Westport - Bugger! Another ghost town in the making

[MD]

As a born and bred Coaster it saddens me to hear last night a quaint town hanging on by it's finger tips gets shafted by the only two large employers it has. Solid Energy halving workforce at Stockton mine and Holcim cement closing. The flow on effects must run deep. Port workers - now obsolete. Pubs, cafes, etc lost customers and how do they sell a business now as a going concern.

I know there's all the economic reasons under the sun to close the place down but how many kicks in the guts can the poor Coast take? As I grow older I lean more towards the hippies and Greens with their anti-corporate ideals. Corporates only know one thing - greed. Ha, Holcim have warm cuddly statements on their website about supporting communities- Tui billboard moment there if ever I saw one.

Bloody shame and my thoughts go out to the people of Westport, most likely already struggling on low wages. How do you sell up and move on when suddenly it's impossible to sell a house?

I have family and childhood friends hit again and again by the slow closure of the Coast.

I took my elderly Mum back to her birthplace and childhood home in Waiuta recently. It's an amazing place to visit if you every pass that way (Reefton-Ikamatua). Seeing next to nothing left of our longest running gold mining town, but collapsed chimney stacks trying to rise above the bush.

Please try and take time to 'see the Coast' when travelling the South Island. Go out of your way to places like Karamea. The Deniston Incline is well worth the trip. While there spend some coin, they deserve it. Don't moan about the price of petrol, they have to survive with that all year.

[george formby]

Exactly the same is happening the length of the country to a greater or lesser degree.

Reading the spin about "growth" and "development" makes me cringe. Not happening in my neighborhood. Communities are barely hanging on by there fingernails. Heart breaking.

[98tls]

On ya M,my old mums from Westport and still has many family there.Ive 2 cousins working in the mine havent heard yet how they fared.Seems the cement works is all but finished as well eh,3 uncles worked there in the good years.Couldnt believe how much it had changed when i was over there last and pretty much all that will be left is jobs catering to tourists.Anyone going there should indeed go up to Denniston and take some time to walk about ...they must have been right hard bastards to live and work up there.Mums got a few great books on Denniston well worth a read.For my money the coasts the most beautiful part of this country.

[Paul in NZ]

Yes its hard to fathom how this has come about but I'm not sure its the corporates. The price of coal collapsed and that wasn't their doing. However I agree with you - loosing that many jobs in a town like Westport is a total disaster. What to do about it or how to replace those jobs is a big challenge and I have NO idea how. Its sad that these physical jobs are all disappearing....

[willytheekid]

Exactly the same is happening the length of the country...

Not Auckland!...ohh hell no!!!, were still strip mining the rest of the country to shove more & more & MORE!!! bussiness & people into that ONE fucking basket!

...And the effects on the country if just ONE of those 7 dormant volcanos decide to rock n roll?? (Not to mention all the poor bastards who will TRAPPED due to Aucks shitty and all ready overloaded infrastructure & roading )...yup!, crippling.

Feel so sad for the west coast workers...there one of the IT customers I support, talk to the workers on a daily basis...some of the most decent, hard working and friendly people I have the pleasure of dealing with ...the poor buggers, this is gonna hurt the coast alot!

[Banditbandit]

I have little sympathy ... The Coast has been told for years that it needed to diversify industry away from mining and forestry ...

Now the crunch is here ... the price of coal has dropped so income is less than expenses ... the industry was warned this would happen ... people are diversifying energy production and coal is no longer desirable ... it's too polluting, too expensive ...

If the coast had diversified years ago then there would not be the issue now ...

Now I do feel sympathy for the people loosing their jobs - of course I do ... that is disastrous for them ...

But for the community leaders to stand up and moan ... shit ... where were these leaders years ago when diversification should have occurred.

[willytheekid]

Yes its hard to fathom how this has come about but I'm not sure its the corporates.

sorry mate, I call BULLSHIT!!!

This is a DIRECT result of piss poor management!, over spending and certain people at the top taking the cream while the sun shined, then bailing ship and running once the times got tough! (And taking as much with them as possible)

Wait for the truth to come out...the management & heads of solid have alot to answer for...but as fucking usual!, the workers are the ones paying the highest cost for there inability to manage a company. (But the CEO etc are still gonna get there bonus this year...mark my words they will...they always do!!)


Just ask them about the 10 MILLION dollar+ mine back filler they bought last year(Its fucking HUGE!!!!)...but never actually needed! nor ever planned to use...why DO you spend 10 million on machinary you will NEVER use if your in such deap financial trouble?...yeah...it IS like that.

[puddytat]

The effects reach out far further than Westport...there's people all thru Tasman that have mortgaged themselves because of the promise of work.
Maybe they shouldn't have purchased so many utes... (the company that is)

Dairying is the answer....the cows'll have a nice view.

[MD]

The effects reach out far further than Westport...there's people all thru Tasman that have mortgaged themselves because of the promise of work.
Maybe they shouldn't have purchased so many utes... (the company that is)

Dairying is the answer....the cows'll have a nice view.

Dairy farming wouldn't work on the West Coast. They don't get much rain!

[Gadget1]

As a born and bred Coaster it saddens me to hear last night a quaint town hanging on by it's finger tips gets shafted by the only two large employers it has. Solid Energy halving workforce at Stockton mine and Holcim cement closing. The flow on effects must run deep. Port workers - now obsolete. Pubs, cafes, etc lost customers and how do they sell a business now as a going concern.

I know there's all the economic reasons under the sun to close the place down but how many kicks in the guts can the poor Coast take? As I grow older I lean more towards the hippies and Greens with their anti-corporate ideals. Corporates only know one thing - greed. Ha, Holcim have warm cuddly statements on their website about supporting communities- Tui billboard moment there if ever I saw one.

Bloody shame and my thoughts go out to the people of Westport, most likely already struggling on low wages. How do you sell up and move on when suddenly it's impossible to sell a house?

I have family and childhood friends hit again and again by the slow closure of the Coast.

I took my elderly Mum back to her birthplace and childhood home in Waiuta recently. It's an amazing place to visit if you every pass that way (Reefton-Ikamatua). Seeing next to nothing left of our longest running gold mining town, but collapsed chimney stacks trying to rise above the bush.

Please try and take time to 'see the Coast' when travelling the South Island. Go out of your way to places like Karamea. The Deniston Incline is well worth the trip. While there spend some coin, they deserve it. Don't moan about the price of petrol, they have to survive with that all year.

I was sorry to see this.

On a positive note, I read that agriculture, construction and retail are all expected to grow in that region. Also, people with engineering and related technology qualifications will be in further demand.

[Swoop]

Dairy farming wouldn't work on the West Coast. They don't get much rain!

They'll have to take a leaf out of Canterbury's book... Just pump the rivers dry.

[Paul in NZ]

sorry mate, I call BULLSHIT!!!

This is a DIRECT result of piss poor management!, over spending and certain people at the top taking the cream while the sun shined, then bailing ship and running once the times got tough! (And taking as much with them as possible)

Wait for the truth to come out...the management & heads of solid have alot to answer for...but as fucking usual!, the workers are the ones paying the highest cost for there inability to manage a company. (But the CEO etc are still gonna get there bonus this year...mark my words they will...they always do!!)


Just ask them about the 10 MILLION dollar+ mine back filler they bought last year(Its fucking HUGE!!!!)...but never actually needed! nor ever planned to use...why DO you spend 10 million on machinary you will NEVER use if your in such deap financial trouble?...yeah...it IS like that.

I bow to industry specific knowledge....

There are certainly enough grumblings about the management of Solid Energy to warrant a second look but my intent was that corporates shouldn't be blamed for wrecking a regions economy. Corporates and markets come and go... They are and have always been fleeting things and coal and timber have been in decline for a while now. Indeed - all extractive industries has a life cycle that does not go on forever.. More balance was needed - explore other mining options or even improve harbours to boost the fishing for sure but know that these to have their limits. Tourism has potential but creates little value.

Its always been a difficult discussion to have on the Westcoast though. I did a lot of work there once and this topic would always get the hackles up and the old 'we don't want outsiders telling us how to use our resources" line... Erm...

Taking a high altitude view though - these problems are just a mirror for the rest of the country...

[Paul in NZ]

Dairy farming wouldn't work on the West Coast. They don't get much rain!

A lack of flat land could be an issue but yes, its an option... Its not going to employ the same numbers in the towns though.

[Banditbandit]

sorry mate, I call BULLSHIT!!!

This is a DIRECT result of piss poor management!, over spending and certain people at the top taking the cream while the sun shined, then bailing ship and running once the times got tough! (And taking as much with them as possible)

Wait for the truth to come out...the management & heads of solid have alot to answer for...but as fucking usual!, the workers are the ones paying the highest cost for there inability to manage a company. (But the CEO etc are still gonna get there bonus this year...mark my words they will...they always do!!)


Just ask them about the 10 MILLION dollar+ mine back filler they bought last year(Its fucking HUGE!!!!)...but never actually needed! nor ever planned to use...why DO you spend 10 million on machinary you will NEVER use if your in such deap financial trouble?...yeah...it IS like that.

Yes - all that . They've been a very badly managed company ...

But the price of coal has been dropping .. and predictions were it would go lower ...



http://www.ibtimes.com/global-climat...ts-say-1694215

The price of coal could fall from $75 per metric ton to $65 per unit by the end of 2015,

In fact, it is under $50 per tonne already ...

http://www.infomine.com/investment/m.../coal/6-month/


Why are we trying to produce and sell a product for which there are fewer and fewer people who want to buy it?

We have a resource that was once valuable ... it's not valuable any more ... we should get out of the game for economic reasons and for the future of our planet ... "clean green New Zealand" should not be producing such a polluting product.

[sidecar bob]

I'm a little concerned solid energy didn't act sooner. The govt has already stuffed 182 million of taxpayers money into a sinking ship. Westport should be applauding the rest of the country for standing by them this far into it.