tourism, following up on business opportunities. Beijing was blanketed in smog for the three days. Visibility was about one block ahead and about three stories high during the day. The smog was predicted to hang in there for another week. Sixty percent of the year Beijing is shrouded in fog, it was reported, and in Shanghai it's about 40% of the year. We met with high-level government officials who informed us that although China's focus on economic development over the last 40 years was on track, they wish they could have had the foresight to also focus on ecological development as well. The price of economic success was at a huge cost to the environment and the quality of life for all Chinese residents. I was pleasantly surprised that our hosts talked so openly about it to us and the media was also full of it. It is a portent that we at a local level here do not sacrifice our taonga tuku iho, the treasures handed down from

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

Ngäti Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated is pleased that the mauri of the Tukituki and Papatuanuku has been acknowledged by the Board of Inquiry … through their direction to apply greater protection measures to the water quality standards than those proposed by Hawke’s Bay Regional Council. Ngäti Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated would like to acknowledge all marae, hapü, industry and environmental groups who we have worked with shoulder to shoulder during this process … The Board has rejected [the HBRC] nutrient scheme and emphasised significantly stronger environmental protections. The HBRC will be required to look very hard at the viability of the over-all scheme in light of the Board’s findings today. We remain committed to working with Hawke’s Bay Regional Council to promote the mauri of our waterways, the sustainability of our natural resources and the kaitiakitanga of our hapü within the Ngäti Kahungunu rohe for future generations … Iwi Chairman Ngahiwi Tomoana said, “Ngäti Kahungunu are pleased that all those submitters who have fought to protect and enhance the Tukituki and Papatuanuku can breathe a little easier, for now.”

Mauri Ora ki Te Rangi Mauri Ora ki Te Whenua Mauri Ora ki Te Tangata

our ancestors, including the environment in all its aspects, for straight economic growth, because a strong ecology makes a strong economy … not the other way around. For sure, there must be modifications and structures and infrastructures put in place to enhance people and places, but not to estrange people from places. The draft report from the Board of Inquiry at first blush certainly and delightfully puts the environment in a strong spotlight to ensure minimal degradation of waterways as a prerequisite to any design, technical, scientific or economic matter regarding the proposal to advance. From a Mäori point of view, which the BOI found very difficult to consider, as they have no expertise in this area, the mauri o te awa o Tukituki, the life force of the river, based on science, has been given precedence over every other aspect, and we consider that a win for Papatuanuku, a win for tikanga, a win for the next generation. What the farming sector has to come to grips with is that farming practices need to invariably change in the face of climate change and global warming, and the tired old practice of just damming things up and destroying the environment is over. Of course we want the farming sector to prosper, as Mäori provide at least 10% of all dairy, and 30% of beef and lamb products nationally. This is alongside 40% of wood and 40% of seafoods. In the past, farming practices have drained swamps, lakes and water bodies, straightening rivers and streams, flushing water quickly to the sea. And just as suddenly, here was a move to stop the water running altogether, only to be controlled by the same bodies – the Hawke’s Bay Regional Council and its predecessors – that drained the water in the first place. It defies our longer thinking logic. Wairoa has water all year round, yet it has never been considered seriously for investment in greater productive capacity. Mäori have serious assets in Wairoa, but these are being ignored in regional economic strategies. Ngäti Kahungunu is keen to work alongside those who consider economic and ecological development as dual priorities for the good of all peoples.

Caution! The Dam Is a Risky Proposition by ~ pauline elliott, Transparent Hawke’s Bay

tim.co.nz

The Regional Council’s plan for a major dam in Central Hawke’s Bay has always faced two hurdles – environmental standards and financial viability. The environmental standards have now been set. The headlines said it all: another step; another hurdle; moving along; a green light. Except it’s really an amber light. The draft decision handed down by the Board of Inquiry (BOI) last month said ‘Yes’ to the dam and ‘Yes’ to a plan for managing the Tukituki catchment. However, it set much more stringent control, particularly around nutrient management, than was ever anticipated by the Regional Council.

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

The environmental hurdle HBRIC, the Regional Council’s investment company, states in its highlevel business case that should the decision of the Board of Inquiry require greater stringency around nutrient management, the scheme might not be economically viable. Now, in effect, the BOI has said, “You can build a dam, but we will not allow any further degradation of the Tukituki River.” Aspects of the draft decision will be bothering the heads of many. Farmers and growers, for example, will be giving careful thought to the financial implications of the conditions established by the BOI decision – these are not insignificant, and must be met whether or not a dam is built. The Regional Council itself will be giving a

Tukituki Board of Inquiry protects river lot of headspace to the costs and other resource implications of managing and monitoring a regime much more rigorous than anticipated. HBRIC will be burning the midnight oil to figure how it can get firm agreements for the purchase of 40 million cubic metres of water (uptake) – a minimum requirement for the project to proceed. And prospective investors will be wondering just how viable this proposition is, given the new BOI ground rules. While much attention has focused on the massive benefits to the region (strongly questioned by some) and promoted as offering wealth comparable to the Canterbury and Ashburton schemes, there is a fundamental flaw in that comparison. Business commentator Rod Oram points out that the Canterbury/Ashburton dam schemes are wholly owned by user consortiums with a vested interest in keeping the cost of water down. The Ruataniwha scheme must operate to extract optimum returns for investors. This will include inflation-adjusted increases in water prices. Investors want a return. There can be no comparison between the riches of Canterbury and the fraught Ruataniwha investment. Jumping the financial hurdles The hurdles yet to be overcome are high. One of the ‘biggies’ is finance. At the time of writing, the only certainty around funds for financing the dam scheme is the $80 million earmarked as an equity investment by our

Regional Council – that’s assuming you and I, the residents and ratepayers of Hawke’s Bay, tick that box. ‘Equity investor’ means we are the primary holder of the risks associated with the investment. Quite a different scenario from Council’s original intention of ‘advancing a loan’. The Government’s newly formed Crown Irrigation Investments Ltd (CIIL) was expected to invest a “large amount” upfront. However, late last year CIIL did an about face and declared any investment would be made as a secured loan – no risk exposure – and would in fact only be a ‘backstop’ to mitigate poor water uptake in the early stages of the scheme. Public consultation is underway as you read this. Long before Council had considered or approved it, consultation has been publicised to start on 1 May and close on 3 June. During the process of public consultation, you will be asked the question: “Do you think the Regional Council should invest $80,000,000 in the Ruataniwha Water Storage Scheme?” Definitely not a question we can answer at this point. Public information on short, medium or long term risks or returns on ratepayer investment has been very tightly held by HBRIC and the Regional Council. Some regional councillors have complained bitterly about the lack of detailed financial information … even for them. We know, from the high-level business case presented to Council in early April, that commercial viability is based on “satisfying private investors' risk-adjusted return requirements”. As revenue does appear, lenders (CIIL) and private investors will be the first to receive payments and dividends. We know that the minimum target for return to the Regional Council sits well below that of private investors and is unlikely to show a return at all for at least ten, maybe twenty years. The Regional Council investment will be exposed to the highest level of risk and the lowest rate of return for some time to come. We do not know how many farmers will sign a firm purchase agreement for water in coming months to meet the minimum 40% uptake requirement. Without farmers to purchase water, the dam cannot generate revenue (apart from minimal electricity generation). Deloitte, commissioned to undertake a peer review of HBRICs highlevel business case, identified the key project risk as uncertainty around farmer uptake. The Port as scheme subsidiser HBRIC serves as the wholly owned investment arm of the Regional Council. It was established specifically to progress the CHB dam and, at the same time, the

THE DAM

assets of Port of Napier were transferred to it. How HBRIC manages debt, investment, and risk levels, has a major consequence for ratepayers, good or bad. For example, each year the Port pays a dividend through HBRIC to the Regional Council, making a significant contribution to council operating costs and effectively subsidising our rates. Since the proposed dam would lose money for years in any

tim.co.nz

HBRC brass briefs press on Tukituki decision global financial collapse being one of them, the anticipated population growth did not happen. Then a number of things went wrong. The Council continued to pursue the scheme in spite of evidence it should not; the council kept the true costs off its books for five years, through a public private partnership. Costs ballooned and in 2012, general rates increased by 31% across the region, and by several hundred percent in Mangawhai. The final debt to ratepayers stood somewhere between $80m-$100m. The Auditor General, Lyn Provost, was called in to investigate and released her report in December 2013. Among other

things, she cited poor decision-making processes and lack of transparency, including the use of workshops instead of council meetings to make important decisions. She apologised to the people of Mangawhai, but could give no comfort as to who would be responsible for the debt. The council has been replaced by commissioners. More recently, the Auditor General was asked to investigate Delta, a subsidiary company of Dunedin City Holdings Ltd, wholly owned by the Dunedin City Council. The review found breaches of the Local Government Act 2002 and Companies Act 1993, and instances of Delta using artificial business structures to avoid public accountability. These recent experiences have inspired a separate report, to be released later this year, in which the Auditor General will explore wider governance and communication issues between council-controlled organisations and councils. It might just be a bit late to apply to our investment proposal and its inherent lack of critical information. So, can we reasonably consider the question “Do you think the Regional Council should invest $80,000,000 in the Ruataniwha Water Storage Scheme?” Not with any confidence that we have the facts needed to understand the financial risks involved. If consultation gets underway with or without this information, it is vitally important that you have a say. Transparent Hawke’s Bay intends to monitor and assess the objectivity and transparency of materials prepared by the Regional Council for public consultation. If it is found to be misleading or incomplete we may ask for your endorsement in our request to the Auditor General, asking her to re-examine the process and sufficiency of information.

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

scenario, the assumption has been that the Port might increase its dividend to cover HBRIC’s shortfall in payments back to the Regional Council on the water storage project. Yet over these same years, the Port must use its profits to undertake major capital investment needed to meet rising user demand and remain competitive. The odds that the Port can both meet its own needs and subsidise the dam are low to zero. So, will rates increase? Almost certainly! Should the public be asked to submit on the proposed recommendation to invest in the dam without full information available on financial structures and inherent risks? Absolutely not! It is worth noting a couple of examples

where decisions made without full public disclosure of all relevant information have had massive implications for ratepayers. Firstly, the Kaipara District Council and its now infamous decision to proceed with a sewage treatment plant at Mangawhai. From all accounts, this was a perfectly sound strategy for ‘future proofing’ against an anticipated residential explosion in the region. For a number of reasons, the

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Only 25 Questions Left! by ~ tom belford I have been closely monitoring the water storage project since its inception about five years ago, including participating in the stakeholders committee and now as a regional councillor. I have read everything regarding this project that HBRC/HBRIC have made available. Yet I am still seeking definitive answers to the core questions that follow. I would think that all ratepayers might insist on knowing the answers … before any decision to proceed with this project is made.

Adequacy of Water Supply 1 Have water flows on the Makaroro

ever been actually measured above the proposed dam site? If not, why not, given the critical importance of establishing the adequacy of water supply to make the scheme viable as a ‘water insurance policy’ for irrigators?

2 Various HBRC/HBRIC documents

project rainfall in the catchment

feeding the dam at 1,200mm to 2,500mm annually, yet the latter is used to estimate water supply to the dam. If the former figure is more accurate, have sensitivity analyses been completed to project the diminished water supply? Please explain.

Farmer Uptake & Retention 3 The Board of Inquiry cited widely

differing estimates of the area to be irrigated – 17,120 hectares, 25,390 hectares, and 31,289 hectares. The BOI itself settles upon 29,779 hectares (17,120 from the dam and almost as much,12,659, from additional groundwater allocations). Water supply reliability for farmers (as well as increased farm output) must be determined by the scheme’s actual irrigable footprint. So what is the actual footprint?

4 Water supply contracts with farmers

will presumably commit the scheme to provide contracted water at

28 Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

a specific level of reliability (i.e. supplied X out of Y years). What will the contracted reliability be? Are farmers required to pay for contracted amounts if the water cannot be supplied?

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5 We’re told that 109 Expressions

of Interest (EOIs) account for 43.6 million m3 of water. What percentage of farmer prospects within the scheme footprint is this? How many remaining farmers have said ‘no thanks’?

6 The targeted uptake rate by farmers

assumes that 90% of farmers who have signed Expressions of Interest (EOIs) will convert those to firm purchase contracts, as well as 20% of farmers in the irrigation footprint who haven’t signed EOIs and 100% of current irrigators.

THE DAM

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How realistic are these assumptions, given such practical factors as: some current irrigators will be allowed deeper bores (furnishing up to 15 million cubic metres of water annually directly from groundwater, removing their need for irrigation water); the scheme’s distribution network not being built out for years to reach all potential users; farm ownership turnover being a key assumption supporting uptake rates? How wide a range of uptake scenarios has been modeled to reflect these sensitivities? 7 Lower initial water prices ($0.06 per

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will be ‘Top 20%’ farmers in terms of ability to achieve higher, costeffective productivity through the use of irrigation water, as well as other improvements in farming methods. However, trade literature suggests farmers could achieve most of the postulated productivity gains without irrigation, simply by farming smarter. Has HBRIC modeled the productivity gains achievable by adoption of ‘best practices’ with and without irrigation water as an input?

9 Will access to the scheme be restricted

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to such ‘superstar’ farmers? Have such farmers been identified in CHB? What programme is HBRC preparing to educate farmers regarding ‘best practices’ and to promote/incentivize their adoption?

10 If farmers do not achieve productivity

gains (and hence income gains) sufficient to offset the costs associated with irrigation, they will become less or un-profitable. If such farmers default on contracted water payments, the scheme will lose revenue. Has any sensitivity analysis been conducted regarding potential attrition or nonpayment for contracted water?

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11 Has any analysis of existing farm

indebtedness been undertaken with respect to the farmers targeted by this scheme?

12 If the scheme were built on strictly

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commercial terms, what would the price of scheme water need to be? Based on that, and given ratepayer/ taxpayer financial support, how much of a subsidy to irrigators does HBRIC’s stipulated $0.23 per cubic metre price represent? Continued on Page 30

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cubic metre discount for first four years) will be offered to farmers to entice initial uptake of the scheme, presumably costing HBRIC $10 million or more. What is the projected cost of this subsidy, and where is that cost reflected in the scheme financials?

8 It is assumed that users of the scheme

THE DAM

'Floating wetlands' expected to keep CHB sewage from Tukituki

Ratepayer Financial Risk 13 The HBRC business case postulates

two initial uptake rates by farmers – 40% of stored water volume (low case) and 56% (both base and high cases). However, the projections used to justify financial viability are based on the 56% assumption. Why then does HBRIC maintain that only 40% initial uptake is sufficient for the scheme to be viable? Is 40% merely a floating ‘target’ or an absolute minimum ‘condition precedent’ for launching the project?

14 These uptake assumptions must be

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

matched to scheme income and cash flow projections, and then used to drive calculation of returns (and return schedules) to various scheme financial partners. HBRIC indicates that it (and therefore HBRC) will sit at the ‘bottom of the waterfall’ in terms of receiving any return on its investment. What is the investment return (and its timing) projected for HBRC across different income scenarios?

15 What is the risk that HBRC will fail

to achieve its stipulated investment return? What are the risk factors involved? What is the minimum investment return HBRC will accept, and how does this compare with other traditional investments available to HBRC/HBRIC?

16 Will the dam produce a greater or

lesser return on investment than additional and/or accelerated investment in Napier Port? Has a direct comparison been made and where is it available?

17 In the near to medium term, higher

dividend payments to HBRC from

Napier Port are assumed to ensure that HBRC still gets its required cash injection in the start-up period before the scheme is yielding adequate cash flow. How realistic is this given that Port leadership is floating the idea of reducing HBRIC/HBRC ownership stake in the Port to raise capital and lessen the financial risk the Port increasingly faces? 18 What is the risk that further

investment, beyond $80 million, would be required to sustain the scheme? Where would those funds come from? What are the risk factors involved? For example, has HBRIC confirmed the average cost over-run of dam construction projects? For example, can institutional investors pull out before their initially agreed exits?

19 How much time does the Crown

Irrigation Authority (CIIL) give to satisfy its “minimum amount required” principle? HBRIC appears to expect about $100 million from CIIL. Has CIIL indicated a maximum amount or percentage of total investment it would make?

20 Is there a time limit imposed by

HBRIC or any other party on the search for institutional investors?

21 Over and above the actual cost of the

dam and distribution infrastructure, the scheme will lose money in initial years until/unless sufficient farmers commit to water purchases and begin to pay for their water. Thus, no revenue until the last quarter of 2017, at best. If initial uptake projections are met, that revenue might be in the range of $9.2 million (40 million m3 x $0.23 c/m3). If $300 million has been required for the dam by close of 2017, $15 million in annual interest

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at 5% must be paid (and/or a return paid to investors). How would the hypothetical shortfall of about $6 million or more be covered? And who gets the initial revenue? CIIL? Institutional investors?

Other Issues 22 Has the Macfarlane report,

which serves as the basis of all environmental impact and economic benefit analyses, been independently peer reviewed? By whom?

23 The HBRIC business case mentions

a “water augmentation dam” as an option to deliver the environmental improvements required by Plan Change 6 and to offset the economic cost of those. The estimated cost of this dam, with a capacity of 10 million cubic metres of water, is given as $30 million (no documentation is cited). Where is the RMA-required analysis of this option?

24 The Board of Inquiry, at a cost of $10

million, has ordered initiatives designed to ‘offset’ some of the proposed dam’s environmental impacts? Are these expenses in addition to the ‘irrigation scheme’ cost of $275 million? Where are these expenses accounted for? The BOI also places conditions such as annual beach replenishment at the mouth of the Tukituki, as well as keeping the river mouth open. Where is this expense accounted for? What other such expenses are there?

25 The only gain in anticipated land use

projected by HBRIC is dairying, from 13% presently to 30%. The other major change is sheep and beef down from 21% to 7%. Yet HBRC/HBRIC constantly downplay the growth of dairying. Please explain.

Dr Janet Titchener

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Diabetes Wonder Woman? by ~ tom belford

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

With diabetes patients numbering 8,000, and rising, in our region, the care for this illness, which can lead to complications requiring very expensive treatment, is hugely important in its own right. However, beyond that, the caretaking approach now being promoted by the DHB has much broader ramifications for healthcare delivery in Hawke’s Bay, and we need to understand that context. Diabetes made the front pages when controversy arose over the Hawke’s Bay District Health Board’s (DHB) decision not to renew the diabetes treatment contract of popular diabetes specialist Dr Janet Titchener. The contention was that, with Dr Titchener benched, Hawke’s Bay diabetes patients would be deprived of the best available care. But the DHB argued it was making a prudent, clinically-driven decision to use its limited resources to up-skill more doctors and nurse specialists to give equally high quality care to a substantially growing number of diabetes sufferers. For now, the controversy has subsided into a not quite amicable divorce, with no clear ‘winner’. More on the outcome and wider implications in a moment, but first the background, reflecting BayBuzz interviews with all the key players.

A diabetes Wonder Woman? Dr Titchener has treated over 1,000 diabetes patients in Hawke’s Bay. And to say her patients are passionate about her is an understatement. Many regard her contribution to their (or a family member) gaining control over their diabetes as having transformed their lives. Often they credit her with succeeding after other caretakers, notably clinicians at the DHB, have failed. To them she’s a diabetes Wonder Woman. When the DHB made its announcement, they became alarmed that her services might not be available to themselves, their families, and more broadly, the community. What in the world is the DHB thinking, they asked. Speaking for herself, Dr Titchener confidently asserts that she in fact can document improvements in her patients’ diabetes status (as measured by decreased blood sugars) that are exceptional and persistent. She is especially proud of her successes with Mäori patients, given that diabetes is especially high in that community. She challenges the DHB to document that they provide a better service. Executives and clinicians at the DHB take a different view. They generally, if begrudgingly, acknowledge Dr Titchener’s capabilities and track record. However, they insist that

other ‘GPSI’s’ (General Practitioner with Specific Interest … in this case, diabetes) in the region show comparable results with equally satisfied patients. And importantly, they are firmly confident that DHB now offers an excellent quality of service to many more patients, many with a challenging array of diabetes-related complications that must draw upon a wider range of clinicians operating as a team. DHB CEO Kevin Snee emphasizes that providing the best medical care today is a “team game”. And indeed, patients using the hospital diabetes service may receive advice from the DHB’s psychologist services, nutrition and dietician input, clinical nurse specialists who have prescribing rights, and specialist doctors who are additionally specialists in internal medicine and endocrinology as well as diabetes. Dr Titchener cites her Type 2 diabetes patients’ record of dropping their HbA1c levels by an average of 2% points (20 mmol/mol). She says research demonstrates that a 1% point drop reduces a person’s risk of heart attack or stroke by 27% per year, and healthcare costs by 37% per patient per year. But simple comparisons of patient blood sugar reductions, DHB clinicians say, do not do justice to the more

“Diabetes patients in Hawke’s Bay will have a choice between two competing services. The question is whether one service or the other will deliver better outcomes over the coming year.”

DHB CEO Kevin Snee A Mexican stand-off Businessman Andy Lowe, responding to the alarm of several of his diabetesafflicted employees who were satisfied Titchener patients, rallied to her cause. Dismayed by what he regards as the unresponsiveness of the DHB, he has come to the rescue of Dr Titchener, at least for the next twelve months. He will subsidise a ‘pilot programme’ that allows Dr Titchener to provide diabetes educational services and training to 15 doctors and 17 nurses at Totara Health, and to Doctors Hastings, Doctors

Waipawa, Gascoigne St Medical Centre and Te Taiwhenua o Heretaunga. Collectively, these practices serve 25% of diabetes patients in the region. Separately, she will provide clinical services to several practices and continue her private practice. “This education solution retains Dr Titchener’s talents in diabetes care and will help Hawkes’ Bay as it prepares to support and treat the growing number of people who will get diabetes,” said Totara’s managing director, Howard Dickson. Motivating patient behavior change – patient centered care – is a key aspect of Dr Titchener’s approach, and her supporters regard her as peerless in this regard. As Andy Lowe sees it, Dr Titchener has “shown them up” (referring to the DHB clinicians). He says the proof of Dr Titchener’s superior efficacy is shown by the number of GPs (and nurses) who are choosing to avail themselves of her training and/or refer diabetes patients to her … and will be further demonstrated by the patient outcomes these clinicians will produce. At the DHB, clinicians insist their diabetes service, independently evaluated, staffed by doctors and specialist nurses with decades of diabetes experience, ranks as one of the best in New Zealand. They bristle at the suggestion that their service is anything less. Moreover, they argue, the training programme the DHB is now providing doctors and nurses throughout the region, focusing first on larger-scale practices that see the most patients, will yield better health outcomes for a much larger portion of the population. Setting aside the personalities, it appears that neither side disagrees on the fundamental strategy: Continued on Page 34

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Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

complicated cases that the DHB diabetes clinic must treat … to say nothing of the often lesser self-management motivation of many of those patients. Nor do local critics recognize the significant strides in improving diabetes care at the primary care level, particularly in the past two years since the adoption of a stakeholder-developed diabetes care strategy. In short, according to DHB clinicians, for every ‘transformed’ and satisfied patient the Titchener camp can produce, the DHB can produce one as well. Tit for tat. To the clinicians at DHB, as good as Dr Titchener is, the “extraordinary” resources that have been allocated to her practice can be better deployed to provide a high level of effective service to a diabetes population that will soon grow to 10,000. In 2012 and 2013, the annual allocated budget for the DHB’s diabetes service was $817,000. The diabetes service cares for a minimum of 1,408 patients at any one time. Therefore, the cost per patient to access specialist services through the diabetes service is approximately $580 per patient. DHB parties say, Dr Titchener has been fully welcome to apply to participate in the DHB’s treatment scheme – focused at the GP and specialist nurse level, mainly in larger clinics around the region – but has elected not to do so. They say she has shown no inclination to work ‘within the system’, when offered opportunities to do so. To which Titchener supporter Andy Lowe responds, referring to DHB’s Kevin Snee: “He said his staff will not work with her.” Is this a simple matter of personalities – a ‘talented but vexatious’ square peg not fitting in a round hole? Or does one individual’s $150,000 contract dispute, almost insignificant in an institution with a $450 million budget, carry larger import?

diabetes

Andy Lowe and supporters of Dr Titchener

• Patient self-care or self-management is pivotal to successfully addressing this disease; and, • The best opportunity to educating patients and motivating the needed behavior change (and providing additional intervention if needed) for the thousands of patients involved is at the GP primary care level.

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

So now diabetes patients in Hawke’s Bay will have a choice between two competing services. The question that remains on the table is whether one service or the other will deliver better outcomes over the coming year. Like it or not, fairly or unfairly, Team Titchener/Lowe has thrown the competitive gauntlet down to the DHB and Health Hawke’s Bay (the region’s Primary Health Organisation), effectively saying ‘we can do better’. In so doing, they call into question the efficacy of the DHB’s approach. Team DHB may regard that as totally unjustified and, in fact, a disservice if the claim wrongly undermines public confidence in the DHB-led service. But that’s the reality they will need to deal with over the coming year. The ball is in the court of the DHB and Health Hawke’s Bay to establish what they — and independent observers — regard as the appropriate metrics for evaluating the two competing services. Our community will be very poorly served if mutual anger prevails, and the metrics and processes are not in place to make a proper evaluation when the time comes. And when the comparison is made, it must be made with full transparency.

Maybe there will be an outright ‘winner’. Maybe both will demonstrate excellent outcomes. Maybe the competition will drive each to lift the other’s game. And perhaps, that’s the upside to this dispute. As one on-looking GP observes, it’s unfortunate that irreconcilable personalities are involved, but hopefully this rocky path will benefit patients, which is where the focus should be. And that brings us to the broader implications of the diabetes care controversy. Changing health care The diabetes controversy highlights several important trends in healthcare. First is a consumer dynamic. Patients/ consumers will no longer simply follow any ‘voice of authority’ out of sheer deference or passivity. Wisely or otherwise, patients increasingly seek out choices and alternatives. For many, the internet is their ‘adviser’ on health issues, including treatment options. They are more demanding – and this reaches to proof of performance – and will become ever more so. They want more control over their bodies and their treatment. Second, healthcare funding is getting tighter and tighter, and with Hawke’s Bay’s stagnant population size, the DHB’s budget simply will not grow, as urban areas of NZ, with increasing populations, get a correspondingly increasing share of the pie. Faced with what amounts to a costly diabetes epidemic, the DHB must intervene early and more effectively with diabetes patients, shifting as much care as possible from the hospital, where

it is most expensive, to well-trained primary care providers … and better still to patients themselves, motivated and educated to self-manage their condition. No one disputes the thrust of Dr Titchener’s ‘business case’ – lowering a patient’s blood sugar through better self-management can yield substantial savings … with a 1% point (HbA1c) decrease reducing inpatient costs by 36% per patient per year, according to the studies she cites. There is a 20% increase in lifetime medical costs of diabetes for every 10 years older a person is at diagnosis. Third, if for no reason other than cost, ‘treatment’ of much illness – heart and kidney disease through diabetes – must move from the bottom of the cliff, coping with the consequences of unhealthy lifestyles (including smoking and excessive drinking), to prevention. And prevention requires behavior change … by motivated patients. By the time a patient appears before their GP with high blood pressure or high blood sugar, they are already in need of behavior change … they are highly likely to be obese and sedentary. Unhealthy situations over which virtually all patients have some control. To the physician, this means that ‘treatment’ should become less a matter of prescribing medications and more a matter of educating and motivating their patients to change their lifestyles. In other words, ‘treatment’ by a GP becomes more a matter of facilitating self-care by the patient. Inter-personal skills and relationships on the part of the care-provider are crucial. The approach is ‘patient centered’.

diabetes

DHB Diabetes Clinic

One might think the patient’s increasing demand for information and choice might lead him or her naturally to better and sustained self-care. And for the highly motivated, it probably does. But then there’s the rest of us! And for us, a properly trained, facilitating physician, or nurse, can make all the

difference between self-managing an affliction like diabetes, or sliding slowly into worsening health. Not every doctor or nurse is naturally skilled at being the ‘counselor’ that patient centred care requires. That seems to be an outstanding quality of Dr Titchener. And that’s why the training offered

by Dr Titchener – and the DHB – to primary care practices throughout the Bay is so crucial. Getting the doctor-patient relationship ‘right’ – leading to self-management – is not just important for diabetes. It’s the model for management of other chronic disease. Otherwise, as our population ages, and as poor living habits transform into chronic illnesses and infirmities that we’ve failed to prevent or manage at the patient level, our healthcare resources will be swamped. At a recent meeting between Titchener advocates and DHB representatives, someone commented: Why did the DHB pick a problem as complicated as diabetes to launch into such a major change … the GP-based, patient centred approach? Given the prevalence of diabetes in Hawke’s Bay, and the long-term costs of its complications to both patient wellbeing and the financially stretched health board, it’s not clear the DHB had any choice. Hopefully, if all the participants ‘get it right’ on diabetes, and a patient centred approach is implanted and embraced, the benefits will be quickly seen … and the approach will become the foundation of all healthcare. Hawke’s Bay should see some evidence in a year.

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0800 555 024 | info@rightway.co.nz www.rightway.co.nz

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

Does your accountant know how to grow their own business?

They’re Back! A familiar story told in Hawke’s Bay is of the prodigal son or daughter. BayBuzz is heartened to see many Hawke’s Bay ex-pats returning to the fold with rich experiences and enhanced skills. We ask the ‘returnees’ where did they go, what did they do and what prompted their return. by ~ kay bazzard

Sam Howard Investment Advisor

Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

Sam Howard is a local lad, educated in Hawke’s Bay and then Otago University, where he studied business studies. His wife Kate Wood is a Lower Hutt girl with a strong arts background. They have three children and are thrilled with the life they are creating for their family in Hawke’s Bay. Sam worked in Wellington as an investment portfolio advisor and three years ago joined his company’s (First NZ Capital) Havelock North office. From here he maintains relationships with customers all over New Zealand, while serving on the boards of the Hawke’s Bay Foundation and the Catwalk Trust. Living just three minutes from work allows precious family time at the beginning and end of their children’s day, which feels like a gift compared to the 45 minutes travelling time from Brooklyn to Wellington. Their move is “a values proposition” … “It is quality of life that matters,” Sam says. The community and social life here has rounded off their lives, in particular, the family’s involvement in the Clifton County Cricket Club with its cricket grounds on the Te Awanga farm owned by the Nillson family on Gordon Road. Sam and Matt Nillson grew up hanging out at the Clifton Cricket Club and remembered the fun days they spent as kids when their parents played social cricket. They had long resolved to revive the club for the benefit of their own families. Association cricket has the reputation of separating men from their wives and families every weekend over summer; CCCC is not that kind of cricket club. This is a club for families (now with 170 family memberships), where on club weekends the kids hang out

Sam Howard and family together while the adults play and socialise. CCCC has an outward-looking responsibility to improve the community by collective efforts of the group, including fundraising for priority projects such as conservation. For example, the group works with Department of Conservation and the HB Regional Council on replanting indigenous flora to create wetland feeding grounds for bird species and insect life. Sam believes this could be a model for the next generation of Service clubs, following on from the great contributions made by Rotary and Lions clubs in past generations, but one which puts the families of members in the centre of activities.

George Williams Graphic designer George Williams grew up on the family farm, Aramutu Station out of Elsthorpe in Central Hawke’s Bay. His family is a branch

of the long established East Coast Williams clan. He was an only child, “But there was no pressure from Mum and Dad for me to become a farmer so when they retired the farm was sold.” He adds, “Looking back now, I really miss it, but I couldn’t take over the land back then.” So George studied art and design at EIT, then known as the Hawke’s Bay Polytechnic and became a graphic designer. He and his wife Nichola lived and worked in Wellington after spending time in London, but after twelve years of being away and with two little girls they felt an overpowering urge to return here to live. Nicky also grew up in the Bay. They had been away long enough; their parents live here and for their children they wanted what they had experienced themselves. They yearned to come back for the family life, to rekindle relationships with friends and memories of idyllic childhoods with endless summer days. Returning to Hawke’s Bay, they immediately started to get involved in

to the tighter disciplines and design requirements of his regular paid work.

Nick Judd Manager, boutique hotel

George Williams

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Nick Judd Since leaving school he has worked in a variety of jobs – ten years spent in the New Zealand Air Force, at Watties in procurement and product development, and during the ten years he was in Britain, he worked in sales and marketing and hospitality. “Top-end hospitality is difficult in New Zealand,” he says. “With the overseas recession lingering on, fewer visitors are coming here. Nevertheless, I think it is essential to get back to basics at Mangapapa, to create a home away from home; keep guests warm and comfortable with friendly quiet service; provide healthy food, in season, simply presented with the best Hawke’s Bay has to offer – it’s all about the guests.” If you’ve come back or know someone else who has, and is making a difference in the Bay, let us know. editors@baybuzz.co.nz

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Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

everything they could and one was to take up membership of the newly re-established Clifton County Cricket Club. Friendships, business conversations, the giving for free of skills and knowledge for the club and community, entertainment, exercise and social interactions, all form rich and deep benefits for George. “The word ‘networking’ does not adequately describe the spontaneous business connections formed in this way,” he says. Their graphic design business is called Black Dog Design, which operates from the ‘Kennel’ in Pufflett Road. Nicky is the administrator and overall support person to the ‘creative director’, George. Being a sole practitioner, he enjoys the involvement with clients and companies who seek his expertise for their branding and marketing communications. He’s an artist and printmaker when time allows and he finds the free artistic ideas that emerge are genuinely complementary

It was the first day in the job for the new manager of the Mangapapa Petit Hotel. An American guest had made a complaint and then posted a harshly critical report on the TripAdvisor website. It was a revealing start to his new job, though not typical of feedback from guests who stay here. However, it sharpened the mind of new manager, Nick Judd, who knows he has a job to do. Aged 38, Nick is Havelock North born, educated and raised having recently returned to Hawke’s Bay, primarily for family reasons. Three weeks into the job, he is all eyes and ears as he begins his familiarisation with the past and present of this boutique hotel, whilst with a clear priority of guest comfort he plans its future. In November 2013, Judd left a similar management role in an exclusive hotel on Burgh Island on the coast of Devon, a privately owned island that boasts a 25bedroom Art Deco hotel on 26 acres, and an historic smugglers pub dating back to the 13th century. The couple who owned the Burgh Island resort had created a culture of sophisticated yet simple hospitality, a retreat offering a cuisine based on seasonal, locally sourced produce. His employers were Nick’s mentors and teachers, providing a mirror to his Kiwi manners and attitudes yet always supportive and encouraging. He stayed seven years and it shaped his ideas on fine hospitality and how to run a cost-efficient business.

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I’m proud to own a bar

by ~ roy brown

Once upon a time – twenty years ago – most couples met in bars. After a couple of beers a man plucked up the courage to approach a woman and, risking humiliation, ask for a dance.

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

That was how we met our partners in the good old days. It wasn’t sophisticated but it worked. Today the bar is competing with online dating sites, which require even less sophistication. Potential daters preload with RTDs while wearing their pyjamas; scratch their armpits while exaggerating their height. Some still choose the more direct, traditional and honest connections made in a bar. And this environment is still popular for business lunches, work functions, conferences and, ironically, the first date for those who meet online. For travellers, visitors and tourists, the neighbourhood bar is a vital venue for meeting the locals. A bar is the place where jobs are secured, trips planned, stories told and love found. Imagine a world without the local bar. Cards on the table: I own a bar. The Cabana is the oldest purely live music venue in New Zealand. My bar doesn’t have TVs, pokies, pool tables or even great food. It has a stage and all the gear bands and musicians need to play on it. But like all bars in Hawke’s Bay, mine is struggling. In Napier, two bars have closed in recent times and more than a few are in desperate trouble. Our local bars are

disappearing. A tourist arriving in Napier CBD on a Friday night would be forgiven for thinking they’d missed the city and hit Waipawa instead. Changing times Thirty years ago when I first knew of The Cabana it was open six nights a week. Bands like Dragon and Mi Sex played Tuesday and Wednesday nights. But times have changed. In those days we had one TV channel, one radio station, no computers. People drove over the limit without giving it a second thought. Also in the ‘good old days’ hotels, clubs and restaurants were granted wholesale cards which gave them large discounts on alcohol purchases. They passed those on to patrons. This made drinking out a far more affordable pastime than it is today. Nowadays, bars buy their alcohol from the same place as everyone else. I always laugh when people spot me at Pak n Save with a trolley full of Tui and say “ Oh, you buy your beer here?”. Unless you have a huge turnover or three or four pubs, there are no deals to be had, no merchant cards and no bulk buys. Then there’s the ill-thought-out blame game: members of the public,

politicians and law makers blaming bars for exacerbating our negative drinking culture: young people drinking so much so fast that they get aggressive, out of control, unconscious, or all three. One small point to note: most young people can’t afford to drink in bars at all, let alone drinking to get drunk in one. But bars are not the problem. It is not because of bars that people binge drink, drive drunk or pick fights. And that’s because in a bar there’s someone watching out for you. At The Cabana it’s me, and in other local bars it’s the duty manager, and their staff. We can spot trouble before it brews, we can bounce potential drunks, we can make sure people are safe. By law, I cannot allow people into my bar intoxicated, and I can’t allow them to become intoxicated in there either. If someone does manage to get drunk in my bar and then they’re picked up outside, I will be prosecuted. In fact, a bar is the safest place to drink. In over four years, I have had just one small fight at The Cabana. I believe in bar culture so passionately that when my children start going out I’ll encourage them to meet their friends at bars, not at parties and certainly not in cars. Along comes Easter So now we are competing with online dating for patrons, with TV and the internet for entertainment value, and with supermarkets and bottle shops for the dollar. And smeared over the top is the

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perception from members of the public, including some of those in decisionmaking positions of power, that bars are trouble: dens of iniquity. With all that

in the mix it’s becoming increasingly difficult to tempt punters in, no matter how good the live music is. Then, if times aren’t tough enough for bars … along comes Easter! Easter has always been an important weekend for The Cabana because our ‘Events Licence’ means we can open on God days, and being a long weekend, one of the last of the summer, there are people in town who love coming down for a live gig and a few quiets. But now Central Government has put a stop to ‘Events Centres’ being able to serve alcohol on Good Friday and Easter Sunday. Thanks to that The Cabana has just experienced its worse weekend to date, not its best as was expected. I tried to get a special licence, but even with the help of Mayor Bill Dalton and MP Chris Tremain I was unable to open. Acts had been booked and the gigs were advertised: we were all ready to go. I took a hit in the wallet and 25 musicians lost money as well. When we’re already working on the tightest of shoestrings it’s a worrying time. Running a neighbourhood bar is tough going, with little help from the government. But it’s the little bars visitors seek out, and it’s the little bars locals feel at home in. Yes, modern times call for relevant laws

“Running a neighbourhood bar is tough going, with little help from the government. But it’s the little bars visitors seek out, and it’s the little bars locals feel at home in.” around whether holidays are holy days or just days off. In the 2013 census, 45% of the country ticked ‘Non Religious’. But alongside the modern is a need for the traditional; an almost old-fashioned loyalty towards the local. I think it’s time we remembered the importance of our bars. They’re not the problem when it comes to our drinking culture. In fact they provide a positive environment in which to teach young adults how to behave around alcohol and how to have manners while enjoying a drink with friends. And it’s much nicer to go out and spend time with real people in the flesh than stay at home in front of the box, isn’t it? Which reminds me: we owe it to bars, because without them many of us wouldn’t be here!

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

bike buzz It seems that every second car on our roads at the weekend has a bike rack, and locals and visitors alike are exploring our wide range of cycling tracks.

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

Cycling is the BUZZ in the Bay at the moment. You would need to be asleep at the wheel not to see cyclists on the Rotary Pathways, at Esk Valley Mountain Bike Park, or spread out around cafes and bars. So is cycling our recreational point of difference? Will it be our tourism ‘silver bullet’? Some will argue it is, and some will say that cycling is popular throughout New Zealand, not just in the Bay. As a marketer, I see cycling as our real point of difference in attracting tourists to the region. Why? We have a wide and diverse range of tracks – both easy and challenging. We have some great road riding loops (take the Tukituki loop) and in Hastings they’ve developed a safe commuter network. Not only are recreational riders exploring the tracks with their own maps, but there’s now a range of cycling events that are fast growing in popularity. At Easter, over 1,500 cyclists descended on the Havelock North Domain and then cycled the pathway, through Clive, across to Napier before ending up at a concert at Church Road Winery. What struck me about the ‘Big Easy’ event was the wide range of age and fitness levels of those participating.

They weren’t competing in a race; they were out socalising with family, friends and fellow cyclists. Along the way they stopped at cafes, bars and restaurants … spending money! Cycle spending spree I’m not an economic analyst; but here are some simple figures. The entry fee was $25. So that’s $37,500. The riders then would have spent at least a further $50 each during the day buying food and refreshments. Another $75,000. And then those visiting the region would also have paid for accommodation, entertainment and more food and refreshments during the weekend. I think it would be reasonable to estimate that the economic impact of this event was at least $250,000. This weekend of cycling events has huge potential. The ‘Big Easy’ is only in its second year, and if everyone had a fantastic experience (which I’m sure they did) then the numbers will swell again next year. It’s this type of event that could really put Hawke’s Bay on the map. What’s great about the ‘Big Easy’ is that it’s not Hastings or Napier centric. Unlike Art Deco Weekend or Horse of the Year, the event takes in the best of both cities.

by ~ damon harvey

Through Hastings, riders explore the wine and fruit growing areas, and then on to Napier’s art deco buildings, Marine Parade, bars and restaurants in Ahuriri before finishing in Taradale at an iconic winery with great music. It’s a true collaborative event that brings together Tourism Hawke’s Bay, Sport Hawke’s Bay and our councils. So if cycling is our silver bullet, what else could be added to the event or tourism portfolio? Te Mata Peak opportunity That’s an easy answer. Te Mata Peak and its surrounding landscapes. Te Mata Peak is our real jewel in the crown. It’s unsurpassed for its beauty and vistas. You can only ride a long straight pathway so often, but you can never tire of the majesty of the Peak. It’s why local walkers and mountain bike riders explore the park everyday. All that’s missing is the cycling tourist. It’s well known what mountain biking has done for Rotorua and Queenstown. The same can be achieved on the Peak. There’s already a good track system for walkers and riders, but if these tracks were developed by professional track builders, mountain bike tourists would flock to the park. And these people have serious cash, with most bikes costing over $1,500, with some over $10,000! Plans are underway for a state of the art visitor centre with café. The centre needs to cater for all recreational users and be a hub

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Fun at the Big Easy

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

and meeting place for all users. In my view, the Trust that looks after the Park needs further financial investment from all councils to create a world class facility, with plenty of space to park bikes and a bike wash-down bay. There could be walking and cycle guides helping tourists explore the park and a commuter service to the top for walkers and downhill mountain bike riders. Mountain bike tourism has exploded in Rotorua. Over $10 million annually is attributed to riders visiting Rotorua from throughout New Zealand and Australia. Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s get some of this cycling pie!

www.alphapix.co.nz

41 www.alphapix.co.nz

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EIT trades students with tutor Stephen Spooner

Getting Hawke’s Bay Youth to Work

Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

Amidst the current debate over amalgamation and the value of a regional approach to community and economic development, a Hawke’s Bay consortia led by the Youth Futures Trust has succeeded in pushing our region to ‘first cab off the rank’ status in a trades training and employment programme. by ~ claire hague, EIT Deputy CEO Late last year Hawke’s Bay was the first region to meet with officials from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment who were delivering the good news that funding would be provided over a three year period to support a boost in training and employment for Mäori and Pacific young people between 18 and 34 years of age. That funding was approved in response to a proposal coordinated by the Hawke’s Bay Youth Futures Trust, which saw a consortia representing industry, iwi, Pacific leaders, local government, the Ministry of Social Development, and education and training providers come together to

work on the project. This latest trades training initiative builds on two key pieces of history in this area: Mäori trades training which flourished in the late 50s, 60s and 70s, and which many still talk about nostalgically as being the makings of the Mäori economy and of many Mäori; and the current Mäori Trades Training programme in Christchurch focused on an updated version of the original model, and designed to supply skilled employees for the Christchurch rebuild. This programme is led by Ngäi Tahu in conjunction with the Christchurch Polytechnic and other key organisations in the region.

What’s New? While there is nothing new in trades training aimed at Mäori, and now also Pasifika, what is new is the fact that the government have decided to roll the model out across the country, with Hawke’s Bay’s proposal receiving special attention for its depth and breadth. In addition, our region was also noted for the consortia partners obviously being on the ‘same page’ with regard to their mission in this space. That mission is a deceptively simple one. As the economy recovers, and as the Christchurch and Auckland building projects take off, more tradespeople will be needed in those areas, which will in turn put pressure on employers in Hawke’s Bay needing the same skilled workers. Alongside this, Hawke’s Bay statistics show that while unemployment is dropping, young people, and particularly Mäori and Pacific youth are overrepresented in the unemployment statistics. Potentially Hawke’s Bay has the ability to plan for a new group of tradespeople to meet employer demand, while providing the opportunity for training and employment for a group whose potential is not currently being realised. So what’s the plan? In a nutshell, the Hawke’s Bay programme, named Te Ara o Takitimu (signifying pathways for the Kahungunu and Pacifica descendants of the great waka that came from the Islands) aims to provide training leading to managed transitions to employment for

up to 150 young people a year for the next three years. While training of Mäori and Pacific in the trades is currently ongoing, this project aims to address the gaps and take some innovative approaches to issues that are consistently raised in this space.

Driving to work Ngäti Kahungunu Iwi Incorporated (NKII) has also not been idle. Passionate advocates of the need for all young people to gain their full driving licences to assist with their employability, there are already moves afoot in the region, supported also by the Ministry of Social Development, to take an intersectoral approach to funding this very important and – for some – very expensive exercise.

Claire Hague Those of us with teenage and older children will know the effort, logisitics and money required to attain a full licence these days. And that’s just for the lucky young people with families in work and with access to transport. This area of work, along with the partnership between Taratahi Agricultural Training and NKII, is another example of work underway already within the wider regional project. The trick in all of this will be leadership and coordination across a region spanning from Tararua to Wairoa, and fair sharing of the funding available to recognise the various activities of those involved. The Hawke’s Bay bid is complex – but its potential is also huge if we can get it right. If it works, it will be a timely example of how a regional approach to a vision can look, and will provide lessons for all of us in the meaning of true partnership which is focused on outcomes for our region, rather than for each of our individual institutions.

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Work-ready Employers tell us that they want workers who are ‘work-ready’, not just trained in a skill set. Work-ready under this definition includes such basic things as punctuality, politeness, work ethic, honesty, and ability to work in teams. Mäori and Pacific communities tell us they want high quality, sustainable jobs for their youth, preferably via higher education. Mäori and Pacific youth tell us they want a job. So the role of Te Ara o Takitimu is to recognise these differing views of the world, and navigate young people with the support of their communities through the path from recruitment, to training, to transition to apprenticeships and employment, and crucially, keep in touch with them for the first months of employment to support both the employer and the employee in the workplace. It’s not only potential employees who need to be work-ready. There is also a need to support employers to take on workers who they traditionally may not have looked at for a number of reasons, including perceived ‘fit’ in the workplace and lack of work experience on the part of the young people currently out of work. The consortia approach will focus on the skills and attitudes that are required by employers, if the trades industry is to diversify to meet the changes in the supply and demand market.

As with any new initiative, there have been teething problems at the contract stage, as the government agencies in Wellington grapple with a new approach to funding that doesn’t fit the current norms. Key people within EIT and the Youth Futures Trust have been working with the agencies through these issues. As I write, we anticipate signing contracts for delivery in April. That hasn’t stopped various consortia partners getting on with it, however. Using its current funding, EIT is already trialling a new approach with a group of young Mäori and Pasifika. The aim is to instil leadership competencies, lifeskills and workskills within a new approach to trades training that includes intensive team building retreats along with academic and practical studies. So far, all trainees in this group have attended non-compulsory as well as compulsory elements of this programme. Family support is critical, with family members being included in key events and at critical transition stages. Tutors are giving up their out-of-work time to make this work. Potential employers will be encouraged to take on mentoring roles to help build employees of the future who will add real value to their workplaces. It’s a team effort.

TechFocus

Keith Newman discovers a digital makeover of health data designed to end eternal form filling and speed delivery of your health information to where it’s most needed.

Single Medical ID Good For Your Health

Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

Hawke’s Bay is heavily involved in a plan to standardise the sharing of medical records between hospital boards, doctors and other health professionals, and enabling patients greater involvement in their own diagnosis, treatment and recovery. Currently the nation’s health IT systems and data processing networks suffer from clogged arteries, privacy phobias and silo thinking that prevents the timely sharing of patient data across the country. However, a multimillion dollar shot of adrenaline is being injected into a 15-year-old Ministry of Health plan to shift the focus of the health industry from being provider-centric to patient focused as part of a massive medical makeover. Health boards, doctors, pharmacists and other specialists are currently working through compatibility and privacy concerns with a view to sharing their patient records, as the country prepares to adopt an integrated electronic health record (IEHR). This national approach to health data will make smarter use of the National Health Index (NHI), a database giving a unique identifier to everyone using the health and disability system, the Healthzone nationwide ultrafast health network, and secure clinical and patient portals. Locally the Hawke’s Bay District Health Board (HBDHB) is leading the way in regionalising through integrating its core systems with MidCentral, Wanganui, Hutt Valley, Wairarapa, and Capital and Coast district health boards as part of the Central Region Information Systems Plan (Crisp). Our DHB is also well advanced in harmonising its Patient Management Systems (PMS), radiology, PACs (Picture Archiving and Communication System), and Clinical Portal, which provides a common front-end view of patient-related data to health professionals. Single point of access Information services manager Gina McEwen says Hawke’s Bay is ahead of the game, particularly when it comes to GPs having a single point of access to hospital

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Gina McEwen, data queen of the DHB systems, such as test and radiology results. McEwen has been with Hawke’s Bay board for 36 years, initially as a nurse before migrating into IT. “I was involved in the first implementation of computers in Hawke’s Bay; in those days you didn’t talk to each other, you were siloed, you did everything within your four walls.” Clearly her current responsibilities, which include assisting the five central health board systems to become standardised and connected, are a huge contrast to those first stand-alone steps into the digital world. The emerging system is already reducing the need for duplicating tests and enabling speedier access to radiology images so doctors don’t have to wait for patients to turn up with a CD. The shift started when Hawke’s Bay’s radiology system changed to enable GPs to collaborate with hospital doctors. “The first day a GP who didn’t agree with the radiology report was able to log on and then discuss an anomaly he had seen with his counterpart in the DHB.” Doctors and specialists at Hawke’s Bay

Hospital can also log into a summary of patient information at the GP level and have successfully trialled electronic referrals so GPs and specialists can directly refer patients for specialist outpatient assessment. This is now being rolled out to all local GP practices. Patient portal promised Unifying the various health-related systems is about efficiency, consistency and accuracy so the patient gets the best possible care. “Hopefully it will remove some of the ambiguity, making it clearer and simpler so the patient has a better understanding of what’s going on,” says McEwen. The patient portal already being trialled in some areas, will be optimised for desktop, laptop, tablet and smartphone use so patients can communicate with their GPs using social media style tools. After logging on, patients will be able to see their medical conditions, medications, notifications and lab results, request prescription repeats and make doctor’s appointments.

One of the issues will be how much data patients have access to, for example avoiding the use of complex medical terminology so people don’t Google and make assumptions about their diagnosis. “We need to provide the right information so we don’t scare the living daylights out of people.” One of the challenges is finding the balance between privacy concerns and what is of benefit to the patient. “In one breath patients will say we don’t want our information shared and then come into the emergency department and expect staff to know they were at their GP the day before.”

Medical modules embraced A range of medical modules are currently being trailed that can hook directly into the integrated health record including e-medication, e-prescribing, e-dispensing, safe medications and e-discharges. The New Zealand ePrescription service (NZePS), used at more than 240 sites, has processed over two million prescriptions since it went live in July 2013. The barcode-based approach improves accuracy and legibility on the 20 million prescriptions written annually, rapidly enabling GPs and pharmacists to determine which of the 60 million medicines have been dispensed or collected. Hawke’s Bay specialists are helping coordinate the move to digitally connected systems, including pharmacies. There’s a close relationship with MidCentral Health which is currently upgrading to the same e-pharmacy technology as Hawke’s Bay which will in effect become the regional system. It’s all well and good gearing up doctors and pharmacies and specialist services to connect into the hospital systems, but the reality is some of those digital arteries are too thin. While the Healthzone national fibre optic backbone provides an ultrafast link to the premises of most hospitals and district health board facilities, McEwen admits, “internally most DHBs are challenged.” Ideally the next generation health system will facilitate tele-health, so city-based specialists can consult with smaller towns and remote areas using remote diagnostic tools, share radiology images and engage

in high definition conferencing. McEwen says Hawke’s Bay Hospital already uses videoconferencing to link emergency department specialists with the new GP-run accident and emergency centre in Wairoa, for example. “There’s a two and a half hour trip so we often get acute injury or illness cases taking advice so they can decide whether to put the patient on a helicopter or not.” While high resolution images can be shared in some places, it still depends on the internal infrastructure, which often needs beefing up. “We can get a six lane highway to the door but internally we struggle,” she says. Warehouse for data McEwen is responsible for the team managing the Hawke’s Bay data warehouse, where all the patient-related information is stored and analysed for clinical auditing, reporting, trend monitoring and decision support. “That’s part of our bread and butter … it’s the platform for our business intelligence team to report on the different systems or ‘universes’ such as emergency department, inpatient, outpatient and community.” The map-based demographic outputs prove compliance with Ministry of Health requirements and ultimately support the level of government funding allocated. As the various systems are linked together the pool of data will grow exponentially, providing better “cross boundary access” to the big picture of our national health. “We’ll be able to make comparisons and have an intelligent conversation about why some things are happening in certain places and what, for example, might have caused an outbreak in one area,” says McEwen. While the idea of a single patient record moving transparently around the country to each point of care, reducing form filling and frustration, can’t come soon enough for some, it’ll most likely unfold in increments slowed by competing priorities, budgets, bureaucracy and ongoing privacy concerns.

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Upgrading for the upload Meanwhile the pressure is on to modernise or replace older health board IT systems that may struggle with the flood of new data processing requirements. There are stringent standards-based guidelines to ensure consistency and support for the various integration projects. In the past, McEwen says some boards didn’t see IT as important, but they must now work with the changes if the needs of the nation are to be met. There’s no point having something that’s incompatible, or is only used by one DHB or set of GPs. She admits it may take some while to achieve a single patient administration system. Each health board will continue running some localised systems, but the main shared applications will be run from a regional data centre in Wellington with disaster recovery in Auckland. As part of the transition, Hawke’s Bay will move to a regional service delivery and virtual support model. The Christchurch earthquakes inadvertently gave the integrated health record project a boost. In September the Canterbury District Health Board (CDHB) introduced a Shared Care Record View (eSCRV) opening up patient records to thousands of community nurses, GPs, pharmacists and hospital clinicians. “They’ve had significant government investment and resourcing to re-establish

good processes rather than putting back the old systems, and have been able to jump the gun in some cases and bring in all the new ways,” says McEwen. HBDHB already has some community nurses, district nurses and pharmacists accessing its system and along with its central region partners is liaising with Canterbury to share lessons learnt.

BUSTED! by ~ paul paynter

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The council has muffed it again! But can you guess what I’m referring to? Is it the art deco buses, the huge losses constantly made by the Aquarium and Splash Planet, the MTG fiasco, inefficiencies at Napier Port, the Ruataniwha dam’s business case or the teetering walls of the Opera House?

Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

Our elected officials are not inherently evil or stupid – OK, so the odd one is stupid – but mostly they are just seduced by the idea that they know how to do wonderful things for the community. Worse, there are endless community groups with similar ideas who will grovel at their feet for funding. And all this is because taxation, in the form of rates, is the easiest money you’ll ever get your hands on. So how do councils end up going off on so many foolish tangents? What should councils do and what should they avoid doing? Recent history gives us a guide to where it all went wrong. Little more than a decade ago, then Prime Minister Helen Clark was criticised for spending money on the America’s Cup. “Is this the role of Government to fund yacht races for fat cats?” she was asked. Clark replied, cool and adept as always, “the government’s role is whatever the

government defines it to be.” Really!? We vote these guys in to do whatever they feel like? But she was right. That seems to be the case these days. About the same time, local government legislation was changed dramatically and, true to her word, local bodies were given ‘powers of general competence’. That meant they could undertake pretty much any lawful activity a citizen could do – undertake works, start a business or enter into any lawful transaction. This was a big change when compared to the past, where central government kept local bodies on a short leash. These ‘powers of general competence’ worried a great many commentators, but they were told not to worry. But Parliament did worry, and in 2012 passed legislation replacing ‘powers of general competence’ with this narrower statement of the purpose of local government: “to meet the current

and future needs of communities for goodquality local infrastructure, local public services, and performance of regulatory functions in a way that is most cost-effective for households and businesses.” Hmmm … still plenty of wiggle room. Consultation a waste of time In any event, before a council does anything, they are required to ‘consult’ with their constituents. Basically this suggests a democracy, where citizens and councils work together for the betterment of the community. Such a democracy would be a wonderful thing – except for the age-old problem. Once elected, governments ignore the people as best they can and do whatever they feel like – fund yacht races, sell off state assets, or hand out interest-free loans. I can hear Helen Clark cheering in the distance. The problem with ‘consultation’ is that it’s tedious and often a waste of time. Often the only people that make a submission are greenies, naysayers, Mäori, special interest groups, delusional do-gooders and retired people with too much time on their hands. The majority of submissions are also negative, as we only get motivated to engage with government if we think they’re getting it wrong.

Council officers sternly consider these public submissions, make the occasional tweak and push on regardless. That’s because politics is, as an American commentator once observed, ‘based on the indifference of the majority’. To really understand the views of the community, you might think councils would have to run things like a giant committee or a perpetual public referendum. The only example of this that actually seems to work exists in the Swiss cantons. In many of these cantons, new local government spending programmes over a certain size must be approved by a referendum. Such an approach would have seen a fair few white elephant projects voted down in Hawke’s Bay. Then again, the Swiss might just be smarter than we are. More commonly, democracy seems to work best when you elect people and just let them get on with it. The proviso is that you keep them on a very short leash. You can only safely ignore them between elections if you’ve already strictly limited their budget and activities. As things stand, councillors could, at any moment, invest in a dago dancing school or build a perfect replica of the Taj Mahal, completely justified of course by visitor fees, jobs created and ‘downstream’ economic benefits … each estimate inflated by compliant consultants.

“When large investments go wrong, there will be blood on the floor. Please, councils, make sure it’s not ratepayers’ blood.”

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despite some evidence to the contrary, but they do invest in buses and parks with water slides. The best deal you can get in such circumstances is to get the private sector to make the capital investment on the back of a council subsidy. If they prosper, then that’s great; but if they go belly up, it might be even better. The art deco buses are a fine example. The NCC would have been well advised to find an investor to fund a more sensible $800,000 art deco bus company. To incentivise this they might offer a ten year $100,000 per annum subsidy. Despite this generosity let’s say the art deco bus company goes broke after just two years. The assets are liquidated and sold for perhaps $200,000. Whoever purchases the assets at that price has a much lower capital burden and is well placed to make a financial go of it. Better still, the council also has no arrangement to subsidise them and so the ratepayers have also had a win. This scenario has played out many times before. It’s particularly common in ‘romantic investments’ like wineries, where the second or sometimes third owner buys the asset cheap enough to be profitable. When large investments go wrong, there will be blood on the floor. Please, councils, make sure it’s not ratepayers’ blood.

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Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

Stick to your knitting The age-old adage of business is ‘stick to your knitting’. For councils, that’s street lights, water, parks, building regulations, streams and waterways, etc – pure public good functions. Beyond these core activities some simple rules should be imposed on councils. First, if the private sector does it, don’t do it. People in the private sector run

profitable bus companies and tourist activities, so local government should NEVER do these things. Second, if the private sector can be encouraged to do something, encourage them rather than doing it yourself. For example, make an operational contribution, but no capital investment. If there is a community benefit in running say, a Napier-Hastings bus service, but the numbers don’t quite stack up, pay a private company a top-up per trip to help underpin it. This avoids any major capital investment by council and limits the operational exposure. Another example, make the capital contribution, but avoid operational losses. If Hastings needs a decent city hotel, council could potentially fund construction, but only on the back of a long-term operational lease to a reputable hotel chain. The community good aspect may mean council can accept a return of say 7%, where a commercial investor requires 10%. In this way ratepayers have reasonable confidence of a modest return on their investment, but are protected from operational losses. Even this last option makes me feel a little queasy. After all, council could have built a leaky hotel, or the hotel company might go out of business and a new tenant proves difficult to secure. Every time you spend ratepayers’ money, there’s a chance things will go wrong. So the golden rule is – don’t spend ratepayers’ money. You have probably realised that councils have broken these rules with the art deco buses and splash planet. They can reasonably argue that the private sector won’t invest in a museum or an aquarium,

Sponsoring insight into smart farming in Hawke’s Bay

Nicole Masters pitches soil improvement to Hawke’s Bay farmers

Beyond Reasonable Drought

by ~ Tom Belford

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

Back in February, Hawke’s Bay was visited by Marlborough sheep and beef farmer Doug Avery. He spoke to a group of 100 or so fellow sheep and beef farmers, plus a handful of the curious, like me. Avery is what you might call a ‘superstar farmer’ … he’s been the South Island Farmer of the Year (2010) and NZ’s Agricultural Communicator of the Year (2013). His message was quite simple. He presented a strategy that enabled his 1,500 hectare Bonaveree Farm to, as he put it, “make a high profit in a good year, and not lose money in a bad year [meaning: a drought year]”. Avery offered plenty of data to support his approach to dryland farming – superior lambing rates and weights, higher production of the dry matter required to feed stock, and tonnage of meat produced off his land.

All leading to his bottom line: In 1998, Avery generated sales off his farm of $320,000; in 2013 he generated nearly $2 million. Although Avery’s system has a number of components, all aimed at optimizing use of scarce water, at the core of his farming success is lucerne. Respected farm columnist Jon Morgan calls him, admiringly, a “lucerne lunatic”. About a third of Avery’s property is planted in lucerne, whose growth pattern allows him to wean lambs earlier and bring them up to saleable rates in half the time it takes most farmers … by early December, avoiding the driest weather. “The plant shows you don’t have to drain a river to run a profitable farm,” he says. Avery farms in one of New Zealand’s consistently driest areas, averaging 573mm with very high evapotranspiration due to exposure to winds. But he showed photos

of his property and his neighbor’s, taken at the driest time. Avery’s land was green; his neighbor’s was parched. He made the same point with similar comparative photos taken in Hawke’s Bay. Simply put, his methods capture and hold more water in the soil … otherwise known as ‘water storage’. Avery is a sterling example of the ‘Top 20%’ farmer the farm trade press is constantly talking about, as in … ‘what’s the matter with the rest of these guys?!’ One does wonder: what’s the difference between Doug Avery and his struggling neighbor, who sits right across the fence watching Doug’s success, but stands pat? To achieve its claimed benefits, all irrigators using water from the proposed Ruataniwha Dam must, according to its advocates, be ‘Top 20%’ farmers, whatever animal or crop they are growing. Avery’s experience demonstrates how unrealistic that assumption is in the real world … naive, at the very least, about how long it takes change to occur in farming practices. Thereby illustrating one of the key obstacles to achieving the benefits claimed for the dam scheme. At the same time, Avery’s track record points to a proven alternative strategy, especially with respect to sheep and beef farmers, who account for the preponderance of farming in Hawke’s Bay … if change can be promoted and accelerated.

In his article in this BayBuzz, farm economist Barrie Ridler cites evidence presented to the Tukituki Board of Inquiry by Beef & Lamb NZ: “The [HBRIC] plan assumes that irrigation is essential to increased production from dryland sheep and beef farming. This is not altogether correct as the recent development of lucerne grazing and other novel forages and feed sources has demonstrated. Recent work in this area has shown that equivalent levels of production can be achieved on dryland lucerne as are achieved from irrigated pasture.”

L and wanted

Why isn’t our Regional Council climbing all over ‘smart farming’ and drawing upon the experiences of Avery, Ridler, Tichinin, Masters and others here in the region? These experts are handson, dirt under the fingernails, not policy wonk planners. They can point to success stories right here in Hawke’s Bay. They represent the kind of expertise in which HBRC should invest if it really wants to build resilience into Hawke’s Bay farming. Why doesn’t HBRC create and lead a programme to help farmers excel at dryland farming? (Today’s answer: it lacks the will and the in-house expertise.) Better still, why not create a ‘Farming Resilience Centre’ – an education and training institution, a physical hub for our local experts, perhaps at EIT, to help any farmer in the region understand and adopt ‘best practices’ whatever their type of farming? Why not create financial incentives for farmers to embrace ‘best practices’ and reap the rich economic return for our region? After all, we subsidise clean heat and insulation for ‘public good’ reasons. The bottom line is that there might just be better ways to accomplish water storage, improve farm productivity and incomes, and grow premium food attractive for discerning global markets than building a $300 million dam, which requires another $300 million from farmers to use. It’s called ‘smart farming’ … and we should make it our mission and signature here in Hawke’s Bay.

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Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

Evangelists and superstars Avery shows how to make sustainable profit in the driest of conditions, without irrigation. His work attracts national and international attention. His oftdelivered presentation is called ‘Beyond Reasonable Drought’. Avery isn’t the only ‘smart farming’ evangelist. Way back in Baybuzz #9 (Nov/ Dec 2012) we wrote about consultant Alison Dewes, who was working with dairy farmers in the Waikato (and who more recently gave evidence supporting Fish & Game’s position before the Board of Inquiry). One of the farmers in her project was leaching less than 20 kilograms of nitrogen per hectare, half the catchment average, and still managing a return on assets of 5.4%. More recently, another Waikato dairy farmer she’s worked with hasn’t used superphosphate fertilizer in four years, has cut nitrogen use by 80% and says his net profit has rocketed. These sound like superstar farmers in the making as well. Hawke’s Bay has its own ‘smart farming’ evangelists. Barrie Ridler, writing in this edition, is one.

And Baybuzz has regularly featured the work of locally-based Phyllis Tichinin and Nicole Masters. Both are soil consultants and advocates of biological farming, which focuses on rebuilding soil health. Both have clients across Hawke’s Bay – orchardists, wine makers, croppers and, yes, even dairy farmers. Approximately 60,000 to 80,000 hectares in Hawke’s Bay are committed to biological farming methods, with great success. Tichinin notes this comment from a CHB sheep and beef farmer: “Phyllis, the reason we all farm like this and meekly take the 250 kg Sulphur Super recommendation from the fert rep every year is because we don’t know enough about soils to challenge them and we’re afraid to admit our ignorance, so we just go along with it.” Masters runs the Association of Biological Farmers. She writes: “Techniques that focus on soil health and soil biology are better adapted to hold on longer during dry spells and bounce back quicker when rains do come. Research shows that biologically managed systems have increased nutrient and water storage, improved soil structure and resilience to climactic extremes. Soil carbon acts like a giant sponge; a 1% increase in organic carbon can increase the soil’s ability to store water by 144,000 litres/hectare, roughly a bucket of water per square meter.” She adds: “I personally believe that the most cost effective strategy would be educating farmers around methods to increase the water holding capacity of their soils directly.” To the Regional Council, however, ‘water storage’ means only one thing – build a dam. Narrow-gauge thinking; hardly considered ‘cutting edge’ on the world scene.

Missy P says .....

TASTE TE MATA

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Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

Hauling on my hiking boots and adjusting my backpack I am ready for a cross-country hike Hawke’s Bay style, versus the Spanish ‘Santiago de Compostela’ one. I’ve heard there are fossils in ‘dem hills’ and I am ready to investigate the flora and fauna for any potential culinary gems. Missy P is Prue Barton, proprietress of Mister D. Ambling down the circuit path my first native encounter is a kawakawa bush. It is easily recognised by its heart-shaped leaves and jointed stems. Known loosely as ‘bush basil’ this small evergreen shrub-like tree has culinary value. The leaves can be used fresh or dried. To make kawakawa powder, wash the leaves and place on a baking sheet and dry at around 100 C for about

20 minutes. Cool and then grind in a mortar and pestle and use to pep up an aioli or sprinkle over fish when baking. Rub into your favourite cut of beef and roast medium rare. Another idea for fresh kawakawa leaves is to use as you would vine leaves and wrap around baked fish or cheeses to impart a peppery flavour. Wash the leaves first and then blanch in salted water to soften.

Traditionally the Mäori used it in cuisine and medicine. The fruit, bark and leaves of the kawakawa all have medicinal properties. The leaves were placed over cuts and boils to speed up healing and a tea was made from an infusion of its leaves. A tea made with half a teaspoon of dried kawakawa leaf mixed with manuka honey and a slice of lemon makes a delicious modern day infusion. It is said that the leaves were

also chewed to reduce toothache (not something I have personally tried) and that leaves tossed on to a fire created an excellent insect repellent (something to remember for that next camping trip!). Another option is to purchase these native herbs from a company called Great Taste NZ, which offers wild harvested kawakawa and flax seeds. They are based in Albany, Auckland and provide a wide portfolio of NZ ingredients to chefs and specialist companies. Heading farther into the bush, clusters of flax line the path. Common flax (known as harakeke) can grow up to three metres high and the seed pods stand upright. The seeds are edible and if harvested young when they are white or green are sweet and meaty. Grind in a mortar and pestle and use in recipes

“Rather than trusting mushrooms that you have foraged, an easier and safer option is to visit the Te Mata Mushroom Company.” that would call for seasonings such as dukkah. Black seeds, which have a more bitter taste, can be collected a little later on and when dried make a good coffee substitute. To prepare, break the pods open and remove the black seeds. Heat in a dry frying pan until the seeds start popping. Cool and grind in a coffee grinder. This black flaxseed powder can be used as a spice for marinating meats such as venison.

If you don’t know it, don’t pick it! As I adjust to the filtered light a tui swoops overhead and lands in a large karaka tree just in front of me. The tree is laden with ripe orange-yellow berries and many are scattered on the ground. Karaka berries were also highly important to Mäori as a source of food. The ripe yellow flesh could be eaten raw with a texture apparently likened to that of a date but the kernel proved to be poisonous, causing paralysis if eaten. Mäori however made the kernel safe to eat by steeping it in water and cooking it for up to twelve hours. To make flour the processed kernels were sundried and then pounded. Following the track deeper I come across an old fallen log that is sprouting wood ear mushrooms. These edible fungi Continued on Page 52

Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

Kawakawa on beef

taste te mata

tim.co.nz

like to grow in cool, damp bush areas and resemble the shape of an ear. Cook as you would any mushroom recipe and you will find they are more textural than flavoursome. However a golden rule to remember when foraging for any food, especially mushrooms is, if you don’t know what it is don’t pick it. The track now winds out into the valley and I decide to venture a little ‘off piste’ so I can cut back to the car. Remembering that The Peak restaurant has recently been refurbished I duck in for a look. The views can only be described as breathtaking and the new fit-out feels relaxed.

Knowing in which direction to look you can almost see the iconic vineyards of Black Barn and Te Mata Estate. I decide to pop into Te Mata Estate later on to find a suitable wine to match my mushroom and kawakawa pizza. I arrive to a hive of activity to find that there is a ‘pickers’ picnic’ about to happen later on that afternoon. A pyramid of Estate Chardonnay is stacked and ready to be collected. Heading to the Cellar Door to sample some wines I taste the Gamay Noir 2013. Having researched that it “smells like cru beaujolais, tastes like cru beaujolais” I cannot disagree. Perfect for the pizza and picnic.

Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

open daily from 10am off the track restaurant & licensed cafe

114 Havelock Road • BOOK NOW: 06 877 0008 www.offthetrack.co.nz

Into the Village Off with the boots now and into the car I decide to head down Te Mata Road to search out some tried and true produce. Hungry and thirsty I head into Havelock Village and pop into Hawthorne Coffee Roasters for a quick fix. A little further along I get drawn into Bellatino’s due to their vibrant street display of vegetables. This shop is brimming with the best local produce plus an extensive range of specialty imported goods. They even make picnic baskets and will do catering on request. Glancing around, two sauces

taste te mata

Arriving home late I decide to cheat a little and cut down on cooking everything from scratch. Remembering that I can purchase Poesy bread from Pipi for the pizza, I head back into the Village to gather last minute ingredients so I can start cooking for the Easter break. With friends arriving for the weekend the suggestion of a picnic on the Peak sounds fun. The sky is illuminated and I watch the eclipse dissolve over Te Mata Peak. At that moment I understand that there is way more magic in those hills than I first realised. But then that’s a whole other story.

Picnic at the Peak • Te Mata mushroom pizza with Magical Mushroom Essence • Roasted beef rubbed with kawakawa and kawakawa aioli • Apple and feijoa crumble tart

Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

catch my eye – ‘Te Mata Tomato’ and ‘Magical Mushroom Essence’ – both made by Aromatics. I worked with Noel many moons ago in Wellington and was saddened to hear that he had recently passed away. This magic essence will create an extra flavour burst on my pizza. Rather than trusting mushrooms that you have foraged, an easier and safer option is to visit the Te Mata Mushroom Company to purchase your mushrooms. Tucked in behind Te Mata Road on Brookvale Road this farm shop is open seven days a week. Their tempting displays mean you will not leave empty handed. Picked daily and grown in traditional Douglas fir trays, they pride themselves on growing the highest quality mushrooms in New Zealand. Dotted along Brookvale Road are orchards and small home growers. Apples, feijoas and limes are plentiful and I drop some coins into the numerous honesty boxes. Apples and feijoas make a delicious crumble tart, so that’s the dessert decided.

The Village ... Lifestyle + Business We talk a lot about lifestyle and how lucky we are to live in Hawke’s Bay. Let’s face it … living in Havelock North, the Village, is very nice. by ~ adrienne pierce

Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

It’s easy to get around, all the required amenities are nearby, the natives in the daytime are mostly friendly and it’s a great place to do business. The commute of five minutes by car and ten minutes by bike to the office is pleasant. It really is lovely in a non Wisteria Lane kinda way. But there are much bigger opportunities for Havelock North than just being the ‘nice’ place that it is and we need to step up a gear and grow our business profile. Business growth and jobs is where it’s at and the Village offers a serious choice for people to come and hang out their shingle. There is a huge range of excellent and affordable residential real estate, plus a good range of commercial and light industrial space. The Village has a high quality telecommunications network including the crucial high speed broadband, with more fibre going in as we speak. Key business advantages are varied and include lower operating costs (compared

to the rest of the world), good support services, and competitive and available labour costs, not to mention good quality transport linkages, including air options. Having great schools is often omitted when thinking about living and doing business in Havelock North, but ask why Rod Drury is actually back in the Bay? Hereworth. So schools are a great marketing tool when trying to attract business owners to pick up sticks wherever they are and come and get the ‘full meal’ business deal in Havelock North. Speaking of Rod, a conversation was had before they set up their new office in Wellington about why not move Xero’s callcentre to Havelock North? Brilliant question, I thought, but an equally valid answer was given. The staff of Xero are ‘mostly’ young and need a vibrant nightlife as well as a vibrant daylife, so, it was argued, Havelock North would not fit the bill. Population size and age demographic might be a bit of an issue, but that’s OK. There are plenty of thirty-five to forty-

Adrienne Pierce five year olds plus who have businesses and want the ‘lifestyle’ piece of their life equation … and we certainly have the deal for them! The Village has always been famous for its boutique retail, but the revolution of online shopping may change that somewhat with retail stores becoming interspersed with service type businesses. The small and perfectly formed CBD makes doing business just a stroll away to the Post Office or banks or to see and deliver stuff to clients. Parking is free for customers and they can mostly park outside your place of business. Great thinking to use a targeted rate to cover off shoppers’ parking; going forward this will be a big advantage. The new sixty bed hotel to be built on the site of the existing Happy Tav is more good news and will be a welcome addition for local business owners holding meetings and small conferences. And for anything bigger the Opera House is at the other end of the street.

tim.co.nz

That will take Havelock North to over 400 commercial beds, plus lodges and home stays. The Havelock North Function Centre is in the Village and provides excellent fully catered meeting and conference facilities. Its proximity to the soon-to-be refurbished Village Green adds to the overall ‘look and feel’ for those planning

gatherings of this nature. Sam Jackman, the new Havelock North Business Association President, is pumping fresh energy into the Village. The reinvigorated committee is developing a clear marketing plan. Sunday trading, or lack thereof, is back on the menu. Talks with the Hastings District

Council’s economic department continue and relationships with the team there are strong. So all in all it’s positive for Havelock North’s business profile and in the Hawke’s Bay landscape there is a very sound business case for new and existing businesses to set up in the Village. The welcome mat is out.

MoniqueThérèse Providing exellence with style

“I try to connect with my client and create a piece of jewellery that captures the spirit of that person. Something they will treasure for years to come.”

A visit to Birdwoods… the perfect place to bring your guests.

– Monique Thérèse

Bee in the know ~ may/jun 2014

DESIGNER DIAMOND JEWELLER

Designer cut amethyst set in 18ct, one off, handmade and in store.

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Enjoy our gallery, garden, sculpture walk and little Sweet Shop. Relax over tea and scones on the terrace or in the new marquee. Do a spot of treasure hunting. And perhaps have a look at our luxury loos! Always a warm welcome. Open 7 days a week • 10am to 5pm 298 Middle Road, Havelock North • Ph: 877 1395

Thom Craig designed, Queenstown

Putting the Buzz into Residential Design BY ~ thom craig

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

Flying back to Christchurch from a long weekend in Hawke’s Bay, I reviewed the photos I had taken during my stay and was again reminded of the natural beauty of the region. An image of a Gummar and Ford house in its spectacular setting started my reflecting (as an architect and citizen) on the post-quake residential rebuild about to get underway in my home town. My visit to Hawke’s Bay was made a month after a trip I had made down to the Lakes District of the South Island to visit three of my recently completed houses in that region. All of the houses are located in spectacular landscapes surrounding Queenstown and Wanaka and respond to the uniqueness of place and ownership. This triumvirate of house designs uses different materials and spatial

arrangements to place an object into its spectacular physical landscape. A sequence of considered spaces and activities are ‘cloaked in external skins’ of timber, concrete and metal that hopefully engages with all of our sensory needs and provides the design framework for these highly individualistic homes. A plethora of terminology and ‘key-words’ generally accompanies the

design, marketing and documentation of residential architecture, either as singular, multiple or group housing solutions. The current batch includes ‘sustainable, smart, green, intelligent, affordable, cutting-edge’ … and the list grows every minute as the housing market grapples with the delivery of new and rebuilt homes. My personal belief is that the phrase ‘social awareness’ should dominate any proffered list of jargon and that the very nature of society at any point in time will drive the directions taken in architecture. Advances in technologies will always be available, measurable and predictable. The sensory and cerebral enjoyment and romance of our lives are basic essentials. But catastrophe, loss, political change, economics, health, education, accommodation, social and cultural standing in our societies are the day to day reality for many of us. The aesthetics and enjoyment of any form of architecture has to move beyond just the symbolic (eye). We need to understand that architecture, along with all other cultural acts (humanities), is a collective social resource … one that impacts on the day to day living of every human being.

Thom Craig designed, Queenstown The provision of a successful residential space is not just about the available budget, but also the response to its context (intellectual and physical) and purpose (private or social). For me, the two examples that best demonstrate this point is Casa Malaparte at Capri and the houses of the Ndebele people in the Transvaal. Although private homes appear to be the domain of architects, this in reality is not the case. Architects have a key role in social housing. The housing market is generally speculative in nature, with social initiatives mainly delivered by governments of the day. The opportunity to offer meaningful social outcomes Continued on Page 58

The aesthetics and enjoyment of any form of architecture has to move beyond just the symbolic. We need to understand that architecture, along with all other cultural acts, is a collective social resource â&#x20AC;Ś one that impacts on the day to day living of every human being.

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Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

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residential design

Ndebele houses in the Transvaal

Visiting Hawke's Bay requires institutions to make use of the architect’s understanding and experience when it comes to thinking about and delivering at both the micro (house) and macro (urban) scales. The uniquely different physical manifestation of each individual client’s brief and the architect’s creative interpretation of the client’s personal desires and spatial needs is a wonderful evolving resource from which to address the needs of low-cost social housing. This,

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

coupled with an understanding of the built, social and local natural environment will put in place housing solutions that are liveable, enjoyable and memorable, as well as addressing many of the limitations perpetuated by social inequalities. ‘House’ means different things to each and every one of us. Its very essence of space and place is modified by our life experiences and the ever present ‘romantic notion’ of our existence. I enjoy the task of pulling apart,

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understanding and testing a client’s brief in the pursuit of delivering to them a home that hopefully goes beyond all of their expectations. In designing a home, the realities of budget, programme, build ability and location are a given. What needs to be a over-arching consideration is the need to elevate the built result above everyone’s expectations, thus challenging the notions of place, existing built fabric, community and the human spirit.

residential design

Thom Craig

Casa Malaparte, Capri A new home can enjoy all of the latest building advances and financial benefits, yet still not achieve the levels of creative spirit and design generosity that should be made available to everyone, no matter what their social or financial standing. Another look at my photographs taken around Hawke’s Bay and I am reminded that it is not only architects that are capable of delivering beautiful homes and spaces.

Thom Craig, South Africa born, practised architecture for twenty years at Christchurch-based firms Warren and Mahoney and MAP. He now has a solo practice and, although living in Christchurch says: “I see myself as an architect. I could be sitting anywhere in the world.”

COMPLETE HOME & LAND PACKAGES AT PARKHILL FARM Ultimate lifestyle packages now available! A great new partnership has been formed between Developer, Designer and Builder to bring you the ultimate Design Builders ‘complete’ Home and Land package. Imagine living amongst 48 hectares of stunning farmland and vineyards, waking up every morning first to see the sunrise over Cape Kidnappers, continuous views out to the Pacific Ocean and into the hills and beyond... Te Awanga, a location famous for wine, food, fishing, surfing, golf, cycle trials and the friendliest locals around. Live the lifestyle you’ve always dreamed of. Let us design and build your ultimate home. 19 stunning sections for sale, 2550 – 5776m2. Contact Craig Hay 0508 Parkhill (727 544)

06 877 1441 | 021 0838 0626 (Nicky Cranswick) | www.designbuilders.co.nz

Call in and see Nicky or Scott at their new Design complex on the corner of Napier and Crosses Roads, Havelock North.

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

Houses today, as in any other point in time, respond to an amalgam (both global and local) of technological, cultural, environmental, financial and political shifts and changes. Their ‘uniqueness’ should be derived from the collaboration of both the client and architect to deliver a home that is both highly personal and affordable, as well as informative for both its occupants and neighbours.

Photos by Sarah Cates

Fiona Hosford

d e s u e R , d e l c y c p U , Handmade

rron

ar ba BY ~ jessica sout

A sustainable, 'smart' home is an empty shell until furnishings and homewares arrive. The thought, attention to detail and strong foundation of principles that go into designing and building the exoskeleton must also inform the 'filling-up' of the created space.

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

The lampshade from the catalogue, the curtains from the big box, the dresser like the neighbours' have all been replaced. Supplanted by a new way of shopping coupled with an old way of thinking about how we consume: slow-made products crafted locally, reused and upcycled materials, vintage objects. A few things believed to be beautiful and useful are winning out over a house-load of clutter. We are learning the patience required to find just the right jug or rug or side table. World War II conservation slogans insisted: "Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without." And there's now a resurgence of that way of living. Creating new Peter and Nicola Coulter are involved in two retail shops, The Department of Curiosities and Fine Things in Napier and Coco and Co in Hastings, that specialise in handmade products, but their commitment to the cause runs far deeper than just hawking gewgaws to consumers. Arriving from the UK eight years ago the Coulters found in New Zealand an ideological homeland. "I was brought up to reuse everything.

Dad's a tinkerer and we never had anything new. He should have been a Kiwi!" says Nicola, who explains how her father makes bee-keeping equipment from old washing machines and freezers, back in the UK. Nicola herself turns iconic Kiwi blankets into cushions and throws, and makes a range of homewares from vintage and retro fabrics. "They have such fantastic quality for their age; there's so much life still in them." Husband Peter takes old furniture and makes it new again by rethinking it, adding wallpaper, maps and paint, sometimes taking the drastic action of cutting it into pieces and rebuilding it. "It's the ultimate recycling: not using new but creating new. And it connects us to the past," he explains. The Coulters encourage consumers to both buy and make their own objects for their homes. For them, fewer things of greater quality beats a greater quantity of cheaper things. A different kind of retail Fiona Hosford, arbiter of good taste and all-round aesthete, agrees. She has run a number of interior design offerings since

she came home from the UK in 1999. "It's to be encouraged; people making their own things. Yes, you should, and yes, you can make it yourself if you have time, but if not there are people who will do it for you," says Fiona. Arriving in Auckland straight out of a job at Sotheby's in London, Fiona opened a shop in Kingsland. Not the humming high street it is now, but still full of potential. Piece Ltd focused on high-end midcentury furniture, stocking vintage Eames when few consumers understood the importance of such a thing. Then came a move back to the Bay and Global Piece, which specialised in vintage fabrics, especially Marimekko imported from Finland. Now Piece-Makers is an online portal for handmade products enabling a wider audience to access Fiona's upcycled, slow made and vintage finds. Her contribution to the local scene is the monthly Craft and Design Market established in July 2011. "We're about making accessible a different way of looking at retail. Getting people to interact and consider their purchases: who made it and how," she explains.

Peter Coulter agrees: "Making a choice to have a smart house means not buying off the peg. Most of that will have been imported and there's big transportation costs associated with it. And no more MDF! we don't need to introduce anymore of that into our households!" "Handmade is individual; factory-made is all the same and it's designed to be easily made, not easily used." Boxes of stuff Extending notions of handmade and reused to their nth degree, rather than build new, Melissa Brignell Theyer and Matt Durham have recycled most of their modest 1940s three-bed into a new home, with echoes of its past self still apparent in cornices and floor boards. They moved in six weeks ago, having spent half a year living in a sleepout. "Having to downsize to a shed for eight months helps put things in perspective. We have all these boxes of stuff we're not using and we're not in a hurry to open them. It's probably the stuff we don't really need!" admits Melissa. The principles on which the new home is built are evident all around, but at first scan the house looks much like any other. A walk-through, however, reveals the care, time and energy that's gone

“We're about making accessible a different way of looking at retail. Getting people to interact and consider their purchases: who made it and how.” fiona hosford into not just constructing the house (a job done by builders Pat Mawson and Nils Rock), but furnishing it. "With all these things there's lots of thinking and planning to do first and it can take years. You start with a seed, for us it's our fundamental beliefs: all things are connected, resources are finite, live within your means." From that starting block Melissa and Matt set about thinking through a project that would see their house cut in half, the two sections turned 180 degrees in on each other, a bedroom and second bathroom added, a hall widened, and the whole thing stuck back together again. The new house is 50 square metres larger than its former self. "Our principles are challenged all the time. Sometimes we do just say,

'I really want that'. Some things though we wouldn't compromise. They're just mental yard sticks and it's personal to everyone. People are on different parts of the sustainability spectrum," Melissa explains. Throughout the house there are many examples of reuse. The kitchen is constructed from units taken from the old kitchen coupled with free standing furniture: chest of drawers, wardrobe, cabinet. Benches are doors found at the Hastings Recycling Depot. The floor boards in new parts of the house come from beams and studs in the old roof. Second-hand bricks are used for the hearth, on which will eventually sit a Pyroclassic fire, a highly energy efficient solid fuel burning fire, made a stone's throw from Melissa and Matt's house. Easy to live with Furniture is carefully considered: either second-hand or 'Matt-made'. The CD rack he fashioned from an old copper hot water cylinder, the kitchen cabinet from an old pair of leadlight windows. "I have to say it helps to be handy," laughs Melissa."There's a lot we wouldn't have been able to do without Matt being incredibly able." Continued on Page 62

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

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Handmade, Upcycled, Re-used

Melissa Brignell Theyer

Places to hunt out the look and feel Chris Wilson furniture in Wairoa Peter McLean furniture in Clive 3 David Trubridge fabrics in collaboration with Hemptech 4 Leanne Culy's fabrics through Homebase Collections 5 Le Workshop, So Vintage and Piece Makers online 6 The Department of Curiosities and Fine Things in Napier 7 Coco and Co in Hastings 8 Good finds at the weekly Kauri House auctions in Havelock North 9 The dozen or more quality opshops peppered throughout the region 10 Your Nana's linen cupboard – quality vintage fabrics like to hide in dark corners. 1 2

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

Nicola & Peter Coulter

The suite of art deco furniture in the children's room was serendipitously made by the man who built the original house for his own family. "If you weren't in that zone of looking at second-hand you wouldn't find that stuff that makes a real difference in a home," suggests Melissa. Fiona Hosford is also a strong advocate for second-hand. "Across the board, vintage is better than buying new. It's great when things can be reused in a way that gives them a new life." Fiona explains that mid-century (19301970) furniture is a good place to start. "It's easy to live with, built for a family, well made, and you don't need to be super precious about it." Hawke's Bay lends itself perfectly to this type of vibe. With a multitude of secondhand shops, as well as many makers, crafters and designers working in our region, we don't have to go far to find things for our homes that match the way

we think about our world. " You can't think one way and live another. You have to live what you believe in order to feel okay about yourself," says Fiona. Having things made for you by local craftspeople may take longer and cost more, but will also last longer and mean more than something bought off the shelf. Reusing things too takes some critical thinking, and some bravery. But for those with an eye for style and their mind focused on sustainability, all those options are vastly more appealing than buying what's mass produced. "I think people are beginning to look at products – homewares and furnishings – in a more considered way. They are waking up to the fact that lots of things are being made in a way that is detrimental to the people who produce them as well as to the environment," Fiona says. "People are just beginning that whole awakening: it's not a fad, it's an evolution."

UNIQUE LIGHTING

. . . Made here in the Bay

Contact: Brian Chapman 06 878 3604

baywiring@clear.net.nz l 408 Warren Street North, Hastings l www.uniquelighting.co.nz

Handmade, Upcycled, Re-used

Every home needs a fire

Ric Chalmers

"Our flue temperatures are among the lowest because it all burns in the box, that means the heat stays in the house and not up the chimney," Ric says. "It's kiln technology. Rather than using fire bricks, the whole cylinder is made of that material, so it burns much more efficiently." Even the wetback is designed to work optimally. On the Ministry for the Environment list of all woodburners it's the only one that gets environmentally cleaner with a wetback. In every other fire it gets worse. "You can't close a Pyro down because there's no dampering ability," explains Ric. "It burns overnight, also you can cook on it!" The Pyroclassic appeals to people who yearn for the hearth of old. And for those seeking style with their sustainability, it's the only fire that comes in 150 different colours, which can be changed as your interior design does.

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

Arthur Harris and George Katzer were working for the DSIR in Wainuiomata when they were tasked with finding the most cost effective woodburner possible. When the DSIR disbanded in the mid-80s they took the project with them. It became the Pyroclassic and is now made exclusively in Hastings and exported around the world. The design hasn't changed in thirty years and yet it is still, by far, the most fuel-efficient fire on the market. The Pyroclassic was adopted by ‘newage environmentalists’ in the 80s and 90s, hell bent on being as green as possible. Harris and Katzer made one or two units a month, supplying people who were happy to wait. In the 1990s Wayne Morgan bought the company, in a round-about sort of way, and started making them out the back of his muffler shop in Hastings. Later on, when the fires had moved to a slightly bigger site in the corner of an asparagus packing shed, Ric Chalmers’ father Alastair, visiting from England, happened to be helping a mate with a tree on the Morgan's property and got to talking fires with Wayne. Long story short, Wayne was keen to sell, and Ric and Alastair leapt at the opportunity. "You could call us the smallest player in the woodburning game," says Ric. "We just make this one fire because if we made a better one we'd stop making this one!" Basically the Pyroclassic is a ceramic cement cylinder with huge amounts of insulation. The internal temperatures get to such a point that fuel burns multiple times, recycling every bit of burnable matter.

brendan webb

Mysteries of The Mausoleum

Bee in the know ~ may/ jun 2014

Lawrencus Yulus limped to a halt outside the doors of the mausoleum. He had led a small group of soldiers on a 20-kilometre march to the new building on Napierion’s Paradus Marinus. He was covered with dust and the heels on his new leather boots were killing him. He wished he’d worn the calfskin sandals with strap heels and cushioned soles. Then he saw the letters MTG carved over the entrance. “Why is it called the MTG?” he asked a sergeant. “Depends who you talk to,” the soldier shrugged. “The most popular opinion is it’s because the exhibits inside are MTG -mighty thin on the ground.” “Others say it means Mind The Gap -- the difference between how many treasures they told us the building would house, and what it actually can.” “I heard it stands for ‘Mighty God’ because that’s what visitors say when they hear it costs 15 drachmas to get in.” The ground vibrated and the doors shook as a tandem-axle log chariot thundered past. Lawrencus banged his broadsword angrily against the sturdy doors. Moments later they were opened by a man in a plaid toga and silk scarf. He bowed and introduced himself as the mausoleum’s curator, Laudus Jenkus. “I’ve come to inspect the mausoleum,” said Lawrencus. “Because I, on behalf of my loyal subjects, have a million drachmas invested in this building and we want to make sure we got our money’s worth.” Laudus Jenkus sniffed. He looked at the dust-covered country bumpkins from Hustings and gave a faint shudder. The soldiers smelled of bad wine and sheep urine. He rewrapped his scarf to cover his mouth and nose. He ushered them inside the mausoleum’s vast foyer. It was empty, except for a wooden table, covered with trinkets. “This is the reception area,” murmured Laudus Jenkus. “It’s designed to handle the huge numbers that we estimate will be lining up for tickets anytime soon. There’s a little lull at the moment,” he added. Lawrencus peered at the Visitor’s Book. There were three entries. Two had fulsome praise for the mausoleum. One signed by Laudus Jenkus. The other by his patron, Barbarus Arnottus. They climbed a flight of stairs to the first floor, their voices echoing through the empty rooms and wide corridors. Lawrencus hobbled into the gloomy interior of one room. Dozens of clay pots and cups lined a set of shelves at one end.

“The scullery?” he asked. Laudus Jenkus gripped his scarf. “A priceless collection from a pioneer studio potter,” he said through gritted teeth. “We chuck out our old cups,” said Lawrencus. They found another room containing a sparse collection of clay figures with animal heads. One figure with a yellow bull’s head reminded Lawrencus of the half-men, halfsheep that once roamed the hills behind his family farm. He shook his head. “That’s historically wrong,” he said, nodding toward the figure. “That’s not us. We’ve never been bull-headed in Heretaungus, because we think like sheep. You Napierions are getting us mixed up with Greek centaurs.” “It is an artistic interpretation infused with Egyptian iconology,” replied Laudus Jenkus. “I’m sorry we didn’t have space for some sheep statues but of course you have already filled that gaping cultural void in Hustings.” He silently led the way to the building’s basement and into a dim room. Lawrencus saw a scroll on a wall depicting a shattered Napierion street, piles of rubble and two fallen arches. They made Lawrencus remember his sore feet. He was about to sit on a stack of bricks and take off his boots when Laudus Jenkus gripped him by the arm. “Do you mind?” he hissed. “This exhibit recalls the earthquake of AD31 that levelled Napierion, upturned our beaches and destroyed our roads. It apparently did a bit of damage over your way too. The deaths and widespread destruction of Napierion are symbolically

encapsulated in these few bricks.” He marched Lawrencus quickly back up to the foyer and headed toward the front door, but Lawrencus held his ground. “Is that it?” he asked. “Is that all we get for our million drachmas and the half million you want us to pay each year to keep a roof over some old pots and a few stacks of bricks?” Laudus Jenkus was breathing with some difficulty through his scarf. He’d wrapped it so tightly it was cutting off his air supply and making his voice sound shrill. “We’ve hidden most of our treasures and collections somewhere else because they’d take up too much room here. We’d end up cluttered like the old mausoleum, where everything was on display.” Lawrencus took off a boot and shook out a stone before leading his men out into the street. Another log chariot laden with logs rumbled past as they reached the southern gates. His subjects were not going to be happy when they found he’d spent a million drachmas on a building that was too small for their history but had room for old pots and bricks. As he led his bedraggled soldiers on the long road back to Hustings, Lawrencus began to think about the war of amalgamation that lay ahead. He decided that once Napierion had fallen, he would find himself new headquarters in the town, somewhere with good views, close to the hot baths and fresh sea air. Then it struck him. The mausoleum would be perfect. It was hardly being used and by changing just one initial it would become the MTH --- the Mighty Throne of Heretuscany.

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