Two friends since 1987 are driving around New Zealand in a Triumph Swallow Doretti from 1955, stopping off in Alexandra - just like a scene in a movie.Helen Ferner’s "TR2 in a party dress” was brought into her family back in 1977, and lovingly restored in 2010.She remembers learning to drive in it as a teenager and this year invited her friend Helen Fehr from San Francisco to join her on the Triumph National Tour.There were only 276 cars like it ever made in the world, and on Saturday the 37 triumphs on tour will head out into the Maniototo, before heading south to Invercargill.The two Helens in the Swallow Doretti (1955).An original Triumph engine.The two Helens have had a challenging time in the old girl - the new electric ignition failed in Blenheim and one of the team rescued them. Then they got a flat tyre at the Murchison turn off and finally broke the jack when fixing it.There was nothing these two once structural engineers couldn’t deal with, and they are looking forward to travelling toward Milford Sound over the weekend, as well as the Catlins after Invercargill.They are the only all-girl team on the tour, which is this year hosted by the Deep South Group of Otago/Southland, which has six local Central Otago members - the majority being in Dunedin.PHOTOS: The Central AppRead more: Triumphs get their own eras tour to Central

Central Otago Mayor Tim Cadogan says the Government needs a bit of a “pat on the back” for its decision to offer all councils around the country the chance to defer its long term plans.With Three Waters out and a third of the CODC’s budget allocated to that, the financial team needed time to adjust to the new figures.Listen to the interview on this mornings podcast The Outlet - The voice of Central - click the banner below Mayor Cadogan warned back in January that rates could head above 20 per cent this year, and confirmed again yesterday in The Outlet podcast (enter link) that council was in survival mode “we have to just do business as usual. There isn’t room in the budget for great, big sparkly projects.”So, the council will get back on track to where it was in 2017, still concentrating on drinking water standards and a new ‘direction’ stopping the discharge of treated and untreated wastewater into rivers and streams. But, that all costs significant money.The council will defer adopting the 2024-34 Long-term Plan by 12 months and has opted to prepare an Annual Plan for 2024-25.This option was recommended to council because it gave staff the ability to build in yet to be determined costs such as water supply, sewerage and stormwater. It also meant being able to incorporate New Zealand Land Transport Authority (NZTA) funding for roading projects, also unknown at this stage, into the LTP next year.The council was conscious of the fact that the regular striking of rates and invoicing cycle would remain the same as previous years under this option too.Consultation on the Annual Plan will begin at the end of April and run for one month. The Annual Plan will be adopted by the end of June.

Accusations of bullying and threatening tactics from Central Otago District Council elected members to their Cromwell counterparts were brought to light yesterday.Cromwell Community Board chair Anna Harrison gave a passionate speech in the public forum of council, saying she was shocked and dismayed upon hearing about the inflammatory behaviour of some elected council members towards her board.She said the comments had been used to try and belittle board members and persuade them to “fall into line,” regarding the council’s proposal to change the delegated authority of each ward in the district.“I hope the mayor calls out this sort of behaviour and pulls the council into line,” she said.The perception was that Cromwell would lose control of its assets under the council proposal, and the board was strongly against the move.Anna told the council that the behaviour made her have concerns about predetermination, and she asked what was the hurry, “and why won’t you engage in discussion”?Councillor Tamah Alley asked Anna why the CCB thought that the discussion about delegated authorities was linked to districtisation?“If you rip the heart out of your community boards now, the conversation about districtisation that may happen in a year, or later will have no relevance to them because the delegations won’t exist anymore anyway,” Anna said.The CCB believes the conversation about districtisation needs to come first.Chief executive Peter Kelly confirmed a report would come to the council in August regarding districtisation, when questions could be asked about how they treat everyone’s assets.He also confirmed that the decision made today regarding delegated authorities would have no impact on rates for each ward in this year’s annual plan.Eight other Cromwell residents also spoke in the public forum, along with Teviot Community Board deputy chair Mark Jessop.Former CCB board member Robin Dicey questioned why the council would risk “pissing off” the largest constitution in the district, and asked whether the CODC was hiding something.Deputy Mayor Neil Gillespie said the council had let the community boards down and done them a disservice, and didn’t think they should be taking it any further.Cr Alley said she’d heard that more people wanted to speak in the public forum, but hadn’t done so out of fear for their safety, which was a bit sad.Mayor Tim Cadogan didn’t address the alleged behaviour, but told council they’d had an exceptional debate, and said they shouldn’t be progressing the issue further at the meeting.“We need a clear majority and a consensus and everyone heading in the same direction, and we’re not.”The council decided to leave the delegation discussion for now, with a decision made by the end of the year; meanwhile a paper would come back to council in August about districtisation.

Big brother - or in this case the Central Otago District Council - is not watching you from your kerbside bin.Small white discs, called radio frequency identification (RFID) tags, were discovered under the lip of some bins by members of the public over recent weeks, who shared their concerns online.Many were worried they were being monitored.While the RFID tags could in fact do that, the Central Otago District Council (CODC) has chosen not to use the function.When activated, the tags contain data on the serial number of the bin, which enables the kerbside collection trucks to identify if the bin being collected is located at the property the bin has been assigned to.This ultimately ensures the ratepayers are getting the bin services they are paying for in their rates.The RFID tags are placed on the bins by the new manufacturer, regardless of whether they will be activated. PHOTO: The Central AppHowever, Central Otago District Council infrastructure manager Quinton Penniall said while the bins have been fitted with the RFID tags, they are inactive because the council does not use the function.“With the change in kerbside collection contractor in July 2023, the manufacturer supplying bins for CODC also changed,” he said.“The bin manufacturer fit RFID tags to all bins produced, regardless of whether the functions will be used.”He said all 140L red bins issued during the bin rollout and any red, yellow, blue and green bins delivered by CODC’s new kerbside collection contractor from July 2023, will be fitted with an RFID tag.“The RFID tag only works when it is close to the kerbside collection truck receiver, however as this function is not being used by CODC and is therefore inactive, there is no data being reported at the time of collection.”

Falls Dam is almost empty for the first time since 1999 and many users across the Manuherikia catchment are moving to 25 per cent restrictions this week.Scheme flows were very low at 25 per cent and for farmers this was almost the equivalent of just delivering stock-water.Falls Dam operations manager Roger Williams said this week had been the most challenging of his 35-year career, but he wasn’t losing any sleep over it yet.“We’ve had water restrictions on average every second year, but none of them with this kind of seriousness,” he said.When the storage dam got below 50 per cent then it started putting a lot of pressure on, and it had been that way since the beginning of the year.“If we didn’t have restrictions and just poured the dam out, you might wait three months for it to properly fill again.”Capacity at Falls Dam was at 4 per cent at the weekend, and on Monday it was down to just 1 per cent.  At the start of last week it was at 11 per cent.The Otago Regional Council was keeping a close eye on the situation, and was cautioning farmers and rural communities to consider conserving water in the weeks ahead.  It hasn’t ruled out further restrictions.“We’re encouraging farmers to make plans and take action early with regards to stock feed and to reach out early for support and advice,” manager of science Tom Dyer said. Consent holders and catchment groups were doing a good job, which has so far avoided the need for the council to consider introducing water shortage directions.Both the Taieri and Manuherekia rivers were at low levels and were still being used for irrigation with users managing flows with combined storage and restrictions to achieve their respective minimum flow regimes.Otago regional councillor Gary Kelliher, who also farms in the catchment, said this was an extreme season and drought was something he was always ready for, “and that’s why the scheme is so fragile.”“We’re always just one rain away . . . it can be quite a forgiving catchment and at the end of the day the rain saves you. But, it’s incredibly challenging to farm through this,” he said.The 90-year-old dam at the head of the catchment needed rebuilt to hold more capacity, and it was hoped the new National Government would make this a priority.  

Teviot Valley Rest Home will open its doors on Sunday in the hope it can drum up enough interest to fill its five vacant beds. Staff at the 14 bed rest home do not want the beds to go empty, knowing how much of a need there is in the wider community for aged care.Robyn Niederer said an open home to showcase what it had to offer seemed like a good option and hoped people would make the most of the opportunity to have a look around.“We want to let the community know that there are beds available and to come and have a look because people don’t know [what it’s like] until they’ve brought someone in.”She said the rest home did not have hospital level care or a secure dementia unit.However, people with early onset dementia who did not require a secure unit could still be cared for in the home.Six local women have offered to dress the rooms up to showcase their true potential for the open home, and staff and residents will be on hand during the day to talk to people about what the facility can offer, and to show them around, she said.And, real fruit ice cream will also be available.In addition to the open day, Teviot Valley Rest Home will also have some chairs to give to the public for free.Robyn said the chairs are surplus to requirements so want to pass them on to a good home, possibly someone who might want some furniture in a spare room or man cave.The open day will take place on Sunday, March 3 from 1.30pm to 3.30pm.

A Cromwell man who drove after consuming alcohol with two young children in the back of his vehicle, was stopped by police driving just 28km/hr.Constable Scott Vollweiler said the incident happened on Saturday morning at 1.30am, and the driver had an excess breath alcohol level of 842mcg.Const Vollweiler said he found it quite disturbing that the driver would risk the lives of the young children, even if he was driving very slow.Earlier last week a Dunedin man was charged with careless driving after a crash with another vehicle in the Cromwell Gorge.  Once he was brought into the station, officers then realised he had also been driving while suspended.Police had no issues after the Maniototo Rodeo in the weekend, with just a few motorists ticketed for various offences.Following on from last week's police report, nobody has come forward with any information regarding the vandalism of Alexandra's public toilets during late December and January.Const Vollweiler said luckily the incidents have since stopped, but they would still like to hear from anyone who has information about the vandalism, which included hand basins ripped off walls and smashed.There were no security cameras in any of the public toilets and police relied on footage from surrounding businesses that was often not reliable.

A desire to showcase the talents of local designers from across the Maniototo has prompted one couple to host a fashion show.Tania Murray Haigh and Russ Haigh will bring the fashion show to Ranfurly on Friday, March 1, showcasing the many talented designers who hail from across the wider district.The event will feature works by Tania, who specialises in slow fashion and homewares, along with Lucy Gurvin, who goes by the name LucyG Designs, a young designer who creates woolen essentials using merino from her family’s sheep station.Eva Hosie, who goes by the name Rabosi Design, a designer who makes clothes from linen and cotton fibres will also feature, along with Katherine Anne, who specialises in fashion depicting blue hues that celebrate the skies of Central.Tania and Russ recently opened their new store, Lohi Linen in Ranfurly, giving them the perfect space and opportunity to host a fashion show, not just to give the community something to look forward to, but also celebrate and showcase the many talented people who hail from the district, Tania said.“It’s supporting local designers from across the Maniototo - that’s what the fashion parade is really about,” she said.“It’s something we wanted to do for the community.”While their designs might look different, they all have the same goal - to embrace the slow fashion movement.She said people had become increasingly focused on buying quality and were more inclined to think about the garment’s lifespan and how often it would get worn.Tania and Russ previously owned The Button Tin in Cromwell and are now hoping their new venture will help educate young people on slow fashion movement. The fashion show will take place at Lohi on March 1 at 7pm, on Charlemont St, which was the town’s old drapery, a 50 year old building, which they have transformed as a space for people to enjoy.

A last minute decision late last year to reduce a Cromwell traveller’s accommodation proposal from 120 days down to just 30, failed to gain the approval of a hearings panel.Crum Developments already has consent to build six single two-storey multi-unit dwellings on the site of the old garden site in Barry Ave, which was granted on the basis that it would help the local housing crisis.But, the owners then changed their mind and tried to gain further consents that would make them more attractive on the real estate market.The proposal was for each individual unit to be used as traveller’s accommodation, and the applicant intended to sell each unit with the new consents in place.In its decision to decline the application, hearings panel chair Neil Gillespie noted that the original consent was to provide housing, “and the fact the units have not so much as been constructed yet, the panel are not satisfied that the granting of consent for them to be used for travellers accommodation is appropriate.”Consultant planner for the council Oli Monthule-McIntosh noted in his evidence that there were 88 listings on Air BnB in Cromwell on the day he carried out a search, and only one listing for a house long term.The panel could not ignore the fact that the proposal would impact on the already critically low supply of housing in the community.“As units that are bought for accommodation purposes are often investment properties, this is particularly concerning for the rental market, which is in critically low supply in Central Otago. Such scarcity disproportionately impacts young people and lower-income workers, who are often more reliant on rental housing,” Neil said.Another proposal for traveller’s accommodation on Shortcut Rd, that had originally been operating without the appropriate consents, was still under consideration by commissioners. 

Alexandra’s outdoor ice rink looks more like an Olympic-sized stadium now that its new $1.6 million roof is almost complete.The large crane dropping in the insulated roofing panels could be seen from all over town, and Calder Developments was on track to complete the project by Easter.Your choice to listen or read the story - or both! Just click here to hear the interview from Committee chair Trevor Lawrence on todays The Outlet podcast.Custom-made columns and lattice trusses have all been made in the company’s workshop in Tapanui and were transported to site in mid February.The Alexandra IceInline roof committee has also forged on with its ice brick fundraiser, and local companies have started to get involved as well - donating various materials to upgrade the outside of the facility with new seating and dasher boards.Committee chair Trevor Lawrence said one local company has donated $3000 worth of paint and equipment to freshen up the outside of the main building, and another company $10,000 in materials for the seating.He said the new roof would be a game changer for the different clubs and codes that use the facility from May until August every year.Craneworks dropped the insulated roof panels into place. PHOTO: The Central App“The amount of work that you have to do to maintain an outdoor ice rink and the ice quality is enormous. And, the Central Otago weather being hot and cold and windy and rainy, keeping that ice surface usable for the patrons is a huge amount of work.”IceInline secretary Dianne Elliot has been organising working bees for March 9, March 23 and April 6 for anyone interested in coming down to help with the painting.“As this is still a construction site, it's not a suitable place for young children, but if your teenager can wield a paint roller, they would be welcome,” she said.More about the facility in this week’s The Outlet podcast.  

Otago regional councillors Gary Kelliher and Michael Laws are warning staff that pushing on with the Regional Land and Water Plan will just invite ministerial intervention.The Government has indicated new changes to the national framework for freshwater management, and in late 2023 asked regional councils around the country to hold fire on any more work, awaiting future direction.But, the ORC stated late last year, and voted again on Wednesday, to proceed with its draft plan after five years' work, and is still on track to formally notify it by June 30.A motion was put to the table by Cr Kelliher, asking that the council heads the strong recommendation by the Minister for the Environment and delay the work, and formally request the June 30 deadline be extended - to ensure the plan was fit for purpose, robust and defendable.Cr Laws backed his Central Otago counterpart and shared some strong words around the table, when they failed to gain support by fellow councillors, accusing the council of playing a dangerous game of “chicken” with the new Government.“I’m warning you now, you will invite commissioners into this council, because you refuse to accept the consequences of last year’s election and the strong ministerial guidance, and this council will deserve not to exist, because in the game of chicken, it still wants to play.”Cr Kate Wilson said the Land and Water Plan would never be perfect and by waiting for a new direction from the Government was just holding things up further.Chair Gretchen Robertson said she didn’t think the council was divided on the issue, and assured councillors that nobody wanted to waste anyone’s time or ratepayer money.“We are considering really carefully where we are at, at the moment.”Acknowledging the region’s water quality issues and those around water allocation, “we have some short term consents in place that need sorted out,” she said they were just trying to work with the communities for the best outcome for everyone.CEO Richard Saunders said in the absence of any direction from the new Government, the current draft policy will stand.Cr Laws also questioned whether staff intended to share the draft policy with ministers before they delivered it back to them around the table.“Because there are some very important decisions and I don’t want to end up in a collision course with the Government.”National has indicated it could be 18-24 months before a new National Policy Statement on freshwater management was released, but it was understood that work hadn’t started yet. 

A breakdown at Ranfurly’s swimming pool has forced the cancellation of Maniototo Area School’s (MAS) Swim Week.The junior school children were meant to be taking part in lessons each day this week, led by Central Otago swim coaches, but due to the plant failure, it was cancelled.The week-long event is a popular programme on the school’s calendar, which benefits the entire primary school.It was not known if it would be rescheduled. The fault was discovered on Friday, last week.Central Otago District Council group manager community experience David Scoones said the pump needs to be replaced, which is being sent from Christchurch.He said as soon as the pump arrived on site, it would only take a few hours to repair.Once repaired, he expects the pool to reopen for the remainder of the season.The pool, which opened for the season on December 4, has had a busier than usual summer after it increased its hours.This season it has been open from 7am to 6pm Monday to Friday and 10am to 5pm Saturday and Sunday.Public supervised sessions were previously available from 3pm to 8pm on weekdays during the school term, 1.30pm to 8pm in the school holidays and 1.30pm to 8pm on Saturday and Sunday.Read more: Ranfurly Pool hours to increase

Cromwell Backpackers has officially closed adding further pressure to the already stretched temporary accommodation market in the town.After seven years in business, Darren Fox was forced to shut the doors of the 20-bed backpacker, when the terms of the ongoing lease with his landlord were not renewed.Facing up to $10,000 rent increases in the back of the Cromwell Mall, he said the landlord had plans to sell the building and effectively told him to vacate.Initially gutted to be moved on from his business, not to mention the hard task of telling his tenants they no longer had a roof over their head, he has since put new plans in place to offer something bigger and better.“It doesn’t matter - at the end of the day I want to start something new,” he said.Plans are underway to lease a site in McNulty Rd, along with 20 cabins, where he hopes to continue offering accommodation at the lower end of the market - for seasonal workers and others needing a place to stay short term.Darren will meet with the Central Otago District Council this week to see what consents he needed for his ‘workers accommodation’, which he understood was a lot simpler than for travellers accommodation.He said initial indications from council indicated he could be hit with developer contributions of between $70,000 and $80,000, which would not make his business viable.He has also approached MP Miles Anderson, who he plans to meet next month, as part of a group in the town looking at providing more low cost accommodation.Harvest Park Studios in Cromwell also offers worker accommodation, but at the higher end of the market, and have now opened up their business to include all sectors of the market.Darren is eager to push on with his new plans as he enjoys dealing with people from all walks of life.“You are like a counsellor some of the time for those who are staying, and dealing with their problems, but also there are just so many beautiful people out there who are travelling, that have left their country to explore New Zealand.”He’s met nuclear engineers, doctors and young people from all over the world, and hopes that his new business will continue to provide that level of service to enable people to stay in Cromwell - particularly over the fruit season.

A breeding pair of grebes have been spotted with a new chick at a boat ramp near the Clyde Dam, causing much excitement for avian specialist Alan Parker.The Avian Rescue Otago owner, who is based in Alexandra, said his biggest concern was keeping the grebes safe, as it was near a popular swimming spot where boats were coming and going.Alan has contacted the Department of Conservation that were working on a plan to keep them safe - including erecting signage, as it was rare for them to breed successfully, and they hadn’t for years.The pair have been living at the site since about 2020, and there were also quite a few at Butchers Dam, along with McNulty Inlet in Cromwell.Alan has made many rescues of grebes, and they are one of the only bird species that carry their young on their back while swimming.“The young will stay holding on even when their parents are diving for food.”Grebes were not set up for walking on land for long periods of time, and many of his rescues have involved birds that have ended up in people’s gardens or been poisoned by lead fishing sinkers and other waste.Alan was awarded the ASB Good as Gold award worth $4000 back in 2022 for his rescue work, but his rehabilitation clinic receives no other funding and is largely a volunteer role.The qualified general practice veterinarian nurse with advanced avian bird care training from the UK, will travel throughout the South Island to make rescues - sometimes receiving multiple calls each day.A mother with her three baby grebes on her back (supplied).His intensive care units have their own oxygen supply enabling him to carrying out tube feeding for sick birds, and he often takes in owls, hawks, falcons and ruru (morepork).“People often pick them up at night on the road.”Owls are his favourite, “each and every one has a different personality and brings an interesting challenge,” he said.Success rates are often high with little owls - above 90 per cent, but the survival and release rates of other birds are usually around 80 per cent.“I have a rule of not naming any for two weeks until I know they will survive,” he said.His latest love is ‘Swanona’ - a black swan that was found with head injuries by a motorist near Timaru two weeks ago.The Dunedin Wildlife Hospital also caters for sick and injured birds in the South Island. 

People are illegally dumping rubbish in parts of Central Otago, often within five minutes’ drive of one of the district’s many transfer stations.Central Otago District Council (CODC) has received 17 reports of illegal dumping since July 1, 2023 until now.There were 35 reports from July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2023.In recent times there have been large household items dumped in the pines area in Alexandra and over an embankment at the lookout carpark on Blacks Hill near Ophir.CODC infrastructure manager Quinton Penniall said often reports were close to where the items could have been disposed of legally.“Many of the illegal dumping requests, which council receives, are for public areas within five minutes’ drive of the nearest transfer station.”He said while there was not a dedicated role for the monitoring of illegal dumping around the district, staff do report it if they see it while doing their work, which is then passed on to the contractor to collect the items as soon as possible.People who illegally dump items, and can be identified, can expect to receive an infringement notice.Anyone caught dumping less than 1 litre of rubbish could receive a $100 fine, 1 litre to 30 litres $200, and 30 litres to 60 litres $300.People who are caught dumping more than 60 litres, garden waste, building materials or furniture could expect a $400 fine.CODC infrastructure manager Quinton PenniallQuinton said it did not appear that illegal dumping had increased following the closure of Alexandra Wastebusters, the former recycling facility and reuse shop, which closed last June.Yesterday, the CODC announced it would increase services available at the council’s transfer stations, with e-waste to be made available in Alexandra, Cromwell, Ranfurly and Roxburgh from Monday, February 26. The service includes all forms of TVs, computers, laptops and computer equipment, printers, photocopiers, household appliances, stereo systems and gaming consoles.A barbecue found dumped in the pines, near Alexandra. PHOTO: The Central AppRecycling costs for the e-waste will be passed on to the customer.The CODC will cover the transportation costs on a trial basis for about the first six months to reduce the costs for customers, with Waste Minimisation Funding from the Ministry for the Environment.Waste (used engine) oil recycling will also be introduced on Monday, February 26 to the Alexandra and Cromwell transfer stations.Waste oil will be accepted in domestic quantities (25 litres) at a cost of $2 per litre. Bunded tanks are available at both locations to store the waste oil, before being collected by Salters Cartage, which is based in Auckland, Fielding, and Christchurch.All waste oil collected is processed before being used at the Kinleith and Kawerau pulp and paper mills to power the kilns.Illegal dumping can be reported to the CODC via an online form.

Omakau’s zone substation upgrade is due to be completed before winter.The upgrade aims to future proof the network and strengthen the electricity supply for customers.In May 2022 a new diesel generator was installed at the new substation site, next to the stockyards on Lauder-Omakau Rd (SH85) and was commissioned in November 2022.A project overview on the Aurora Energy website states the generator has been used during planned outages, to supply customers without power, noting it was used in December 2022, just one month after it was commissioned.However, an Aurora Energy spokesperson said the generator could not be used for every unplanned outage due to the delicate balance required to manage load fluctuations in real time.A recent spate of unplanned power outages have proved this, including on February 2 when there was a seven hour long power cut. The substation upgrade at Omakau is due to be completed before winter. PHOTO: The Central AppHowever, Aurora Energy’s project overview states the upgrade will not only replace ageing equipment, but will also double the capacity of the substation, ensuring it is adequate to meet the demand growth of the community.Omakau zone substation supplies power to 690 customers in the area, with a network of 244km.Aurora Energy is also in the process of implementing a new technology trial on the line from Alexandra to Omakau to detect emerging faults in real time, thereby enabling defect remediation prior to it causing an outage.Read more: Central Otago power outages prompts investigation Read more: Power outage in parts of Central overnight

A 37-year-old motorcyclist from Alexandra will appear in court on five charges after a police pursuit on Saturday night.Constable Scott Vollweiler said the man had been riding his motorcycle erratically through town and cutting corners when he came to police attention.The disqualified driver had also taken off his licence plates to make it difficult for police to identify him, and when he was initially stopped, waited for the officer to approach him before taking off towards Little Valley Road and the Otago Central Rail Trail.Police pursued him along the access road but eventually had to abandon the pursuit when it became unsafe to continue.Cordons were put in place, but he was located two hours later and charged with aggravated failing to stop, dangerous driving, failing to stop (2nd charge), driving while disqualified - on his third and subsequent charge, and failing to give details.A 42-year-old Alexandra man also tried to evade police on Saturday night after being stopped by an officer.He was breath tested and charged with an excess breath alcohol reading of 442mcg.Also a disqualified driver and on community detention, he was charged with breaching his bail conditions and will appear in the Alexandra District Court on his third drink driving charge.Const Vollweiler said an 18-year-old Alexandra man was charged with intentional damage endangering life, after breaking into the Automatic External Device (AED) box outside the Four Square and stealing the key.The box contains a defibrillator for emergencies. The man decided he would take the key, but left the emergency heart equipment behind.

Water quality remains a hot topic and a survey from the Otago Regional Council found an increasing number of people were concerned about its deterioration.ORC chair Gretchen Robertson thanked the more than 1100 people who took the time to contribute to the recent survey, saying their input was crucial to ORC’s planning processes.“These are changing times in the environmental space and it’s of huge importance to us that we get a clear steer from people across the region on what is of most significant concern to them,” she said.Air quality, land based environments and coastal resources either remained unchanged or were improving, according to the survey, and Gretchen said as custodians of the environment, staff and councillors have a big role to fulfil in not only protecting, but enhancing the environment for everyone, whether they are using resources recreationally, or as an input toward an economic benefit.Water quality increased as the most important environmental issue in Central Otago - from 44 per cent in 2022 to 49 per cent.Omakau residents have become frustrated in recent weeks with their drinking water - many saying it tasted dirty and had an unpleasant smell. And, for those using our lakes and rivers recreationally, the Manuherekia continued to be variable, and had only been suitable for swimming half of the time this summer - at the Shaky Bridge in Alexandra.Weekly testing of 15 samples since December showed it was currently healthy, but overall statistics showed it was only suitable for swimming 53 per cent of the time, with caution advised 33 per cent of the time and 13 per cent of the time it was unsuitable.Cr Robertson said the survey results were “very timely” now that engagement was underway with ministers of the new coalition government.“The results reflect the issues of concern that Otago’s communities want to see targeted and addressed,” she said.She noted ORC had last week engaged with numerous ministers and acknowledges changes are expected, but she emphasised details on changes or any pause in regulations may take months to finalise, and then further time to implement.“Many people will find this frustrating. But, at the forefront of these changes must be the protections around the environment, be it waterways, land use or air quality, which we all must share, but equally take responsibility for,” she said.Cr Robertson says she “entirely endorses” recommendations from the survey around a continued focus on water quality, climate change initiatives, that there be targeted communication and engagement strategies in place and an ongoing focus to improve public transport services.

At least a dozen tyres have succumbed to a stretch of road between Naseby and Danseys Pass in recent times. Maniototo Community Board member Duncan Helm highlighted the issue at the group’s monthly meeting on Thursday.“I’ve had a couple of comments from different people about the number of flat tyres between Naseby and Danseys Pass area - about 14 tyres I’ve heard of.”However, he agreed to an earlier comment by Central Otago District Councillor Stu Duncan, that the roads throughout the Maniototo were generally in good condition.“As Stu said, the roads have been pretty good.”Stu had earlier talked about a drive he did around the district, including the Styx where roadworks have recently been done.“It looked really, really good,” Stu said.“It’s quite interesting because I know the staff get a lot of grief about the roads, but . .  . there’s a lot of roads around New Zealand and ours are some of the best.”Duncan said many of the roads in the area were “a dream to drive on”, comparing them to a road he was recently diverted onto near Rakaia, in Canterbury which had about 10kms of corrugations.Stu said while driving around the Maniototo he also noticed some of the roads are used by dairy farmers for lanes, which posed the question as to whether those roads could be sold and the money spent on other infrastructure, such as bridges.