I Thought Salinger Was Toast.

last month was the warmest August New Zealand has seen since temperatures were first recorded 155 years ago.
New Zealanders could thank strong westerly winds coming off Australia for an average temperature almost 2degC warmer than usual, said Auckland climate scientist Jim Salinger.

... and juxtaposed with ...

Niwa's outlook for spring said New Zealanders c ould continue to expect warmer weather than usual throughout September, although there was likely to be a change mid-spring.

So is this scaremongerer, this gorebuller, back with NIWA, or is this simply the Herald misrepresenting the situation?
Incidentally, the amount of snowfall in August and -2 degree temperatures on the way to work would suggest just a little tinkering ... why there is still snow on the surrounding hills.

Update: A scientist sacked by the National Insitute of Water and Atmospheric Research has used its data to show New Zealand had the warmest August on record - two hours before the agency could make public the information.
Auckland climate scientist Jim Salinger issued the figures yesterday ahead of Niwa's official August report.

and, update:Winter is expected to have one last hurrah with snow forecast over much of the country until the weekend.

Windfarm deal no secret, says DOC

DOC is standing by the confidential 2007 deal, which involved a payment of $175,000 by Meridian to the department in return for DOC not opposing the Project Hayes windfarm near Ranfurly in Central Otago.

So 'confidential' doesn't mean 'secret,' aha.

"In this case an agreement was reached which resulted in $175,000 being set aside to improve public access to nearby conservation land and for a series of plant and birdlife issues to be addressed," Mr Morrison (DOC) said.

Ms Fitzsimons said, "While there were many options in terms of mitigating conservation damage, money changing hands in secrecy for silence was unacceptable ... But that should not have been a secret deal and it should not have been at the price of buying DOC's silence."

And she is so right!