Sally Rae

Fish and chips are out and baked potatoes are in at Pembroke School in Oamaru.

If Jimmy's Pies can "rock out of Roxburgh", then Andrea McIvor reckons hangi pies can do the same from Hampden.

When Neil Bolton felled a pine tree in the Kirkliston Conservation Area in the Hakataramea Valley this week, it marked a milestone.

Louisa Burrell is back at the helm of North Otago Grey Power.

Waitaki Mayor Alex Familton says the whole community is behind Oceana Gold's Macraes gold mine and its functions.

Peter and Cheryl Simpson might make the trip from Oamaru to Macraes every day but they never tire of the journey.

Mining in New Zealand is a male-dominated industry, so what is it like for women at Oceana Gold's mine at Macraes? Sally Rae talked to a nail-polish wearing grandmother who drives a 120-tonne truck.

Forget penny-farthings - the pennyfakething is the latest craze to hit Oamaru.

There was little sleep to be had as gaming enthusiasts enjoyed a non-stop 24-hour Monster Local Area Network (LAN) party in Oamaru recently.

"Technology, eh." Metallurgist Geua Kivung beams as she describes how the oxidation process can be done in 60 minutes in the process plant at OceanaGold's Macraes site, rather than the traditional method which takes millions of years.

Athletic Marist Rugby Football Club's premier team has signed an innovative contract aimed at reducing alcohol-related harm in the Waitaki district.

The granting of a water resource consent for the Hunter Downs irrigation scheme in South Canterbury would be a "welcome boost" to farmers during the current dry period, South Canterbury Irrigation Trust chairman Don McFarlane said yesterday.

The Government is extending drought relief to a further four regions, including areas of Otago and South Canterbury, as some farmers describe the situation as "desperate".

The Ministry of Education has been asked to consult the boards of trustees at Hampden, Maheno and Weston schools on the possibility of retaining education on the Otepopo School site in Herbert as a "second campus" of one of the schools.

Investment and jobs are key factors in any decision to allow mining of New Zealand's protected land areas. OceanaGold has been digging in our backyard at the Macraes site in East Otago for 20 years. Sally Rae and Craig Baxter went underground to meet the workers.

Oamaru man Graeme Clark has urged the Waitaki District Council to consider all possibilities to retain and maintain the coastal road from Oamaru to the Waianakarua River mouth, saying it is not just a road but an "experience".

Tony Wood wanted to be an army medic.