Taking a discrete pic or two can help identify and, council can hopefully deal with those caught in the act. A sole, lonely, licence plate image, by the way, only allows the person to freely deny they were even there. It may be an eyesore for a day or two, but the litter team does clean it up as soon as they spot it on their rounds, or are made aware by a call to council.
There are a hell of a lot of call-ins every day, right across urban and rural areas, separate to the known areas they maintain. Negative social media comments around private waste disposal fees, some of their staff, council, struggling families, and especially singling out one suburb as the apex of litter is not going to change a single thing. Your phone call to council will help.
ROSS FALLEN
Castlecliff
Council relocation
The Whanganui District Council's intention to use the Gentlemen's Club as offices is a change-of-use, necessitating strengthening as was forced on the Sarjeant on the Quay in Taupo Quay and the Department of Conservation.
I believe their flippant approach to staff safety is deplorable.
BOB HARRIS
Whanganui
The Whanganui District Council responds:
There has been no change-of-use. Whanganui District Council has arranged to use existing conference facilities and office space at Heritage House for council meetings and to temporarily accommodate a small number of staff during the refurbishment of the ground floor of 101 Guyton St. The premises were chosen for their suitability and location and continue to also be used by other tenants and hirers.
Profit from lies
If Frank Greenall's column (January 10) hadn't had such serious undertones, my laughter would have been more from the belly.
I particularly liked his metaphor that stuffing up the environment to fuel the economy was "heating the house by burning the furniture" — coincidentally echoed by the Hagar cartoon the same day.
Greenall's observations about trashing of the environment for company and shareholder profits is gold-induced blindness. Examples locally are the seabed iron sands mining, carrying a high risk of continuous silt plumes for 37 years with a high risk of sea life degradation. The current Government halted all new oil mining consents, yet Simon Bridges says he would reinstate these consents, i.e. striking a match to some more furniture.
It can take the planet millennia to make more furniture, but Simon's mates seem to believe it is okay to continue burning it, as it only creates a bit more CO2.
Which leads to another perennial climate change denier who still hasn't read the evidence: G R Scown, whose latest straw to grasp (letters, January 2) is "I have read the earth is moving further from the sun which might mean we are heading to another ice age". Great scientific evidence, enough to silence 97 per cent of climate scientists who have not bothered to take what he has "read" as final evidence.
If I sound angry it is because the oil industry knew 40 years ago that climate change was real and wasted all that time propagandising against it and co-opting all those who would continue to profit from these lies.
It is critical to note that if we don't have an environment, we don't have an economy.
JOHN MILNES
Whanganui
Send your letters to: The Editor, Whanganui Chronicle, 100 Guyton St, PO Box 433, Whanganui 4500; or email editor@wanganuichronicle.co.nz
