Birdsong project, poisoned tussocks, Joe Bennett

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Community inspiration
What a great thing community inspiration is.

It was great to see Ruud Kleinpaste (pictured) of the Air New Zealand Environmental Trust drop into Te Anau to launch a $100,000 project for the Local School Kids for a Kepler area Birdsong project.

Perhaps DOC could donate some of the old cycle trail Survey Tracks between Supply Bay and the Kepler Track area to the Kids Restore Kepler team.

As their own little public project, and if Air New Zealand wants to spring for a treetop walkway, it could also cross the Waiau River and link up to the Kepler Track.

In fact, it would be really nice to make it the first bird restoration project to be serviced by pushbike, considering the problems of access that some of our island reserves are encountering.
AARON NICHOLSON,
Manapouri

Landscaped poisoned
The children of Otama school have shown that they know a lot about the environment and have been awarded the Green/Gold Enviroschools certificate to prove it.

They've planted trees to protect riverbanks, tested the quality of the water in streams with scientific instruments, grown vegetables in their school garden and woven environmental care into all of their studies.

They are a great example to their rural community and I wish they would do something quite brave: go and visit the farmer who has poisoned the tussock land on the north face of the Hokonui Hills, which overlooks their small country school, and tell him that his actions are harming the environment, risking serious erosion and giving farming a bad name.

Whoever it was who carelessly destroyed that tussock landscape doesn't seem to take notice of modern environmental thinking but might, just might, listen to the wise advice of children who do.
ROBERT GUYTON
Riverton

Bennett blunders
The trite and typically silly statements by Joe Bennett (November 24) are another example of how New Zealand simply does not have the commentators that possess the ability to plumb the depths of the thought of the likes of Benedict XVI.

I would suggest that Joe sticks to the topics he can handle, such as the colour of Kate Middleton's wedding dress.
SUZANNE BOYLE
Gore

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