The Wire with Manny

A fast-track consent is currently being sought for a major gold mine in Cromwell, Central Otago. 

This follows the approval of a controversial $8 billion dollar mine that received fast-track approval for the Coromandel in December. 

Local response has largely presented environmental concerns, and raise questions of alternative initiatives for mineral mining in Aotearoa. 

Producer Jasmine Gray spoke to Sue Coutts, Director of External Affairs at Zero Waste Aotearoa, about the potential of e-waste and a circular economy for mining gold and other materials.

The Government’s Employment Relations Amendment Bill has passed its third and final reading.

The Government has revealed the first-ever National Infrastructure Plan.

And the Salvation Army has released its annual State of the Nation report for 2026.

For our weekly catch-up with the Labour Party, Wire Host Caeden spoke to MP Shanan Halbert about all of these topics.

Last week, the government officially announced plans to build a liquified natural gas (or, LNG) terminal in Taranaki, with the goal of finishing construction by next year or early 2028.

The terminal is intended to provide a stopgap for New Zealand’s energy network during dry years, where hydro sources may not generate sufficient energy to support the network.

Coming at a cost of over a billion dollars, a new levy on electricity users of two to four dollars per megawatt hour, will be introduced to help fund the terminal.

However, the project has already faced criticism from groups such as Greenpeace, who pointed to the poor economic viability of the terminal and its further investment in fossil fuels during the climate crisis.

To understand more, producer Theo spoke to Greenpeace’s Chief Executive Russel Norman on the ramifications of this plan, and possible alternatives for mitigating dry year risk.

For Dear Science this week, our expert, Professor Allan Blackman chats with us about a new solar solution, the periodic table anniversary, and the latest research on human senses
For our weekly catchup with the National Party, Wire Host Sara spoke to National MP Ryan Hamlilton about Wellington’s wastewater treatment plant failure, the State of the Nation, and NZ First’s call for a Māori seats referendum
For Green World, news-teamer Alex spoke to Nikolai Siimes, a Doctoral Researcher at the University of Auckland, about Biodynamic Alternatives to Fungicides
Producer Vihan spoke to the University of Auckland’s Shahper Richter on balancing AI and human values.