We used the well-being evaluation method, a technique for measuring individual utility, to study how people in the wildland urban interface of Colorado (USA) felt about their lives before and after two wildfire scenarios. Variables such as age, family size, fire frequency, and house value were...

Data from a choice experiment on the community’s preferences for water quality improvements in streams was used to assess the effect of using a fixed status quo versus people’s perceived status quo on willingness to pay values. More than 50% of respondents perceived the quality of water in...

In many developing countries the composition of rural households is influenced by the migration of adult household members to urban locations in search of employment. Children may be left in the care of their mother alone, or in the care of grandparents when both parents have migrated. Using...

Nitrogen leaching from agriculture contributes to contamination of Lake Taupo. Multiple criteria decision making was used to compare fourteen pre-defined farming systems which reduced, or maintained nitrogen losses. Case study participants included three to four each of Maori Incorporation...

This study describes the development of bio economic models examining the economic and water quality impact of various proposed policy options in the Upper Waikato catchment. In the first phase nitrogen emissions are determined for representative farming systems using the Overseer nutrient...

With current concerns about climate change and the general status of the environment, there is an increasing expectation that products have sustainability credentials, and that these can be verified. Labelling is a common method of communicating certain product attributes to consumers that may...

This paper describes a model used to assess alternative scenarios for managing the marine biosecurity risk to Fiordland from vessel traffic. Scenarios are assessed in terms of risk reduction per dollar spent. To keep the analysis manageable, we focus on vessel risks from hull fouling, as this is...

There is an increasing demand for water resources in the Canterbury region. The impact of this demand has lead to unacceptable minimum river flows, which has resulted in adverse affects to river ecology. In an effort to resolve this problem water storage projects have gained considerable...

New Zealand houses are cold, damp, and poorly insulated by international standards. Our substandard housing stock has negative effects on health, quality of life, productivity, winter air quality, energy use and transmission. Investment in home energy efficiency is below the socially optimal...