Weather Eyewith John Maunder Rainfalls for the month of March have been recorded in Tauranga since 1898 - except for 1904, 1908 and 1909. This graph below shows the range of rainfalls from a high of 504mm in 1979, to a low of five mm in 1943. The... Read More

Simon BridgesNational MP simonbridges.co.nz It's been a busy couple of weeks in the Bridges' household with the arrival of wee Harry. Although I'm not sure exactly how helpful he is, but Emlyn is always keen to get involved and take care of his... Read More

Dazz SwitallaFlavour SecretsNo.1 The Strand Chef www.no1thestrand.co.nz There is some wonderful seasonal produce around the moment - avocados, feijoa, nashi pears, corn - so there are plenty of reasons to eat fresh local produce. Like our knowledge... Read More

Brian RogersRogers Rabbits www.sunlive.co.nz This week's column is short, and a bit of a rush job. I was told the world was ending so I didn't see the need to write one.Next thing you know, we are all still here and civilisation is still fairly... Read More

Matt CowleyTauranga City Councillor I love the quote which popped out in the council chambers this week: 'Planning in a vacuum”. It refers to communities developing a strategy to address an issue it's concerned about, but it fails to get... Read More

Independent viewsBy Brendan Horan The Development Contribution Amendment known as the affordable housing bill may work in larger regions, such as Auckland, but is not good for Tauranga. Tauranga is a developing and evolving city struggling to keep... Read More

Catherine StewartTauranga City Councillor It must be an April Fool's Day joke...surely? Media reported parking wardens will be checking cars' windscreen wiper blades and depth of tyres from April 1, 2014. I don't recall any discussion on this... Read More

Jane NeesBOP Regional Councillorwww.janenees.co.nz One of the responsibilities of local government is to plan infrastructure and services for future populations. This is the reason for spatial planning exercises like SmartGrowth here in the Western... Read More

Nikki ScottVirtually on Track Project LeaderSport Bay of Plenty The Bay of Plenty region is rich with beautiful parks, spaces and reserves - and locals are truly spoilt for choice when it comes to amazing scenery and getting outdoors. Within just... Read More

Nikki ScottVirtually on Track Project LeaderSport Bay of Plenty The Bay of Plenty region is rich with beautiful parks, spaces and reserves - and locals are truly spoilt for choice when it comes to amazing scenery and getting outdoors. Within just... Read More

Sideline SidSports correspondant & historian www.sunlive.co.nz This Saturday brings the changing of the guard in the Western Bay sporting codes, with the last day of the cricket season and the opening day of the club rugby season. It is a big day... Read More

The connection between solar activity and the earth's climate is an area of ongoing and sometimes controversial research. A sunspot is a relatively dark, sharply defined region on the solar disc - marked by an umbra (dark area), which is 2000 degrees... Read More