Nine To Noon for Wednesday 11 August 2021

09:05 Genesis Energy pushes back at blame from Minister

The electricity generator and retailer Genesis says it's been unfairly singled out for blame by the Energy Minister over the widespread power cuts on Monday night - one of the coldest of the year. Thousands of households were unable to turn on heaters or lights after the national grid operator Transpower asked lines companies to reduce their load. The Minister Megan Woods  blamed the power cuts on commercial decisions made by the electricity companies, in particular pointing the finger at Genesis Energy for failing to turn on its third generator at Huntly despite having been warned there would be massive demand.  But Genesis CEO Marc England is pushing back, saying that is an  unfair characterisation of the situation.

09:20 1 in 3 sheep and beef farms to forestry

Beef and Lamb New Zealand is calling for limits on carbon offsetting as new research reveals over a third of sheep and beef farms sold have gone into carbon-only titles.  Beef and Lamb NZ has commissioned this independent research, which shows the transition of pastureland to forestry by carbon farming companies is driven in large part by a speculated increase in the carbon price, and the amount of afforestation here has already exceeded levels recommended by the IPCC to meet the Zero Carbon Act.  Instead, the report recommends an integrated approach, where parts of farms are given over to trees, as a preferable way of meeting climate change targets.Kathryn Ryan is joined by Beef and Lamb NZ's chief executive Sam McIvor.

09:40 Wellington's electric ferry to launch next month

The Southern Hemisphere's first fully electric ferry is about to be launched on Wellington waters next month. The East by West Ferry company operates between Queen's Wharf in Wellington's CBD and Days Bay in Lower Hutt. After being delayed by a year due to the Covid pandemic, the electric ferry, built by Wellington Electric Boat Building Company, will under go a series of final trials this month before launching in September. Kathryn speaks with East by West managing director Jeremy Ward. 

09:45 Australia correspondent Annika Smethurst

Annika joins Kathryn to look at the Covid crisis in New South Wales, where a record 356 new cases were identified, 254 of whom were infectious while in the community. Hundreds of people have been lining up to get Covid vaccinations, particularly tradies, who from today will need to have at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine to return to work.

10:05 Tracing the origins of handshaking

Shaking hands hasn't been so popular in social distancing Covid times, but it is a widely accepted gesture that has existed for thousands of years. The handshake ritual Is deeply embedded in a range of cultures and it's not just the exclusive domain of humans. Chimpanzees and bonobos also shake hands. The ancient social gesture has so captivated paleoanthropologist and evolutionary biologist, Ella Al-Shamahi, that she's written a book about it - The Handshake - A gripping history. 

10:35 Book review: The Enemy Within by Tim Ayliffe

Sally Wenley reviews The Enemy Within by Tim Ayliffe, published by Simon & Schuster

10:45 The Reading

Duet, part 13. Written by David Hill, read by Kip Chapman.

11:05 Music with RNZ's Charlotte Ryan

Charlotte joins Kathryn to mark three years since Aretha Franklin's death just as a new movie into her life is released. It's music award season: Waiata Māori, Pacific, Silver Scroll and Aotearoa Music Awards. She'll preview the finalists in the Waiata Māori Awards. And Luke Buda from The Phoenix Foundation has a new solo album out, his first in 12 years.

11:20 Enough: Children's book focuses on community and giving back

Nearly enough, sort of enough, almost enough...what happens where there is not enough? Sarah Johnson and Deborah Hinde have written and illustrated a children's book that is based around Hana, who is concerned about whether people on her street have enough - and her efforts to help them when she finds that they don't. The pair have collaborated on a number of works - but the production of this one was a little different. It was made possible through a grant from Copyright Licensing New Zealand, and a dollar from the sale of each book will go to a charity called Feed the Kids, which is based in Raglan. They both join Kathryn to talk about why they felt the idea of what is "enough" was an important one for children to understand.

11:45 Gut bug transfer, Covid's effects on the brain, who's the most defiant of them all?

Science commentator Siouxsie Wiles looks at new research that's found transplanting gut bugs from old to young mice can counteract age-related changes in the brain, another survey that's found how IQ scores were affected by Covid infections and who's the most Covid-resistant of them all....people less open to new ideas, the extroverts and the narcissists, that's who.

Associate Professor Dr Siouxsie Wiles is the head of Bioluminescent Superbugs Lab at the University of Auckland.

 

Music played in this show

Artist: Talking heads
Track: This Must be the Place
Time played: 9:25

Artist: Stranglers
Track:  Skin Deep
Time played: 10:35

Artist: Nick Cave
Track: Spell
Time played: 11:45