Yes they went up. Quite a bit according to this article in the Marlborough Express.
So I suppose the Chairman of the New Zealand Winegrowers had good reason to wonder what was going on.
Now I don't know a lot about what makes a Council tick financially. But I do know that in order to properly monitor the rules and regulations of a District plan it will cost a bit of money.
So I suppose you would ask yourself just what are they monitoring and how are the Council maintaining compliance and who are breaking the rules?
Well good questions and good news. Because for a little taste of the evil doings that are going on around the District, the MDC released excerpts from "Environment Action 2008" last year.
Let's have a look....
Prosecution action:
Highfield Terrace Downs Limited for Unauthorised works in a wetland.
Infringement Notices:
Wither Hills Vineyards Marlborough Limited for Discharge of winery wastewater
Foxes Island Wines Limited for Discharge of grapes and wash water to the stormwater system which enters the Co-op Drain.
Spy Valley Wines for Discharge of winery wastewater to land.
Gareth Lynn for Discharge of RDV to wastewater system which enters the Co-op Drain.
Indevin Limited for Discharge of RDV to wastewater system which enters the Co-op Drain.
Robyn Tiller for Discharge to air from burning plastic and treated wood.
Michael Tiller for Discharge to air from burning plastic and treated wood.
Isabel Estate Limited for Discharge to air from burning plastic and treated wood.
Ashmore Vineyards Limited for Discharge of smoke from burning green vegetation.
Lynford Vineyards Limited for Unauthorised filling of a waterway.
Bronwyn Grant for Discharge of smoke from burning plastic vine guards.
Weta Estate Limited for Discharge of smoke to air by burning green vegetation.
Boundary Bay Vineyards Limited for Removal of trees from floodway.
Vines Development Company for Discharge of stormwater from earthworks without sediment traps.
McKean Estates Limited for Disturbing bed of a river.
McKean Estates Limited for Diverting water.
McKean Estates Limited for Tree removal in a riverbed.
McKean Estates Limited for Discharge of sediment from earthworks without sediment traps.
Matakana Estate for Discharge of smoke to air from burning green vegetation.
Weta Estates Limited for Discharge of smoke to air from burning green vegetation.
Saint Claire Estate Wines Limited for Discharge of smoke to air from burning treated timber and plastic.
Odyssey Vineyards Limited for Discharge of smoke to air from burning treated timber and plastic.
Delegats Wine Estate for Discharge of smoke from burning green vegetation.
Abatement Notices:
Alistair Shave for The take and use of water to irrigate a vineyard
Indevin Limited for Discharge of contaminates to a waterway, via the stormwater system.
Wither Hills Vineyards Limited for Discharge of winery wastewater to land in excess of 10mm/day.
Indevin Limited for Discharge of winery wastewater to a waterway via the Council stormwater system.
Indevin Limited for Dumping of grape marc to land.
Richard Campbell for Dumping of grape marc to land
Wairau River Wines Limited for Discharge of winery wastewater to land in excess of 10 mm/day
Anthony Moore for Discharge of grape marc to land
Boundary Bay Vineyards for Removal of trees in floodway
Weta Estates Limited for Burning of unauthorised materials.
Matakana Estate Limited for Unauthorised excavation and vegetation removal in a floodway
Matakana Estate Limited for Burning of unauthorised materials.
M & M Wairau Investments Limited for Taking of water for irrigation of vineyard.
Daniel Watson for Taking of water for irrigation of vineyard
Weta Estates Limited for Taking of water for irrigation of vineyard
Vines Development Company Limited for Taking of water for irrigation of vineyard.
McKean Estate Marlborough Limited for Taking water.
So I suppose the cost of monitoring and enforcing compliance has to cover the efforts of chasing the offenders mentioned above?
So I agree with the New Zealand Winegrowers. The fees have gone up a lot.
But I can sort of see why...
Thursday, 22 April 2010
Sunday, 11 April 2010
Fourth night in a row for fans.
Fourth times the charm?
Not as many running last night. Quite a bit of on again, off again noise.
No wine can taste that good.
Not as many running last night. Quite a bit of on again, off again noise.
No wine can taste that good.
Saturday, 10 April 2010
3rd night in a row. Whew!
Feeling really good now.
3 nights in a row with fans operating. A good nights sleep is only a hazy semi-hallucinatory memory.
But I am only one person. Around the district there are hundreds like me. Semi awake, but driving on the roads anyway.
Great.
3 nights in a row with fans operating. A good nights sleep is only a hazy semi-hallucinatory memory.
But I am only one person. Around the district there are hundreds like me. Semi awake, but driving on the roads anyway.
Great.
Frost Fan debate: The age of reason?
I like the idea of the debate page in the Marlborough Express.
So I suppose it would have only been a matter of time before frost fans featured.
Young Malcolm took the 'reason' slant. And why not? It's kind of obvious when you boil the issue down. Frost fan operators should be just as responsible for producing a reasonable of noise as defined in the RMA as any other industry. Why should they be special? Perhaps the Chairman of the New Zealand Winegrowers has a reason? Let's take a look....
There is apparently a significant cost in running a frost machine. Frankly a few hundreds of dollars of diesel is pittance beside the potential earnings of the crop, so let's not mince words here. An operator will ALWAYS err on the side of caution when deciding whether or not to operate his fans. Some operators won't even take as much care as young Stuart. I mean why bother to wake up at 3am when you can simply tell your vineyard manager to turn them on at the first sniff of cool weather and turn them off at sunrise. Small price to pay (especially when you live in another part of the country).
Clearly every time he ran his machines he was faced with no other alternative. This is WAR! (have you noticed how the effort is described as frost fighting? This is genuinely how some growers approach the business of frost protection, no matter what technique is used. And as we know, in war, not everyone's following the Geneva convention (I mean history is written by winners isn't it?)).
I see that "landowners have a responsibility to ensure that the adverse effects of their viticultural practices are mitigated as far as practically possible" So there are adverse effects of viticultural practices, but if you've chosen to grow your crop in an unsuitable area, never fear, you only have to make an effort to mitigate adverse effects, not actually mitigate them.
All the hot air over national standards and complicated rules hides the fact that the New Zealand Winegrowers have not made any practical attempt to limit noise pollution. This includes their code of practice which doesn't even pretend to be enforceable. What Stuart is really saying is let's forget about this petty local squabbling and elevate the issue to a national level so that no affected individual will be inclined to participate and we can either write our own rules or simply drag the process out for longer.
Other Councils are less combative? How much less combative can they get. For crying out loud, they don't even monitor the noise, just the complaints!!
So I suppose it would have only been a matter of time before frost fans featured.
Young Malcolm took the 'reason' slant. And why not? It's kind of obvious when you boil the issue down. Frost fan operators should be just as responsible for producing a reasonable of noise as defined in the RMA as any other industry. Why should they be special? Perhaps the Chairman of the New Zealand Winegrowers has a reason? Let's take a look....
There is apparently a significant cost in running a frost machine. Frankly a few hundreds of dollars of diesel is pittance beside the potential earnings of the crop, so let's not mince words here. An operator will ALWAYS err on the side of caution when deciding whether or not to operate his fans. Some operators won't even take as much care as young Stuart. I mean why bother to wake up at 3am when you can simply tell your vineyard manager to turn them on at the first sniff of cool weather and turn them off at sunrise. Small price to pay (especially when you live in another part of the country).
Clearly every time he ran his machines he was faced with no other alternative. This is WAR! (have you noticed how the effort is described as frost fighting? This is genuinely how some growers approach the business of frost protection, no matter what technique is used. And as we know, in war, not everyone's following the Geneva convention (I mean history is written by winners isn't it?)).
I see that "landowners have a responsibility to ensure that the adverse effects of their viticultural practices are mitigated as far as practically possible" So there are adverse effects of viticultural practices, but if you've chosen to grow your crop in an unsuitable area, never fear, you only have to make an effort to mitigate adverse effects, not actually mitigate them.
All the hot air over national standards and complicated rules hides the fact that the New Zealand Winegrowers have not made any practical attempt to limit noise pollution. This includes their code of practice which doesn't even pretend to be enforceable. What Stuart is really saying is let's forget about this petty local squabbling and elevate the issue to a national level so that no affected individual will be inclined to participate and we can either write our own rules or simply drag the process out for longer.
Other Councils are less combative? How much less combative can they get. For crying out loud, they don't even monitor the noise, just the complaints!!
Friday, 9 April 2010
2nd night of fans. You've got to love it.
So, second night of bing kept awake by fan noise. Lets hope I'm not the person operating the truck on the road that goes past you. Let's hope I'm not the person dispensing your medicines. Lets hope I'm not putting a filling in your child's mouth. Lets hope I'm not flying an airplane. Let's hope I'm not your accountant. Let's hope I'm not your lawyer. Lets hope I'm not your doctor. Let's hope I'm not trying to fix the XT network. Let's hope I'm not a fireman. Let's hope I'm not a police officer. Let's hope I'm not driving your kids to school.
Lets hope I'm not one of the myriad of people who need a good nights sleep to do their job well.
Because that's the second night in a row.
Lets hope I'm not one of the myriad of people who need a good nights sleep to do their job well.
Because that's the second night in a row.
Frost Fan Hearing Tidbits
A recent article in the Marlborough Sun newspaper, has shone a bit of light on some interesting aspects from the recent frost fan plan change hearing.
Actually there are some curious observations.
Complaints have increased as the number of fans has increased (that kind of makes sense).
Why Murray Hunt would be telling the world that the blades on the Defender frost fans were coming apart is a little beyond me, but he's a lawyer, so I presume that it's pretty much public knowledge (or at least Murray thought it was).
Could the Council end up ignoring cumulative effects in the plan change? Frankly that would be ludicrous. To pretend that the noise problem from frost fans is only due to single fans flies in the face of reason.
Is that right? A vineyard owner and an affected resident are both annoyed that a noise report has dodgy data in it? That would be worth seeing (still waiting for those documents).
And of course Councillor Hope appearing for the NZ Winegrowers. A Councillor representing a company with a vested interest in the outcome of the hearing appearing before the committee who are deciding on a district plan. I suppose this would mean he will need to declare a conflict of interest if the plan change has to be voted on.
Actually there are some curious observations.
Complaints have increased as the number of fans has increased (that kind of makes sense).
Why Murray Hunt would be telling the world that the blades on the Defender frost fans were coming apart is a little beyond me, but he's a lawyer, so I presume that it's pretty much public knowledge (or at least Murray thought it was).
Could the Council end up ignoring cumulative effects in the plan change? Frankly that would be ludicrous. To pretend that the noise problem from frost fans is only due to single fans flies in the face of reason.
Is that right? A vineyard owner and an affected resident are both annoyed that a noise report has dodgy data in it? That would be worth seeing (still waiting for those documents).
And of course Councillor Hope appearing for the NZ Winegrowers. A Councillor representing a company with a vested interest in the outcome of the hearing appearing before the committee who are deciding on a district plan. I suppose this would mean he will need to declare a conflict of interest if the plan change has to be voted on.
Thursday, 8 April 2010
Fans have a bit of a crack
No, not an actual crack. Just trying to get a way of saying that there were a few fans running last night (not that I can see a frost).
You've got to think that some operators must feel that if they have a fan, they should run it. Irrespective of whether there is a serious risk of frost or not. Plonkers.
You've got to think that some operators must feel that if they have a fan, they should run it. Irrespective of whether there is a serious risk of frost or not. Plonkers.
Tuesday, 30 March 2010
Can the Council clean up after itself?
Well, judging by the article in last weeks "The Sun" newspaper - No.
In spite of being subjected to excessive noise by a Council rule that allowed multiple frost fans to be placed within spitting distance of their house, a couple up the Wairau valley have had much in the way of promises and little in the way of substance delivered.
You have to start asking yourself. "Could this be a case of there but for the grace of God go I?"
The Council have stuffed up here by allowing a blatantly stupid rule to torment average residents. Where does their responsibility lie?
You know, I'd like to know if anyone ever takes responsibility for that 100m rule debacle.
You have to start asking yourself. "Could this be a case of there but for the grace of God go I?"
The Council have stuffed up here by allowing a blatantly stupid rule to torment average residents. Where does their responsibility lie?
You know, I'd like to know if anyone ever takes responsibility for that 100m rule debacle.
Saturday, 27 March 2010
Ouch! That stings.
I'm afraid that the hits keep coming.
Readers of the Marlborough Express (while they keep printing stuff like this, I'll be buying) will have noticed that yesterdays Editorial cut right through the crap (pardon my French) and produced some very interesting angles on the recent frost fan hearing information;
Wine industry crying wolf over job losses.
Wine industry invokes "nuclear option".
The fan sales companies have done a fabulous job in using the spectre of crop losses to proliferate their use throughout the region.
District Council passes the buck.
Critical mass of frost fans.
The focus on individual fans is almost a bait and switch tactic (that's such a cool phrase).
The idea that questioning fan use is a major threat to the industry becomes slightly ridiculous.
In a sustained downturn there will be casualties and looking for scapegoats won't change that.
There's a need to provide more to the province than a wine derived trickle-down economic model.
Nice bit of writing there.
Readers of the Marlborough Express (while they keep printing stuff like this, I'll be buying) will have noticed that yesterdays Editorial cut right through the crap (pardon my French) and produced some very interesting angles on the recent frost fan hearing information;
Wine industry crying wolf over job losses.
Wine industry invokes "nuclear option".
The fan sales companies have done a fabulous job in using the spectre of crop losses to proliferate their use throughout the region.
District Council passes the buck.
Critical mass of frost fans.
The focus on individual fans is almost a bait and switch tactic (that's such a cool phrase).
The idea that questioning fan use is a major threat to the industry becomes slightly ridiculous.
In a sustained downturn there will be casualties and looking for scapegoats won't change that.
There's a need to provide more to the province than a wine derived trickle-down economic model.
Nice bit of writing there.Friday, 26 March 2010
Day three of the frost fans hearing
Go the Marlborough Express! Great coverage of the hearings all the way up to the last day.
So more interesting stuff.
Predictably, the whine industry is crying poverty in these difficult economic times. And they're right times will be tough. Especially for what is essentially luxury goods.
$1billion of Marlborough wine put at risk in a frost event? Err.. I'm not sure that that would be right would it? I mean didn't all of NZ produce $1billion last year (as reported by NZ Winegrowers I think) so that might be a bit of a stretch. Also, how much of that is covered by frost fans? Surely the percentage being protected by frost fans is pretty small, So I would presume that a catastrophic frost event is going to still be catastrophic even if all the frost fans in Marlborough are whirling away. Kind of smells a bit like scaremongering :-)
And apparently Marlborough was a dust bowl before the wine industry transformed it. Actually, I kind of thought that the varied orchards, peas, garlic and the marvelous trees that were scattered across the plains were kind of pretty before the vineyard mono-culture crept in. If anything is going to make Marlborough vulnerable it would be reliance on a single industry to support it. Anyone remember seeing herds of cattle and flocks of sheep? Where did they go?
And to think, all this on the day when David Prestipino called New Zealand Sav Blanc oversupplied and to be avoided. Perhaps a catastrophic frost could assist?
So more interesting stuff.
Predictably, the whine industry is crying poverty in these difficult economic times. And they're right times will be tough. Especially for what is essentially luxury goods.
$1billion of Marlborough wine put at risk in a frost event? Err.. I'm not sure that that would be right would it? I mean didn't all of NZ produce $1billion last year (as reported by NZ Winegrowers I think) so that might be a bit of a stretch. Also, how much of that is covered by frost fans? Surely the percentage being protected by frost fans is pretty small, So I would presume that a catastrophic frost event is going to still be catastrophic even if all the frost fans in Marlborough are whirling away. Kind of smells a bit like scaremongering :-)
And apparently Marlborough was a dust bowl before the wine industry transformed it. Actually, I kind of thought that the varied orchards, peas, garlic and the marvelous trees that were scattered across the plains were kind of pretty before the vineyard mono-culture crept in. If anything is going to make Marlborough vulnerable it would be reliance on a single industry to support it. Anyone remember seeing herds of cattle and flocks of sheep? Where did they go?
And to think, all this on the day when David Prestipino called New Zealand Sav Blanc oversupplied and to be avoided. Perhaps a catastrophic frost could assist?
Thursday, 25 March 2010
Day two at the frost fan hearing
It would appear that there were some more pertinent points raised again at the hearing.
Well done to the Marlborough Express again for coverage of the frost fan hearing.
But the most interesting thing of the day appears to have come from a lawyer and his client and it's kind of a big deal.
The argument goes a bit like this;
If you have an existing fan that was installed under the old rules where effectively you just had to get a building consent and bung it on the ground, then if it was shown that your fan did not meet the standards in the district plan (that would be the old standard I presume), you wouldn't have any existing use rights (because you never had a resource consent to operate beyond the limit in the Plan. At that point you would be forced to apply for a resource consent for your fan and it would appear that you would need to meet the new standards.
Opps!
Let's see if I can paint an ugly picture here.
What if installers have been putting in fans for years and just bunging them on the ground and not bothering to set the speed of their fans to match the manufacturers recommendations for the required noise level?
Actually, this might have been happening already.
Young Malcolm Maclean has been measuring fan speed and his measurements seem to indicate that Orchard Rite and Amarillo frost fans are being run at speeds that would make them non compliant according to the manufacturers data.
The Frost Boss 4 bladed models look pretty good, but if the worst case scenario is true, those with Amarillo or Orchard rite fans should be getting their installers to set the fans to a compliant speed.
I'm picking they probably don't know what the compliant speed is.
If you have doubt, Malcolm included a look up table in his measurement document that provides a reference to the manufacturers data here.
Malcolm, you may want to make some comment?
Well done to the Marlborough Express again for coverage of the frost fan hearing.
Well done to the Marlborough Express again for coverage of the frost fan hearing.
Cumulative effects (again (surely the cumulative effect of all these people saying something about cumulative effect will have an effect?)).
Serious health issues (sleep deprivation could include cardiovascular disease, mental-health effects and impaired cognitive performance).But the most interesting thing of the day appears to have come from a lawyer and his client and it's kind of a big deal.
The argument goes a bit like this;
If you have an existing fan that was installed under the old rules where effectively you just had to get a building consent and bung it on the ground, then if it was shown that your fan did not meet the standards in the district plan (that would be the old standard I presume), you wouldn't have any existing use rights (because you never had a resource consent to operate beyond the limit in the Plan. At that point you would be forced to apply for a resource consent for your fan and it would appear that you would need to meet the new standards.
Opps!
Let's see if I can paint an ugly picture here.
What if installers have been putting in fans for years and just bunging them on the ground and not bothering to set the speed of their fans to match the manufacturers recommendations for the required noise level?
Actually, this might have been happening already.
Young Malcolm Maclean has been measuring fan speed and his measurements seem to indicate that Orchard Rite and Amarillo frost fans are being run at speeds that would make them non compliant according to the manufacturers data.
The Frost Boss 4 bladed models look pretty good, but if the worst case scenario is true, those with Amarillo or Orchard rite fans should be getting their installers to set the fans to a compliant speed.
I'm picking they probably don't know what the compliant speed is.
If you have doubt, Malcolm included a look up table in his measurement document that provides a reference to the manufacturers data here.
Malcolm, you may want to make some comment?
Well done to the Marlborough Express again for coverage of the frost fan hearing.
Wednesday, 24 March 2010
Fun and Games at the Frost Fan Hearing
I have to say there are some hold-outs out there. :-)
But the good old Marlborough Express has come to the party and provided a glimpse into the goings on in the hearing into the proposed change to Marlborough's District Plan (technically, that would be the Wairau/Awatere Plan and the Marlborough Sounds Plan).
It looks like a lot of affected folks have been having their say.
Good words used like;
"Flawed"
"Unacceptable"
"Heads in the sand"
"Sad indictment"
and my favorite;
"We're not just numbers, we're people"
Of course the focus should be on the proposed plan. So its good to see such obvious things being identified as cumulative effects and the dichotomy of having allowable night time noises louder than the daytime noises. How weird is that?
I'm presuming that the opposite side of the fence haven't had their say yet, so I suppose we need to stay tuned.
If anyone has some copies of the statements / evidence / submissions, send em through.
But the good old Marlborough Express has come to the party and provided a glimpse into the goings on in the hearing into the proposed change to Marlborough's District Plan (technically, that would be the Wairau/Awatere Plan and the Marlborough Sounds Plan).
It looks like a lot of affected folks have been having their say.
Good words used like;
"Flawed"
"Unacceptable"
"Heads in the sand"
"Sad indictment"
and my favorite;
"We're not just numbers, we're people"
Of course the focus should be on the proposed plan. So its good to see such obvious things being identified as cumulative effects and the dichotomy of having allowable night time noises louder than the daytime noises. How weird is that?
I'm presuming that the opposite side of the fence haven't had their say yet, so I suppose we need to stay tuned.
If anyone has some copies of the statements / evidence / submissions, send em through.
Saturday, 20 March 2010
Hardly painting a pretty picture in Hastings
Shame and a financial sting have descended on Morton Estate Wines Limited who have been fined $50,000 for taking water for irrigation after being expressly told not to by the local Council.
They thought they would just receive an infringement notice, so they went ahead and sucked water from the local river in what the Judge described as a "deliberate flouting of a perfectly well known restriction".
Unfortunately for them, the Hawkes Bay Regional Council took a dim view of that sort of arrogance and rightly took them to court.
$50,000 later the company is licking its wounds and hopefully getting a better appreciation of the finer points of playing by the rules.
The company owns vineyards in Hawkes Bay and Marlborough, but the most interesting thing is that the owner of the company doesn't live in either of these locations.
In fact he lives in Canada.
His name is Mark Coney.
He is the director of quite a number of companies in New Zealand
Stone Key Trading
Surfdale Beach Properties Limited
Rossana Projects Limited
Key Pacific Corporation (NZ) Limited
The Wine Portfolio Limited
Ascross Investments Limited
One Tree Hill Vineyards Limited
They thought they would just receive an infringement notice, so they went ahead and sucked water from the local river in what the Judge described as a "deliberate flouting of a perfectly well known restriction".
Unfortunately for them, the Hawkes Bay Regional Council took a dim view of that sort of arrogance and rightly took them to court.
$50,000 later the company is licking its wounds and hopefully getting a better appreciation of the finer points of playing by the rules.
The company owns vineyards in Hawkes Bay and Marlborough, but the most interesting thing is that the owner of the company doesn't live in either of these locations.
In fact he lives in Canada.
His name is Mark Coney.
He is the director of quite a number of companies in New Zealand
Stone Key Trading
Surfdale Beach Properties Limited
Rossana Projects Limited
Key Pacific Corporation (NZ) Limited
The Wine Portfolio Limited
Ascross Investments Limited
One Tree Hill Vineyards Limited
Thursday, 18 March 2010
The Fans! The Fans Esmeralda!!
There we go.
I think this definitely counts as the first real running of the fans for the year. (sure there were a few a couple of Saturday's ago, but it was a pretty average effort).
By my checking the temperature was about 3.5 degrees.
THAT WOULD BE 3.5 DEGREES ABOVE 0 CELSIUS. AND IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN, THE LAWS OF PHYSICS STILL REQUIRE THE TEMPERATURE TO DROP BELOW ZERO BEFORE WATER FREEZES!!
I think this definitely counts as the first real running of the fans for the year. (sure there were a few a couple of Saturday's ago, but it was a pretty average effort).
By my checking the temperature was about 3.5 degrees.
THAT WOULD BE 3.5 DEGREES ABOVE 0 CELSIUS. AND IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN, THE LAWS OF PHYSICS STILL REQUIRE THE TEMPERATURE TO DROP BELOW ZERO BEFORE WATER FREEZES!!
Wednesday, 17 March 2010
Neil Wilson, You're my hero.
New Zealand is a country where if you speak out of turn, typically you will be looked at askance.
We might all think a particular thing, but it is a rare soul who has the courage to call a spade a spade.
For those who read the Marlborough Express, the letter written in by Neil Wilson today covers a number of topics (some dear to the heart of this blog). What is the most comforting is that there are still people who will tell the emperor that they have no clothes.
Great quotes include;
"Bang, bang, bang - welcome to Blenheim"
"It's great to live in Blenheim now that grapes seem to rule the Council"
"Grape people whinge about the price they are getting. Tough mate."
"Toughen up, growers, and get over it because a lot of locals are over you"
Thanks Neil.
We might all think a particular thing, but it is a rare soul who has the courage to call a spade a spade.
For those who read the Marlborough Express, the letter written in by Neil Wilson today covers a number of topics (some dear to the heart of this blog). What is the most comforting is that there are still people who will tell the emperor that they have no clothes.
Great quotes include;
"Bang, bang, bang - welcome to Blenheim"
"It's great to live in Blenheim now that grapes seem to rule the Council"
"Grape people whinge about the price they are getting. Tough mate."
"Toughen up, growers, and get over it because a lot of locals are over you"
Thanks Neil.
Orchard Rite fans vanish yet again
Crikey, when will they make up their mind?
Waaaay back in September 2008 it was reported that an Orchard Rite fan that had what looked to be a suspect bent blade.
Then in February 2009, the units disappeared.
Then in April 2009, they showed up again.
Well, earlier this year (I'm going to estimate end of January), they disappeared again.
Where do they go every year?
Annual migration?
Holiday?
Scheduled fan re-bending maintenance?
Waaaay back in September 2008 it was reported that an Orchard Rite fan that had what looked to be a suspect bent blade.
Then in February 2009, the units disappeared.
Then in April 2009, they showed up again.
Well, earlier this year (I'm going to estimate end of January), they disappeared again.
Where do they go every year?
Annual migration?
Holiday?
Scheduled fan re-bending maintenance?
Tuesday, 16 March 2010
Hearing of Submissions on the Use of Wind Machines for Frost Protection
For all you submitters, by now you will have received your information pack that will direct you to the hearing where you can listen to the arguments for and against the proposed changes to the District Plan for the use of frost fans.
The start time is 9am on Monday the 22nd of March.
The venue is the Marlborough Emergency Operations Centre on Wither Road.
If you want to be heard in support of your submission then you will need to be at the venue at 9am on the Monday so that an appropriate time can be scheduled. If this is difficult, contact Mark Caldwell at the Council. (520 7400) He should be able to assist with timing and scheduling.
If you simply want to see what is going on or to wave the flag, this is also an appropriate time to attend. It will give you an idea of the length of the proceedings and some of the characters involved. (chances are there will be a few :)
The start time is 9am on Monday the 22nd of March.
The venue is the Marlborough Emergency Operations Centre on Wither Road.
If you want to be heard in support of your submission then you will need to be at the venue at 9am on the Monday so that an appropriate time can be scheduled. If this is difficult, contact Mark Caldwell at the Council. (520 7400) He should be able to assist with timing and scheduling.
If you simply want to see what is going on or to wave the flag, this is also an appropriate time to attend. It will give you an idea of the length of the proceedings and some of the characters involved. (chances are there will be a few :)
Monday, 15 March 2010
Common sense prevails in preventing Frost Fan legislation
No, sadly I'm not talking about the upcoming MDC frost fan hearings (on the 22nd at the Marlborough Emergency Operations Centre on Wither Road, 9am start).
Instead, alert readers will remember the article outlining the intransigence of a specific vineyard owner in respect of the alarming noise his fans were producing. The situation was so dire that the local body was having to draft legislation that would impact on all other growers.
Well, what do you know, it looks like common sense has broken out and the stubborn owner has been convinced to replace his fan with a modern quiet model.
As a result the imposing legislation has been dropped and everyone can go about their business.
Now there's a lesson there.
If the winegrowers in general were to recognise that there was a problem and apply a bit of commonsense to make sure that their colleagues were not going about and generating an unreasonable amount of noise, then this entire fiasco with rule changes would not even be happening and they would find themselves better off. Heavens forbid, they would probably be in a better position, since they wouldn't be coughing out lawyers and consultants fees left right and center and they may even find that they are taken a bit more seriously by the Council.
The alternative is that they are seen as intransigent 'dogs in the manger' to whom the only possible response is legislation.
So be it.
Instead, alert readers will remember the article outlining the intransigence of a specific vineyard owner in respect of the alarming noise his fans were producing. The situation was so dire that the local body was having to draft legislation that would impact on all other growers.
Well, what do you know, it looks like common sense has broken out and the stubborn owner has been convinced to replace his fan with a modern quiet model.
As a result the imposing legislation has been dropped and everyone can go about their business.
Now there's a lesson there.
If the winegrowers in general were to recognise that there was a problem and apply a bit of commonsense to make sure that their colleagues were not going about and generating an unreasonable amount of noise, then this entire fiasco with rule changes would not even be happening and they would find themselves better off. Heavens forbid, they would probably be in a better position, since they wouldn't be coughing out lawyers and consultants fees left right and center and they may even find that they are taken a bit more seriously by the Council.
The alternative is that they are seen as intransigent 'dogs in the manger' to whom the only possible response is legislation.
So be it.
Thursday, 18 February 2010
Council to whine for lax industry.
Hard on the heels of yesterdays report of a meeting in Council today to vote on a proposal to levy the viticulture industry for environmental vandalism (an observant reader will note that these are my words not theirs) comes news that the Council have bravely backed out of making any decision and instead have put of any decision till next year.
I mean after all, this is an election year right?
And should I be suspicious about the Councillors meeting at the Vintners Retreat on Monday to go over the meeting points?
I mean, they certainly wouldn't have been pre-deciding any issues out of the public eye would they?
I'm sure that it must be very difficult to find a room that will hold 18 people at the Council Building.
This is an election year people. If you think that rate payers are interested in excuses for why you decided to shell out their hard earned money for you to have an afternoon at a retreat. Think again.
They want to see responsible use of their money.
They want to see accountability for decisions.
They want to see if you're a politician or someone that actually gives a damn about something other than themselves.
This will mean that you'll have to be seen to do something.
This will mean that you have to take a position
This will mean that you should be doing the right thing.
Good luck
I mean after all, this is an election year right?
And should I be suspicious about the Councillors meeting at the Vintners Retreat on Monday to go over the meeting points?
I mean, they certainly wouldn't have been pre-deciding any issues out of the public eye would they?
I'm sure that it must be very difficult to find a room that will hold 18 people at the Council Building.
This is an election year people. If you think that rate payers are interested in excuses for why you decided to shell out their hard earned money for you to have an afternoon at a retreat. Think again.
They want to see responsible use of their money.
They want to see accountability for decisions.
They want to see if you're a politician or someone that actually gives a damn about something other than themselves.
This will mean that you'll have to be seen to do something.
This will mean that you have to take a position
This will mean that you should be doing the right thing.
Good luck
Wednesday, 17 February 2010
Council to tax wine industry?
Really?
(See here for the Marlborough Express article and here for the agenda at the Council)
What have they done wrong lately?
Actually, this might sound a bit facetious, but I disagree with this in a number of ways.
Firstly, why should decent, responsible vineyard owners be burdened with the fallout from the irresponsible polluters who should be the targets here? I don't see why the owner of a vineyard that is not keeping their neighbors awake or spraying them with chemicals should have to pay for the poor planning and rat-bag actions of those who could care less.
Secondly, Mayor Sowman is right, $5 per hectare is not a huge sum. Frankly it's insignificant. Considering that there is an anticipated return of many thousands per hectare and a frost fan owner is willing to spend $50,000 on a machine to protect approximately 6-8 hectares. Tax the machines and leave the sensible growers alone. $100 per machine should see you right.
And what's with the "He said", "They said" between the Council and the NZ Winegrowers? For crying out loud, it just demonstrates that the poor communication skills on both sides are unlikely to ever result in an equitable arrangement and the innocent public will be the ones wide awake in the middle of the night.
This is an election year, I thought there would be more constructive effort put in.
(See here for the Marlborough Express article and here for the agenda at the Council)
What have they done wrong lately?
Actually, this might sound a bit facetious, but I disagree with this in a number of ways.
Firstly, why should decent, responsible vineyard owners be burdened with the fallout from the irresponsible polluters who should be the targets here? I don't see why the owner of a vineyard that is not keeping their neighbors awake or spraying them with chemicals should have to pay for the poor planning and rat-bag actions of those who could care less.
Secondly, Mayor Sowman is right, $5 per hectare is not a huge sum. Frankly it's insignificant. Considering that there is an anticipated return of many thousands per hectare and a frost fan owner is willing to spend $50,000 on a machine to protect approximately 6-8 hectares. Tax the machines and leave the sensible growers alone. $100 per machine should see you right.
And what's with the "He said", "They said" between the Council and the NZ Winegrowers? For crying out loud, it just demonstrates that the poor communication skills on both sides are unlikely to ever result in an equitable arrangement and the innocent public will be the ones wide awake in the middle of the night.
This is an election year, I thought there would be more constructive effort put in.
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