The complications of modern-day dam building – money must be put aside for measuring the mauri

Deep and meaningful negotiations are under way on the inevitable cultural impacts.

Just because it’s legal does not make it right.

Alf was never happy about legalising prostitution in this country, for example. Or permitting civil unions. Or letting teenagers into pubs.

Hence he is not impressed by the defence being advanced by the iwi that was given money by Meridian Energy, apparently to reverse its opposition to a West Coast hydro dam.

The iwi is saying the payment was a “legitimate” part of the resource consent process.

Of course it is. Perfectly legal.

It raises lots of questions in Alf’s mind, nevertheless.

The story is told at Stuff today –

Meridian last week revealed it had paid an unspecified sum to Te Runanga o Ngati Waewae for work it had done to assess the cultural impact of the company’s proposed Mokihinui River hydro project.

Slow down with that electricity shake-up, Gerry – the hacks at The Press need time to catch up

A scribbler by name of Paul Gorman seems to be a bit slow on the uptake when it comes to electricity matters.

He is gushing to his Press readers today about the Government’s review of the electricity sector jeopardising the green reputation of one of its biggest money-spinners.

Giant state-owned South Island generator and retailer Meridian Energy’s multimillion-dollar carbon-neutral generating status will be threatened if the recommendations of a review – requested by Energy and Resources Minister Gerry Brownlee – are adopted.

Brownlee’s review proposes stripping two key power stations from Meridian’s Waitaki River hydro scheme and giving them to North Island state-owned enterprise Genesis Energy.

Meridian would then be given the Government’s emergency diesel-powered generator at Whirinaki in Hawke’s Bay.

Meridian’s generation is hydro or wind-powered, although it sells thermally generated electricity when lakes are low.

The threat to Meridian’s green reputation was obvious – of course – to anyone who was paying attention about a fortnight ago.

What’s up DOC?

It makes no sense for government departments to hire lawyers to do battle in court with the lawyers hired by another government agency. The biggest winners in that game are lawyers.

Nor does it make sense for a government department to be arguing the toss in court to frustrate a matter of government policy.

But when Meridian Energy secretly slips money to DOC to buy its silence…

Then we are on to a hot political story which yet another government agency – Radio New Zealand – has flushed into the open.