Lee Vandervis and the zero-emission Electric Leaf

Promo: Nissan Leaf 30kwh [100hotcars.info]

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Received from Lee Vandervis
Wed, 28 Sep 2016 at 10:32 p.m.

From: Lee Vandervis
Date: Wed, 28 Sep 2016 09:01:28 +1200
To: Editor ODT
Cc: Nicholas G S Smith, Julian Smith [Allied Press Ltd]
Subject: ZERO Rating – Letter to the Editor

ZERO Rating – Letter to the Editor.

Dear Editor,

When a youth group calling themselves Generation Zero springs a C- Environmental Rating [p4 ODT 27/9/16] on somebody who: generates his own off-grid solar power, cuts mills and builds with his own timber from sustainable macrocarpa forest using off-cuts for low-carbon heating, has been a life-long re-user as well as recycler restoring Heritage buildings and homes, drives a zero-emission electric car, eats veges and herbs from 20 metres of raised bed garden and fruit from a dozen orchard trees, and has always paid for his DCC water connection, it comes as quite a surprise to see this same group giving Mayor Cull an A+ Environmental Rating, presumably because he blamed South Dunedin’s avoidable flooding of homes on Climate Change and Sea-Level Rise. Hopefully it is only this fundamentalist Climate Change Generation Zero group that falls for the fashion of just talking Sustainability while ignoring the facts of those who actually live it.

Kind regards,

Cr. Lee Vandervis

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Tue, 27 Sep 2016
ODT: Environmental ratings controversial
The group behind a website that is ranking Dunedin mayoral candidates on their environmental stance says it was produced in part to get young people talking about the local government election. […] [JOKE] Mr Cull said he was flattered by the judgement, and thought the organisation had “comprehensively” looked at a range of issues and how candidates had grappled with them.

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ON THE RECORD
Lee Vandervis purchased a near new electric Nissan Leaf well before Dave Cull and Chris Staynes each bought theirs. What if? Dunedin inspected Mr Vandervis’ car today and went for a quiet ride……….. as you do when chasing down a bad ODT newsflash written by low pond life.

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Election Year. This post is offered in the public interest.

Economist Liam Halligan says crude oil has gone into “bull market” territory!

Received from Douglas (Mick) Field
28 Aug 2016 at 1:00 p.m.

Message: Good summary here on the oil situation. Especially clear opening comment on the dependency on fossil fuels in the foreseeable future. But full article (warning: pay wall) also good on the situation re the economic battle for supply.

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[sputniknews.com]

### telegraph.co.uk 27 Aug 2016 • 2:19PM
Why I’m sticking with my forecast of oil rising to $60 a barrel
By Liam Halligan
In the absence of a major financial meltdown, oil will end 2016 north of $60 a barrel,” this column stated at the turn of the year. It was a forecasting flourish possibly fuelled by one Christmas brandy too many. With just four months of 2016 to go, though, I’m sticking to my Yuletide view.
Attempting to predict the oil price is crazy. Yet no decent economist can afford not to. The world economy still revolves around oil –used in everything from transport and electricity generation to the production of plastics, synthetics and so much else. And for all the breathless talk about renewables, and the grim inevitability of growing nuclear dependence, we remain addicted to oil.
As recently as 2005, world crude consumption was just 84.7 million barrels a day. That’s since gone up to 95.1 million daily, a 12pc increase in just 10 years. And that rise came during a decade when global GDP growth was rather sluggish. Had the world economy not endured the 2008 financial crisis, and subsequent stop-start recovery, oil consumption would have grown even more. But still, for all the expansion of wind and solar, and endless hype about a “post-petroleum world”, oil consumption continues to rise relentlessly and that won’t change any time soon.
The oil price has surged this month, up from around $41 a barrel in early August to almost $52 last week, before falling back slightly. This 20pc-plus increase puts crude technically into “bull market” territory. This is striking, not least because from mid-June to the end of July, oil was in “a bear market”, having dropped over 20pc. Despite this summer volatility, though, the direction of travel is clear. Oil has been climbing steadily, if not always in a straight line, from its February low of $28 a barrel. This August rise in oil prices stems from market fundamentals on the one hand, and geopolitical speculation on the other.

Earlier this month, the highly respected International Energy Agency (IEA) published a report suggesting global crude supply will fall short of demand during the third quarter by nearly a million barrels a day. This projected deficit comes despite the fact that the Opec exporters’ cartel continues to pump like billy-o. Having traditionally restricted supply to keep prices high, Opec has over the last two years been doing the reverse, of course – flooding global markets with oil, lowering prices to squeeze high-cost US shale producers out of existence. Amidst record production by Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and UAE, total Opec output hit an eight-year high in July, up no less than 840,000 barrels a day on the same month in 2015. This Opec supply surge was more than offset, though, by the dramatic ongoing slump in output from producers outside Opec. Declines in the US, China, Canada and Mexico combined to push non-Opec production down by more than 1.1 million barrels a day compared to July 2015. […] If there is a deal in Algiers, and it binds with Opec holding together, and the Russians staying on board then my end-of year oil prediction, in the absence of a Lehman-style global meltdown, will almost certainly come true. Such geopolitical stargazing has helped push up oil prices this month. During the first week of August, short crude oil positions on the NYMEX, one of the world’s leading commodity exchanges, were at a 10-year high. A large number of traders, in other words, thought oil was set to fall back towards $30. That view has now been thoroughly trounced, with the resulting “short squeeze” helping to drive this latest 20pc oil price rise. Aside from speculation and diplomatic wrangling, though, there’s growing evidence of an emerging supply-demand deficit. Buried in the IEA’’s latest report is the significant observation that it expects a further 900,000-barrel reduction in non-Opec output by the end of this year. This Saudi-driven price war has seen global investment in oil exploration and field development cut by $300bn, some 41pc, since 2014. The “active rig count”–, the number of wells being pumped worldwide, is down 37pc. Before these trends are slowed, let alone reversed, oil will need to spend at least six months, and probably a year, firmly above $60 a barrel, if investors are to be convinced profits can be made, so persuading them to put serious money back into future crude production. Unless global markets crash, I say that year of $60-plus oil will be 2017.

Full article at http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2016/08/27/why-im-sticking-with-my-forecast-of-oil-rising-to-60-a-barrel/

● Liam Halligan (@LiamHalligan) – Economist/Writer/Broadcaster, Telegraph Columnist, BNE Editor-at-Large, Proud member of http://www.thehooligans.co.uk Locations: London, Saffron Walden, Moscow.

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

TV3 The Nation —Interview: Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier

Interview: Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier
Saturday 19 Mar 2016 10:56 a.m.
The new Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier speaks to Lisa Owen about his plans to overhaul the office and how he expects the Government to deal with public information.
█ View the TV3 Video (11:25)

Twitter: The Nation @TheNationTV3
Website: http://www.newshub.co.nz/TVShows/TheNation

Who is the Ombudsman?
There are currently two: Judge Peter Boshier and Professor Ron Paterson.
Judge Boshier began his term as Chief Ombudsman on 10 December 2015.
Ron Paterson was appointed an Ombudsman on 4 June 2013.
http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/about-us/who-is-the-ombudsman

Ombudsman —Fairness for all
http://www.ombudsman.parliament.nz/

Wikipedia: Office of the Ombudsman (New Zealand)

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█ 22.1.16 Stuff: New chief ombudsman promises to be a fearless operator
New chief ombudsman Judge Peter Boshier plans to be a fearless operator, with every intention of using his title and its “spectre” to draw attention to unacceptable practices. “I’m not going to resile from saying things publicly in a considered, measured way when I think that’s justified. That’s what I did as the principal court judge and that’s what I’ll bring to this job,” he said.

█ 16.1.16 RNZ: New Chief Ombudsman Peter Boshier (with Kathryn Ryan)
Former Principal Family Court Judge Peter Boshier was one of our highest profile judges during his eight years in that role, and intends to bring the same openness to his new role as Chief Ombudsman.
Audio | Downloads: Ogg MP3 (24’39”)

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

*Image: TV3 The Nation – screenshot by whatifdunedin

Southern Region, serving itself —or professional rugby (and Sky TV)

### ODT Online Tue, 1 Jul 2014
Opinion
Fresh thinking needed in local government
By Ciaran Keogh
Perhaps it is time to look at a far-reaching reform of the way local government functions at both local and regional level. There are substantial efficiencies to be gained from integrating many council functions across the councils within the region. More than 10 years ago I did away with all IT functions at the Clutha District Council and merged these with Invercargill City. This model would work for all of the councils across all of Otago and Southland for little more than it currently costs Dunedin City Council to run its IT services.
Some fresh thinking needs also to be applied to the stadium and the first of these should be the monopoly that rugby has over it and the grass surface.
Read more

● Ciaran Keogh is a former chief executive of the Clutha District Council, Wakool Shire in the Riverina region of New South Wales, and Environment Southland. He now lives in Dunedin.

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Crowds had been down right across the five New Zealand franchises but that was a worldwide trend, with fewer people attending events.

### ODT Online Tue, 1 Jul 2014
Rugby: Crowds can’t fall any further – Clark
By Steve Hepburn
The Highlanders met budget for crowds this year but have warned they cannot dip any lower if the franchise is to remain viable. In the eight games the Highlanders hosted at Forsyth Barr Stadium this year, 98,326 people came through the gate, an average crowd of 12,291 per game. […] A crowd of 11,070 attended the last home game, the win over the Chiefs, a figure that did not exactly delight Highlanders general manager Roger Clark.
Read more

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Auckland launches electric trains

The first electric trains roll out tomorrow (Auckland Transport)

### 3news.co.nz Saturday 26 Apr 2014 7:00a.m.
Long wait for electric trains almost over
By Dan Satherley – Online Reporter
Almost a century ago, transport officials proposed electrifying Auckland’s nascent rail network. Tomorrow those plans become reality, with the public launch of the city’s first electric trains. All 5000 tickets for the inaugural rides, which start at 10am, were snapped up within 24 hours. Passengers will be taken from Britomart to Newmarket and back on the first of the 57 new trains to go into service.

“Our catchline is smarter, better, quieter, all those things. They’re much more efficient, they use a lot less energy, they are much, much quieter and they are much more reliable.”

Auckland Transport media manager Mark Hannan says the upgrade has been a long time coming. The current diesel-powered trains were purchased from Perth at scrap metal prices after the West Australian city electrified its network in the early 1990s. The first of the electric trains will be taking fare-paying passengers on the Onehunga line from Monday, and by the middle of next year all of the old locomotives will be history.
Read more

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

DCC: Opportunity created by Stephens’ departure

### ODT Online Thu, 21 Mar 2013
Shake-up at top for DCC
By Debbie Porteous
Senior jobs could be under threat at the Dunedin City Council as chief executive Paul Orders uses the sudden departure of a general manager to begin a wholesale review of the organisation’s senior management structure.

“As circumstances change, so we should restructure,” Mr Orders told the Otago Daily Times yesterday.

An interim management structure has been put in place to reallocate the work of former general manager of finance and resources Athol Stephens, who quit abruptly last Thursday. Mr Orders says his attention will now turn to the wider organisation. Under the new arrangements, which are effective immediately, Mr Stephens’ portfolios have been allocated to other staff.

General manager city strategy and development Dr Sue Bidrose takes responsibility for finance and general manager operations, Tony Avery takes responsibility for the customer services agency, while the city property, business information services and human resources teams will report directly to Mr Orders.
Read more

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

“Little faith in financial decision making, what now DCC?”

Council spending: It’s got to the point the personages of Cull and Brown are indistinguishable – perhaps an iPhone would help map the moles.

### ODT Online Sun, 16 Dec 2012
Mixed reaction to axing plan hearings
By Chris Morris
An efficiency drive that could spell the end to days of public hearings on councils’ annual plans has drawn mixed responses from within the Dunedin City Council. A recommendation to axe the requirement for councils to prepare and consult on annual plans was included in an independent report released this week by the Local Government Efficiency Taskforce. The report recommended councils prepare long-term budgets – undertaken every three years – in the first year of their term, but then only annual budgets for the remainder of each term. The annual budgets would not require consultation unless they triggered an amendment to long-term plans, the report suggested.
Read more

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### ODT Online Sun, 16 Dec 2012
Greater use of technology promoted
By Chris Morris
Dunedin city councillors could soon be beaming in their votes by iPad and Skype if a push to increase the use of technology by local authorities finds favour. The suggestion came in a Local Government Efficiency Taskforce report released this week, which recommended investigating greater use of technology by councils. The taskforce suggested there were efficiencies to be gained by promoting the use of technology, which could potentially allow councillors to contribute to meetings – and even vote – without actually being there. The recommendation was met by a mix of cautious optimism in Dunedin, where a digital divide of sorts existed among city councillors.
Read more

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Solar roof claddings

### idealog.co.nz 28 Sept 2011 at 3:39 pm
Polymers could be key in affordable uptake of solar in homes and office buildings
By Sustain Team
We’re used to seeing massive solar panels strapped to the roofs of houses and office buildings, but a Victoria University lecturer says a process that incorporates solar cells into roofing materials could serve us better. According to Dr Justin Hodgkiss, these cells could provide all the energy used in a home or office building in New Zealand, at a more affordable option. Hodgkiss, a lecturer at the School of Chemical and Physical Sciences, said conventional solar cells use silicon to absorb light and convert the energy into electricity. But processing silicon into a working solar cell is very expensive, with the high costs limiting the uptake of the technology by consumers. Hodgkiss is one of a number of local and international scientists who are investigating an alternative option of making solar cells from polymers or plastics. They are building on the work of Nobel Prize winning New Zealand scientist and Victoria alumnus Alan MacDiarmid who discovered the electronic conductivity of polymers. Hodgkiss said the major advantage of using polymers is that they can be dissolved to make an ink and then printed in sheets.
Read more

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Detroit: “Make no little plans”

Detroit is struggling with the same chronic urban issues that many of our nation’s [USA] older postindustrial cities face—high unemployment, population loss, deteriorating infrastructure, and property abandonment.

People are using public art projects and community agriculture to transform entire neighbourhoods.

### architectmagazine.com Posted on: October 6, 2010
From: ARCHITECT October 2010
Planning
Can This Planner Save Detroit?
By Fred A. Bernstein
Toni L. Griffin has just accepted a unique—and daunting—job: the reshaping of Detroit. She talks to ARCHITECT about population decline, urban ag, downtown’s revival, and more.

By the way, there is still a good amount of affordable housing stock in rehab condition—we have an opportunity to strengthen the city’s traditional neighbourhoods as well as create new, compact, and more diverse neighbourhood typologies.

A Manhattan resident, Griffin spends most of the week in an office in Detroit City Hall. In an arrangement that reflects the strong interest of philanthropists in Detroit’s future, her salary is paid by the Kresge Foundation (which has an endowment of over $3 billion). Rip Rapson, Kresge’s president and son of architect Ralph Rapson, is also giving the city funds for Griffin to hire a team of local, national, and international consultants, from the private sector and four Michigan universities. Several other foundations are expected to provide funding to support both the technical and civic engagement components of the project.
Read more

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Geospatial analysis, relieving burdens on existing infrastructure

How do we design and build to accommodate changing economics, family sizes, and employee and student populations? How can we merge online technologies with physical architecture to more directly serve our real-time needs?

“The city is a dense network of relationships. The best way to provide infrastructure is to not go in with a meat ax but to practice urban acupuncture, finding thousands of different spots to go into.”
–Nicholas de Monchaux

### nytimes.com February 3, 2010, 6:45 pm
Opinionator
Space: It’s Still a Frontier
By Allison Arieff

Our beds are empty two-thirds of the time.
Our living rooms are empty seven-eighths of the time.
Our office buildings are empty one-half of the time.
It’s time we gave this some thought.
–R Buckminster Fuller

That quote is 40 years old, but I continue to be amazed by the extent to which we haven’t begun to address the problem Fuller highlighted. There’s a staggering glut of empty space around the country right now, unused space that’s not doing anyone much good. That in itself isn’t new; what is unprecedented is our ability to visualise that data in an entirely new ways.

The ability to use GIS (geographic information systems) to locate data spatially, for example, is one reason Barack Obama is president today. His campaign turned a database of voters and volunteers into a map and was able to strategise house by house about how to get those votes. More broadly, GIS allows us to literally view our place both globally and in a hyperlocal context.

That level of specificity, both at the micro and macro level, is helping revolutionise the way we think about, plan for and design the space we inhabit (or abandon). A visual map can show us patterns of overbuilding, abandonment, mis- (or lack of) use; it can teach us something about our current tendency to overbuild.

How can this now-instantaneous access to data add clarity to ingrained patterns, and perhaps allow us to change those patterns according to evolving needs and requirements?
Read more

● Allison Arieff lectures and consults on media, design and sustainability, most recently for Urban Revision and IDEO. She lives in San Francisco.

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Local Code’s quantifiable effects on energy usage and stormwater remediation eradicate the need for more expensive, yet invisible, sewer and electrical upgrades. In addition, the project uses citizen participation to conceive a new, more public infrastructure as well —a robust network of urban greenways with tangible benefits to the health and safety of every citizen.

nicholas.demonchaux.com
Nicholas de Monchaux is an architect, urbanist, writer, and Assistant Professor of Architecture & Urban Design at UC Berkeley.

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Posted by Elizabeth Kerr

Discovering the simple laws of cities

Whenever a city doubles in size, every measure of economic activity, from construction spending to the amount of bank deposits, increases by approximately 15 percent per capita. It doesn’t matter how big the city is; the law remains the same.

West admits that all successful cities are a little uncomfortable. He describes the purpose of urban planning as finding a way to minimize our distress while maximizing our interactions.

Cities are unruly places, largely immune to the desires of politicians and planners. “Think about how powerless a mayor is,” West says. “They can’t tell people where to live or what to do or who to talk to. Cities can’t be managed, and that’s what keeps them so vibrant. They’re just these insane masses of people, bumping into each other and maybe sharing an idea or two. It’s the freedom of the city that keeps it alive.”

### nytimes.com 17 December 2010
A Physicist Solves the City
By Jonah Lehrer
Geoffrey West is a theoretical physicist in search of fundamental laws, he likes to compare his work to that of Kepler, Galileo and Newton. …although West worked for decades as a physicist at Stanford University and Los Alamos National Laboratory, he started thinking about leaving the field after the financing for the Texas superconducting supercollider was cancelled by Congress in 1993. West, however, wasn’t ready to retire, and so he began searching for subjects that needed his skill set. Eventually he settled on cities: the urban jungle looked chaotic — all those taxi horns and traffic jams — but perhaps it might be found to obey a short list of universal rules.

“We spend all this time thinking about cities in terms of their local details, their restaurants and museums and weather,” West says. “I had this hunch that there was something more, that every city was also shaped by a set of hidden laws.”

And so West set out to solve the City.

West saw the metropolis as a sprawling organism, defined by its infrastructure. (The boulevard was like a blood vessel, the back alley a capillary.) This implied that the real purpose of cities, and the reason cities keep on growing, is their ability to create massive economies of scale, just as big animals do.

After analysing the first sets of city data — the physicists began with infrastructure and consumption statistics — they concluded that cities looked a lot like elephants. In city after city, the indicators of urban “metabolism”, like the number of gas stations or the total surface area of roads, showed that when a city doubles in size, it requires an increase in resources of only 85 percent. This straightforward observation has some surprising implications. It suggests, for instance, that modern cities are the real centres of sustainability.
Read more

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Post by Elizabeth Kerr