Nine To Noon for Tuesday 20 July 2021

 

 

09:05 Water world: Flood protection won't work in climate-changed environment

A climate change researcher says local and central government must stop allowing houses to be built in at-risk areas and we should no longer rely on flood protection infrastructure such as stopbanks to protect against climate change-induced major weather events.  Last weekend's devastating flooding has rendered 15 percent of Westport homes uninhabitable. Kathryn talks to Judy Lawrence from the Climate Change Research Institute about how we can better protect our infrastructure.

09:15 Insurance expert: Floods a wakeup call to two-thirds of Kiwis 

An insurance expert says the weekend's flooding at Westport should be a warning to the two-thirds of New Zealanders who live on a flood plain. Melissa Heath is director of Residential Risk Analysis, which advises councils on climate change-induced disaster risk and helps would-be homebuyers with potential insurance and financial issues with a property before purchase. She says New Zealand is unique in that insurers still cover events that wouldn't be covered overseas - but premiums are steadily increasing and homeowners are often under-insured.

09:20  Natural state? Water purity measure corrected 

The equation for measuring water purity has been corrected but a freshwater ecologist questions whether this adjustment is sufficient to prevent pollution. The official equation measuring the human impact on groundwater has been revised to better reflect levels of pollution. Water scientist Dr Mike Joy has been campaigning for years to get the Ministry of the Environment to adjust the way they measure water purity. He has had something of a win. Admitting they had the figures wrong, Stats NZ has downgraded the 3 grams of nitrate allowed per cubic metre of water for it to be considered in a "natural state". Dr Mike Joy joins Kathryn to discuss why these measures are so important. 

09:45 USA correspondent Ron Elving

Ron talks to Kathryn about how Joe Biden's much anticipated voting right speech has been received with Democrats looking to the President to lead amid a wave of bills intended to restrict voting access. Also the Covid Delta variant is spreading quickly with new cases up by nearly 70 percent in a week.

Ron Elving is Senior Editor and Correspondent on the Washington Desk for NPR News.

10:05 Soiled: our relationship with the ground  

The dirt beneath our feet can be easy to take for granted. But it's incredibly important for the food we eat, the air we breathe and the water we drink. Twelve years ago Australian chef and food writer Matthew Evans chucked in the city life and took on the running of the Fat Pig Farm farm in Tasmania. He's been getting down in the mud since moving on to the land and it's taken him on a journey of discovery. Matthew has written it down in a book titled Soil; the incredible story of what keeps the earth, and us, healthy. 

10:35 Book review  - Brutal: The 100-year fight for world rugby supremacy by Ron Palenski

David Hill reviews Brutal: The 100-year fight for world rugby supremacy by Ron Palenski, published by Upstart Press   

10:45 The Reading

Llamas & Empanadas, episode 7. Written and read by Eleanor Meecham.

11:05 Business commentator Rebecca Stevenson - tracking Eric Watson's woes

Rebecca asks - Are the walls closing in on former rich lister, Eric Watson. He is potentially facing more legal action amid insider trading allegations. 

Rebecca Stevenson is BusinessDesk's head of news.

 

11:30 Maybe Baby: the assisted fertility journey 

Infertility is something that affects one of every four heterosexual couples in New Zealand. Social infertility too affects people who are single, or in same-sex relationships but wanting to have a child.   There are of course treatment options for infertility but the process can be incredibly stressful.  Sue Saunders is a trained counsellor who has worked for a major fertility clinic in New Zealand for 19 years - and has faced the struggle of not being able to conceive naturally herself.  She says while fertility clinics offer counsellors, often those seeking the treatment find themselves overwhelmed, or don't want to talk to the counsellors available. So, Sue has written a practical guide not just to help people understand the process they're going through, but to give practical tips to cope, and to remind those trying to have a baby that they're not alone. It's called Maybe Baby: Navigating the emotional journey through assisted fertility. 

11:45 Financial Planner Liz Koh - The Bank of Mum and Dad
 

It's every parent's dream to see their children succeed in life and sometimes that means helping them along the way. But how much help should children get? They need enough to give them a good start, but not so much that they become dependent on parents to get by. Financial planner, Liz Koh says people with adult children will tell you that children are a lifetime financial commitment. That's because life never goes smoothly, and every now and then, for a variety of reasons, parents get called upon for a bit of help.

Liz Koh is a financial planner and specialising in retirement planning