Winter grazing under scrutiny from the sky in Waimakariri
From local democracy reporter David Hill:
A flyover of Waimakariri farms has found that most farmers are following winter grazing rules.
Environment Canterbury (ECan) conducted a trial flyover of the district in an aeroplane last month to observe winter grazing.
Principal implementation adviser Sarah Heddell said those on the flight were pleased to see that farmers were well prepared.
Farmers were grazing strategically towards waterways, creating buffer zones, placing water troughs and feeders close to new breaks, avoiding paddocks with waterways and wetlands, and grazing with smaller mob sizes.
‘‘Overall, most farms we observed were meeting good management practice.
‘‘Fences were set back from waterways, stock were on the paddock not in the stream, and waterways were relatively clear.
‘‘Our Waimakariri land management adviser followed up with a couple of landowners who were identified as needing some extra support and their response has been positive.’’
The flight took place during the some of the wettest winter conditions Canterbury has ever seen, making for tough conditions for intensive winter grazing.
Heddell said surface flooding and waterlogged soils meant this was a tough time for farmers with calving and lambing under way.
‘‘All this rain has made it difficult to farm right now, and that reinforces the need for farmers to have an intensive winter grazing plan in place.’’
She said the council appreciated the help industry groups provided for the trial.
‘‘While we know these kinds of things can feel invasive, we believe flyovers can be a useful way to understand how farmers are approaching intensive winter grazing and where we can focus help, support and advice.’’
Staff would continue to work with industry groups throughout the region over the next year to help farmers plan for winter grazing.
No further intensive winter grazing flyovers were planned this year and staff were looking to refine the process before any future flyovers.
Christmas Spirit
Went to New World Christmas Eve brought some groceries and as I went to pay a
very kind Lady behind me in the queue reached out and paid for my purchase.
The world still has some wonderful people in it even in these troubled times.
Scam Alert: Fake information regarding December Bonuses from MSD
The Ministry of Social Development is reporting that fake information is circulating about new ‘December bonuses’ or ‘benefit increases’
If you get suspicious communication, please contact Netsafe.
Further important update to all Neighbourly members
Dear Neighbours,
We wanted to update you with what we have uncovered in regards to the potential Neighbourly data breach which we were alerted to on Thursday January 1.
Over the past few days we have worked to understand whether our members’ data had been accessed without authorisation and, if so, the extent of the breach.
We have now confirmed that there was a breach of some data from our registered users. We are now satisfied that the breach was quickly contained, and we have restored the Neighbourly site and services.
Our investigations have shown that there was unauthorised access of Neighbourly data, which included our registered members’ names, email addresses, GPS coordinates, forum posts and member communications. It did not include passwords but some publicly advertised event and business addresses were included.
Following best practice, we will look to seek a court injunction against any use of the material.
We want to apologise to our members for this occurrence and any concerns it may have caused you over the past few days. We have, of course, addressed the issue that allowed the theft to occur, and we are satisfied that the site is secure for use by all of our members. We will work closely with all our staff to ensure we have the most robust processes in place to prevent it from happening again.
Thank you to our members who contacted us over this period and for the understanding you have shown as we work through the complex issues associated with cyber theft.
Q&A regarding Neighbourly data breach
The Team at Neighbourly
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