Sam Stevens

The metal recycling industry is feeling the effects of the global financial meltdown but is not itself on the scrap heap yet, dealers say.

Two gang-related fights in Dunedin this month, one in the central city, are indicative of gangs doing the same old things rather than a growing gang problem, police say.

As more local authorities nationally drop building consent fees to make solar water heating cheaper to install, a Dunedin City councillor says waiving costs will "not be a simple decision to make".

Life is about balance for Nelson brothers Nick and Peter Oliver, but as top trials riders it can also be about skilful combinations of brake, throttle and clutch to negotiate obstacles, drops and climbs which would cause the faint of heart to stop in their tracks.

After putting up with septic tank run-off for years, residents of a West Harbour hamlet are pleased sewerage services in the area may finally be improved.

The dream of young dancers the world over - to tread the boards with members of an international ballet company - came true for a group of Dunedin children last night.

Commuters will find the sting taken out of hills, headwinds and petrol prices if electric bicycles and scooters become more common on Dunedin roads.

A small Dunedin audience yesterday joined millions worldwide in celebrating one of the largest festivals on the Indian cultural calendar.

The authority responsible for the upkeep of the country's railway tracks now has funding to tackle 10 years of "deferred maintenance" - and that may mean good news for Waikouaiti.

Student leaders loved it but some among the 1000-strong audience at the University of Otago yesterday were not sold on Prime Minister Helen Clark's announcement that parental means testing for student allowances would be phased out by 2012.

A 50m Dunedin industrial chimney at the disused Milburn Cement Works, Burnside, was scheduled for demolition this morning.

Vehicle emissions standards may have the opposite effect to what was intended, as New Zealand finds itself less able to replace an ageing fleet. Sam Stevens learns more.

Although the number of young Dunedin drivers injured or killed in road crashes in Dunedin reached a four-year low in 2007, police and community road safety advisers say the brakes still need to be put on the grim statistics.

It may not sound as serious as demonstrating for the environment, world peace, or democratic rights, but a group of Dunedin protesters say a campaign to save some favourite sweets is anything but tongue in cheek.