Reports are coming in of the demise of the last Golden Eagle in Wales. Killed most likely by poison, although it did have a couple of marks from shot as well although these had healed. A truly sad day for … Continue reading
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The Perch is a Valued Sporting Fish – not a Pest
Opinion by Tony Orman Currently Fisheries NZ has a discussion document open for public submissions, in which it is proposed to list perch as a “pest fish” – contrary to the current legal status of perch as a “sporting fish.” Over … Continue reading
Should Dairy Farming Expand in Areas of Low Rainfall?
Opinion by Andi Cockroft A recent Radio New Zealand report says that Hawkes Bay rivers are suddenly starting to dry up, with conditions starting to track close to last year’s dry spell, which was described as a one-in-100-year event. The … Continue reading
New Zealand – “Kill Everything Conservation”
by Andi Cockroft Earlier this week I had a wonderful meeting with a conservationist from India who was visiting to research conservation strategies in New Zealand. Her most insightful comment is that unlike India where conservation involves co-existence strategies, New … Continue reading
Radio NZ reveals Big Companies Big Polluters
Radio NZ has reported Talleys, Ernest Adams and Yoplait are among hundreds of manufacturers and brands dumping contaminants into New Zealand’s drains and getting away with it. The same sorts of bloody, greasy scenes are playing out across New Zealand. Even … Continue reading
Curtailing Consultation and Diminishing Democracy are Major Concerns
Opinion by Andi Cockroft, Chairman Council of Outdoor Recreation Associations of NZ An Otago Daily Times report (23 January) that nearly two-thirds of Dunedin residents think public consultation is lacking at the Dunedin City Council, according to the latest Dunedin Residents’ Opinion … Continue reading
The Death of New Zealand’s Bio-Diversity
The late Bill Benfield, former Council of Outdoor Recreation Association’s chairman, wrote this opinion piece four years ago. It is more relevant than ever as the Department of Conservation and OSPRI carry out more and more 1080 drops and in … Continue reading
The Life and Work of NZ Naturalist G V Hudson
Book Review:”An Exquisite Legacy” by George Gibbs. Published by Potton and Burton. Price $59.9. Reviewed by Tony Orman. This book is the life and story of George Hudson (1867-1947 an amateur naturalist with a passion for insects, particularly butterflies and … Continue reading
NZ’s Environment Protection Measures are Failing Dismally
by Andi Cockroft, chairman Council of Outdoor Recreation Assns of NZ Do we have toothless tigers and pedestrian politicians protecting our environment? If media reports are to be believed, the environmental watchdogs EPA and likely its predecessor ERMA have never … Continue reading
DOC Claims of 1080 Success on Pirongia Possums Seriously Flawed
Diverse native wildlife on Mount Pirongia in South Waikato can flourish this summer, thanks to a successful pest control operation, says the Department of Conservation (DOC). But the department’s claim are seriously flawed say two outdoor organisations. The Council of … Continue reading
BUREAUCRATIC CASTRATION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT
Opinion by the late Jolyon Firth Jolyon Firth was a Deputy Mayor of Auckland in the 1980s. His obituary in 2008 described him as affable yet out spoken who once publicly called the then Prime Minister Rob Muldoon as gutless and … Continue reading
NZ Smelt Decline Crisis Mirrored Other Side of World
by Dr Peter Trolove Press ReleaseNZ Federation of Freshwater Anglers17 January, 2021NZ Smelt Decline Crisis Mirrored Other Side of World A drastic decline in an important native fish in New Zealand has been matched by a similar decline in a … Continue reading
Auckland Beaches Polluted
Swimmers have been warned not to swim at several Auckland beaches. Warnings were very recently put in place for Kohimarama Beach and St Heliers Beach and several beaches in the Waitākere region are off limits. Earlier there were over 50 beaches … Continue reading
Scientists Warn of Urgency over Insect Declines
by Tony Orman Nineteen scientists from European countries such as Germany and Netherlands, USA, South Africa, Australia, Philippines and Brazil have given a strong warning about dramatic declines of insects. The warning in February 2020 and published in “Biological Conservation” … Continue reading
How Much is a Trout Worth?
Reprinted from “Fishing Breaks” (UK) www.fishingbreaks.co.uk Let me ask you a question. How much is a wild brown trout worth? I suppose, at the most basic level, its value is zero as the cost of its creation, in monetary terms, was zero. Mother … Continue reading
Is 1080 Harmful to Trout and Stream Ecology?
by Tony Orman A Federated Farmers and Forest and Bird Fact Sheet on 1080 poison said “Trials in four West Coast streams using 10 times the number of 1080 baits that would be expected to enter streams during aerial treatment … Continue reading
Almost the entire West Coast of South Island currently covered in deadly pesticides
By courtesy of Waikanae Watch from Ecocide Awareness NZ Almost the entire West Coast of the South Island is currently covered in deadly pesticides — mainly 1080, and also cyanide and others poisons, aerial and distributed by hand. From Kohaihai Bluff, North … Continue reading
Toxic River Algae Early Summer a Shameful Situation
Opinion by Ben Hope It is not yet Christmas – yet already toxic algae has appeared in North Canterbury Rivers such as the Waiau. The Canterbury District Health Board has issued a health warning. It is not the first water … Continue reading
Sea Fisheries QMS Needs Urgent Review and Overhaul
Opinion by Tony Orman The Quota Management System that has been governed New Zealand sea fisheries “management” for over 30 years has been corrupted, is counter-productive and needs replacing. Thirty four years ago as president of the NZ Recreational Fishing … Continue reading
Coromandel Scallop Beds in Precarious Situation.
Press release by Legasea Coromandel residents are concerned about the noticeable decline of scallop numbers on the eastern side of the Peninsula. This is likely due to years of unconstrained harvest and destructive dredging, which decimates scallops and crabs, crustaceans, other … Continue reading