Letters: Why solar power is not cost-effective (but should be)

CONSUMER NZ and EECA have made the point again that, at the moment, an investment in household solar electricity is not cost-effective.

Some readers may recall that in my former column — Eco thrifty renovation — I made this point on a number of occasions and was criticised for it. Now, as then, the best returns on investment are in energy efficiency and improving the thermal envelope of your home.

Nothing has changed in recent years, and until the Government forces power companies to buy back electricity from rooftop producers at the same rate they sell it, nothing will change.

Want real change? Change your lightbulbs to LEDs and change your appliances to Energy Star and change your power company to one that supplies only 100 per cent renewable electricity.

And while you're at it, take advantage of the new Government insulation scheme and stuff your ceiling with Batts!

NELSON LEBO
Okoia

Ardern praised

I am not a Labour person and never will be, but I must congratulate our prime minister on the way she has presented herself with these world leaders in New York. She is another Helen Clark in the making.

GARY STEWART
Foxton Beach

Abortion facts

I would suggest to Russ Hay (letters, September 26), that he get his facts straight with regard to foetal development and the law governing abortion in NZ.

1. Brain waves can be recorded as early as 43 days gestation (1st trimester).

2. Russ labels all abortions "medical terminations". A medical abortion is performed by administering two different drugs; one to starve the developing child and the other to expel the dead child. Can only be performed up to seven weeks gestation, and has a failure rate of about 10 per cent, in which case surgery will be needed.

Then there is surgical abortion, in which the child is removed from the womb by an abortionist. Methods are: suction, D&C, D&E, hysterotomy.

3. Abortion in NZ law is contained in two acts; the Crimes Act and the Contraception, Sterilisation and Abortion Act. The latter one provides for the circumstances and procedures under which abortions may take place and deals with the licensing of abortion clinics.

The Crimes Act covers the grounds on which an abortion may be performed. The only time limit mentioned in it is before 20 weeks and after 20 weeks. Before 20 weeks the grounds are: serious danger to the woman's life or physical or mental health; risk of a disabled child; pregnancy is the result of incest; woman is severely subnormal.

After 20 weeks, the grounds are: woman's life is in danger, or serious permanent danger to the woman's physical or mental health. So there is one part of the act that covers 0 to 20 weeks; and the other part covers 20 weeks to birth.

Hope this clarifies some of the issues regarding abortion in NZ.

KAREN RAAYMAKERS
Castlecliff

Sex education

The Education Review Office putting forward a revised agenda in the Chronicle, September 13 — particularly on sex education from Year 1 to Year 10 — is based on pragmatism. If this is the case, the ERO needs to examine the researchers and those promoting sex education within the schools for their political views and sex orientation.

Is my assessment incorrect that, with the introduction of sex education those many years ago, pornography has increased as a problem? No need to feed such a burgeoning industry. Certainly the media and film has dropped its standards where some of us would say there is porn on TV.

The Chronicle advertises prostitution. Read that sentence again. What is it saying? Marriage is not important. How is sex education going on in our schools? Faithfulness in marriage has dropped noticeably. If this is all true, we are going backward.

With so much fake science around, we need to know these proponents of change.
Give us the political views and sex orientation of the researchers and the same for those supporting them in the Education Review Office. This shall give us a chance to assess their ideas. Give us something to bite on ... figuratively.

I would suspect the LGBT are over-represented in these reviews and it is time, like a growing voice in the Roman Catholic Church to defrock its paedophiles, greater transparency is required.

We began with the charge of pragmatism. Sex is not simply physical. There are transcending values involved (who can deny it?) such as faithfulness, sacrifice, children, the value of human life.

We do not need a sop to Cerberus with these transcending values, they are a few of the goals we need to aspire to for a healthy community.

F R HALPIN
Whanganui

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