Letters: Solar power a great alternative

We ignore solar power at our peril, a reader writes. Photo/File

Solar power a great alternative

When I first arrived in New Zealand/ Tauranga, locals called it God's waiting room.

Among the many interesting features, I spied the panels laying on house roofs and found out that they were water filled. The water supply to the electric cylinder was being heated, thus reducing the power bill. The wonderful New Zealand climate was being used to the advantage of the locals.

New Zealand is mainly powered by hydro power generation mainly built in the 1960s and 70s but how long will these generators keep going? Locally our hydro scheme was built in the 1970s, three hydro stations in the Ruahihi Project, but it would seem that New Zealand has no alternative should the hydros fail.

Recently three items on TV have caught my attention, 1. A new stadium being used in the IPL cricket in India. Cameras showed a high up view showing all of the grandstand roofs covered in solar panels.

2. A BBC report on a rural soccer team gaining promotion to the football league, again with their small stadium roof covered in solar panels. In both cases to power floodlit games.

3. A report on the acres of solar panels in the desert adjacent to Las Vegas.
Countries in various parts of the globe are tapping into the power of the sun, but at this time we seem to be ignoring this source of power.

Travelling out of Tauriko to the Kaimais and overlooking the new industrial district at The Lakes not a solar panel to be seen. We ignore this source of power at our peril.

Peter Turner
Pyes Pa

Other ways to fund infrastructure

At the Chamber of Commerce's annual lunch, MP Todd Muller said historic rates rises had not been high enough to meet the council's vision for the city. This, in my view, shows how out of touch he is.

The National Government has caused the problem of not enough infrastructure that can not cope with the demand, because of the thousands of immigrants let into the country and thousands of people moving to Tauranga.

Mayor Greg Brownless is correct people would have struggled to pay higher rates and higher rents.

He is an intelligent man who looks after his ratepayers with good decisions he makes. Some of the GST paid by tourists in Tauranga should be used to pay for infrastructure and improving more use of rail to take logs, fruit and vegetables and other products to Tauranga Port to feed the world increases in population. Rail freight and rail maintenance are a lot cheaper. It would keep congestion and maintenance on the roads down.

New Zealand taxpayers are going to pay millions of penalty payments because of our high pollution levels because of the Paris Agreement on climate change. More cars on the road the higher our pollution levels.

Hilary R Burrows
Papamoa