North Canterbury News: December 23, 2021

OPINION
6 North Canterbury News, December 21, 2021
Joanne Gumbrell
Chair, Waimakariri Age-friendly
Advisory Group
Join together for
fellowship and fun
Ibelong to U3Aandgotooneoftheir
interest groups Singingfor Health.
Together we sing oldsongsand hear
thehistory of themfromour leaders.
I’mnot asinger and Idon’t needtobe
to go to this group.
It is aboutdoing somethingwith
others andhaving fun.
This singing groupishelping with the
growing need forsocial connection.
Social mediasent me amessage
whichsaid: LightUpLoneliness. Take
actiontoend lonelinessacross Aotearoa
by joiningthe movement at
letsendloneliness.co.nz This is an
initiative fromAge Concern.
Here inWaimakariri,Presbyterian
Supporthaveavolunteer visitor
scheme.
If youwant to be avolunteervisitor,
or have someone visit you,phoneRoni
on 03 261 2889
I’minterestedinwhatthe Office for
Seniors is sayabout housing: For a
growingnumber of older people,
accessing secure,safeand affordable
long­termhousing canpresenta
challenge.Thisaffectsthewider financial
wellbeingofpeople forwhom NZSuperis
their primarysourceofincome.Sincethe
start of thepandemic, the number of
people aged65+ who receive the
McALPINES MITRE 10 MEGA RANGIORA -OCEAN WATCH
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Gentle Sbecoming
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accommodation supplement increased
by approximately 12,000totaling127,522
in March 2021.Atitsworst, housing
deprivation has consequences forolder
people.They maylackaccesstohousing
altogetherorhaveaccess onlytosubstandard
accommodation.
Age­friendly Waimakariri’s housing
sub­groupoflocal peopleare lookingto
procure landand buildanAbbeyfield
House.
They areabouttobecome an
Incorporated Society andbegin fundraising.
An AbbeyfieldHouse consistsof12­14
studio unitsfor single people aged 65+,
acommunalkitchen,dining andliving
area, agarden andalive­in
housekeeperwho cooksmeals.
Residentseat togetherand socialise as
much as they wish.
This alsohelpswiththe housing
crisiswehaveinAotearoa as it frees up
houses for others. www.abbeyfield.co.
nz.
Maybethere is alonely person living
nearyou who wouldloveaninvitation
to joinyou for avisit, amealoran
outing.
NgaMihi Kirihimetemetetau hou.
Merry Christmas andaHappyNew
Year.
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Looking to the future
Often the endofthe year, and more
importantly the start of anew one,isa
timetothink about whatisimportant and
whatchallenges andopportunities we are
going to faceinthe future.
The farmingcommunityisfacing a
tsunami of change in the form of new
regulations, aimed at improvingand
protecting theenvironment for future
generations.
Farmers aren’tlooking at what is
coming andthinking ‘‘we’re not going to
do this’’.
Theyare looking at it and thinking‘‘how
on earth arewegoingtodothis?’’.
Thisdifferenceiskey.There isn’t
resistance to change in therural sector–
farmers have been responding to
changing regulations,markets, economic
and climaticconditions,and technology
for generations –but thepace hastobe
sustainable,and therules implementable.
Believeitornot,this is no different for
EnvironmentCanterbury.
We tooare facing this wave of new
direction thatisnecessary to protectthe
environment.
And are thinking“how on earth are we
going to do this?”.
But we must. Andweneed to work
alongside the wholecommunity if we are
to succeed.
In September, councillors confirmeda
set of principlesfor working with
communities under stress.
The council recognises that the rural
sectorisone suchcommunity.Some might
evensay thecouncilisthe cause of the
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stress:weare theones whotranslate the
central government direction andthe
desires of thewider Canterbury
community into rulesand are the ones on
theground who monitor and enforce
compliance.
It’s important to remember we arein
fact alltrying to achieve thesame
outcome.
Namely astrong,sustainable rural
sectorthatisable to support the
environmental outcomesneeded to
protect this beautifulregion for
generations to come.
Environment Canterbury doesn’t
always getitright.
As acouncillor Iamcommitted to better
ways of working, building relationships
andincentivisingbehaviourchange, and
so are ourstaff.
Thereisatension between carrying out
ourregulatoryroleonbehalfofthe wider
community, while also having empathy for
thefarmers,orothers we interact with.
However,Environment Canterbury has
aregulatory obligation to carry out our
functions in atimelymanner.
My hope for thecoming year is that we
cantake learnings from ourexperiences
andbuildonthe many past successes in
theregion.
This means we allcomefromaplace of
good intentand asharedend goal,and we
change the conversationtoone where
everyoneisworking togethertoanswer
‘‘howonearth arewegoingtodothis?’’.
Wishingeveryone arestful holiday
period.
Community caring for community
All Canterbury government agencies,
not just health,have arole to play to
ensure people aresupported and
prepared for asignificant increase in
the number of cases of Covid­19 in the
region,says Ben Clark,Canterbury’s
Regional Public ServiceCommissioner
for Canterbury and the Chatham
Islands.
‘‘It takes acommunity to care for a
community, and Iknow there are
hundreds of people working across
health,wellbeing, mana whenua and
NGOsocial services to ensure that
anyone whocontracts Covid­19 in
Canterbury or the Chatham Islandswill
be well supported,’’ he says.
This is whether they are self­isolating
in their own homeorinan alternative
community facility, including managed
isolation and quarantine facilities, Mr
Clark says.
SeniorResponsible Officer for Covid­
19 at the Canterbury District Health
Board, Dr Helen Skinner, says most
people with Covid­19 are likely to have a
mild illness.
‘‘It’s important that people’s health
andwellbeing is monitored by aclinical
team as well as self­monitoring while in
isolation.
‘‘It’s also vital that people isolating at
home know who and when to call for
help if their health deteriorates,’’ Dr
Skinner says.
“This weekwe’ve gone live with a
Claire McKay
Environment Canterbury Councillor
dedicated Covid­19 Care in the
Community page on our website.’’
The site provides information on
practical things to ensure people are
ready for when Covid­19 is more
widespread in the community, along
with guidance for those who are selfisolating
and resources for community
support providers.
“If you’re heading away on holiday,
have you made aplan to cover what
you’ll do if you or one of your whānau
catches COVID­19?
Where will you isolate? What about
vulnerable people you know who might
be older and live alone or have a
disability –how can you support others
you care about?
“The new section on our website also
provides linkstoinformation on what it
means to be aclose, casual,or
household close contact of someonewho
has tested positive for COVID­19 and
there’s information on what to expect
and who can support you afteryou’ve
tested positive,” Dr Skinner says.
‘‘The best thing we can all do now to
protect ourselves is to be fully
vaccinated, including having abooster
dose if it’s six months since you had your
second dose of Pfizer vaccine.
‘‘When you leave the house
remember: Mask, Scan and Pass –wear
your mask, scan in everywhere you go,
and showyour Covid­19 pass when you
need to.’’
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Highs Lows Highs Lows Highs Lows Highs Lows Highs Lows Highs Lows Highs Lows
Waimakariri 8:34am 2.2 2:20am 0.7 9:17am 2.2 3:01am 0.7 10:01am 2.2 3:44am 0.7 10:46am 2.2 4:29am 0.7 11:33am 2.3 5:18am 0.7 12:00am 2.2 6:10am 0.7 12:50am 2.3 7:04am 0.6
Mouth
8:59pm 2.1 2:50pm 0.7 9:43pm 2.1 3:33pm 0.7 10:28pm 2.1 4:17pm 0.7 11:13pm 2.1 5:03pm 0.7
5:51pm 0.7 12:22pm 2.3 6:39pm 0.6 1:14pm 2.3 7:30pm 0.5
Amberley 8:34am 2.2 2:20am 0.7 9:17am 2.2 3:01am 0.7 10:01am 2.2 3:44am 0.7 10:46am 2.2 4:29am 0.7 11:33am 2.3 5:18am 0.7 12:00am 2.2 6:10am 0.7 12:50am 2.3 7:04am 0.6
Beach
8:59pm 2.1 2:50pm 0.7 9:43pm 2.1 3:33pm 0.7 10:28pm 2.1 4:17pm 0.7 11:13pm 2.1 5:03pm 0.7
5:51pm 0.7 12:22pm 2.3 6:39pm 0.6 1:14pm 2.3 7:30pm 0.5
8:43am 2.2 2:29am 0.7 9:26am 2.2 3:10am 0.7 10:10am 2.2 3:53am 0.7 10:55am 2.2 4:38am 0.7 11:42am 2.3 5:27am 0.7 12:09am 2.2 6:19am 0.7 12:59am 2.3 7:13am 0.6
Motunau 9:08pm 2.1 2:59pm 0.7 9:52pm 2.1 3:42pm 0.7 10:37pm 2.1 4:26pm 0.7 11:22pm 2.1 5:12pm 0.7
6:00pm 0.7 12:31pm 2.3 6:48pm 0.6 1:23pm 2.3 7:39pm 0.5
8:45am 2.2 2:31am 0.7 9:28am 2.2 3:12am 0.7 10:12am 2.2 3:55am 0.7 10:57am 2.2 4:40am 0.7 11:44am 2.3 5:29am 0.7 12:11am 2.2 6:21am 0.7 1:01am 2.3 7:15am 0.6
Gore Bay 9:10pm 2.1 3:01pm 0.7 9:54pm 2.1 3:44pm 0.7 10:39pm 2.1 4:28pm 0.7 11:24pm 2.1 5:14pm 0.7
6:02pm 0.7 12:33pm 2.3 6:50pm 0.6 1:25pm 2.3 7:41pm 0.5
8:41am 1.7 2:26am 0.6 9:23am 1.7 3:08am 0.5 10:07am 1.7 3:52am 0.5 10:53am 1.7 4:37am 0.5 11:41am 1.7 5:24am 0.5 12:05am 1.7 6:15am 0.5 12:55am 1.7 7:09am 0.5
Kaikoura 9:08pm 1.6 3:01pm 0.6 9:50pm 1.6 3:44pm 0.5 10:34pm 1.6 4:27pm 0.5 11:18pm 1.6 5:12pm 0.5
5:57pm 0.5 12:31pm 1.7 6:44pm 0.5 1:22pm 1.7 7:33pm 0.4
*Not for navigational purposes. Wind and swell are based on apoint off Gore Bay. Maori Fishing Guide by Bill Hohepa. www.ofu.co.nz www.tidespy.com Graphic supplied by OceanFun Publishing Ltd.
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