Mixed Bag: Simulating Market-Based Instruments for Water Quality and Quantity in the Upper Waikato

We designed and implemented participatory computer simulations in three workshops in New Zealand's Upper Waikato catchment to learn how market-based instruments (MBIs) might improve freshwater outcomes when managing water and land resources within limits. An Excel-based platform was built to simulate, in stakeholder workshops, the use of transferable permits and user charges for both water quantity and water quality in the Upper Waikato catchment. Each participant managed a hypothetical property in a simplified catchment that included seven farms, a pulp mill, district council, and a hydro - electric company. Based on profit schedules and policy settings, participants made choices about production intensity, land use change and trading of water and/or nutrient allowances. The simulations highlighted the social and cultural context in which MBIs must operate, and how that context influences the outcomes that we can expect from MBIs. Participants found the simulations to be a valuable learning experience

The adoption of market-based instruments for resource management: Three case studies

Market-based instruments (MBIs) for resource management create financial incentives for people and businesses to use resources more efficiently, within a regulatory context designed to ensure that ecological, social and cultural objectives are also met. Three case studies were done to identify factors influencing the adoption or rejection of market-based instruments in New Zealand. Case studies included Individual Transferable Quota (ITQ) for New Zealand's inshore fisheries, Transferable Water Permits (TWPs) in Tasman District and Waikato Region, and charges for occupation of coastal space at both the national and regional levels in New Zealand. This paper provides a summary of findings from these case studies. These include: MBIs are difficult to implement if they threaten the position of existing users. It is important to have clear objectives. Norms and values can be an obstacle to MBIs, especially where they help to protect the interests of key stakeholders, but value-based opposition can be overcome if practical concerns are addressed.market-based instruments, ITQ, transferable water permits, coastal occupation charges, Agribusiness, Agricultural and Food Policy, Consumer/Household Economics, Crop Production/Industries, Environmental Economics and Policy, Farm Management,

OECD principles on water governance in practice:an assessment of existing frameworks in Europe, Asia-Pacific, Africa and South America

Through the lens of the 12 OECD Principles on Water Governance, this article examines six water resources and water services frameworks in Europe, Asia-Pacific, Africa and South America to understand enhancing and constraining contextual factors. Qualitative and quantitative methods are used to analyze each framework against four criteria: alignment; implementation; on-ground results; and policy impact. Four main target areas are identified for improving water governance: policy coherence; financing; managing trade-offs; and ensuring integrity and transparency by all decision makers and stakeholders. Suggestions are presented to support practical implementation of the principles through better government action and stakeholder involvement.No Full Tex

Collaboration and modelling – tools for integration in the Motueka catchment, New Zealand

A conceptual model of integrated catchment management (ICM) is presented in which ICM is defined as a process to achieve both ecosystem resilience and community resilience. It requires not only biophysical knowledge developed by hydrologists and other environmental scientists, but an active partnership with catchment communities and stakeholders to break the ‘paradigm lock’ described by the UNESCO-HELP programme.This paper reports observations from ICM research in the Motueka HELP demonstration basin in the upper South Island of New Zealand. The Motueka occupies 2 170 km2 of land yet the river effects are felt on the seabed more than 50 km2 offshore, so the true ‘catchment’ is larger. A hydrologically temperate mountainous catchment with horticultural, agricultural, plantation forestry and conservation land uses, the Motueka also hosts an internationally recognised brown trout fishery. Land and water management issues driving ICM research include water allocation conflicts between instream and irrigation water uses, impacts on water quality of runoff from intensifying land uses, catchment impacts on coastal productivity and aquaculture, and how to manage catchment processes in an integrated way that addresses cumulative effects of development.Collaboration with catchment stakeholders can be viewed as having two primary purposes:• Building knowledge and commitment of resource users towards sustainable resource management (collaborative learning)• Stakeholder involvement in resource management itself (governance).Examples are presented of a Collaborative Learning Group on Sediment learning of their differing perspectives on fine sediment impacts, and a Catchment Landcare Group working with scientists to improve water quality in their river. Success factors for water user committees making decisions about water resource management include creating opportunities to communicate and build trust, share scientific knowledge on the issue, and willingness to compromise. Functioning catchment groups have potential to take on delegated governance responsibility for meeting agreed water quality and other community goals.Finally a scenario modelling framework IDEAS (Integrated Dynamic Environmental Assessment System) is presented, in which environmental indicators such as nutrient fluxes are simulated alongside socio-economic indicators such as job numbers and catchment GDP for a range of land and marine use options.Keywords: integrated catchment management (ICM), resilience, HELP, UNESCO, water governance, Landcare, scenario modelling, collaborative learning, water allocation, water user committees, catchment groups, watershed managemen

Structural studies on cell walls of Pinus radiata : with particular reference to callus cultured cells : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry at Massey University, New Zealand

A study of the composition of the primary cell wall of Pinus radiata has been undertaken. 1. Preliminary work with hypocotyl tissue showed that hemicelluloses of hypocotyl consisted of a xylan (probably (4-O-methylglucurono)xylan) and a xyloglucan. Acidic sugars examined, showed that galacturonic acid was the main component, and that 4-O-MeGlcA was present. 2. Cell walls were prepared from callus tissue either by wet sieving in 80% ethanol (Batch 1) or by disruption in a French Pressure cell and washing with aqueous potassium phosphate buffer; (Batch 2). Each batch was submitted to a series of extractions with different reagents in order to investigate the mode of bonding of polymers within the walls. The polysaccharide and protein components of each fraction were studied by monosaccharide and amino acid analysis. Fractions of Batch 1 were assayed for lignin and selected fractions from both batches were studied by methylation analysis. 3. The results of investigations led to the following major conclusions. The non-cellulosic components recognised in the wall preparations were: - a) A(1→3)-linked galactan and an arabino-3, 6-galactan which were largely extractable from the cell walls by hot water and may be only loosely bound in the cell wall. b) The pectic components consisting of; i) pectin, a galacturonate polymer containing a linear (1→4)-galacturonan back bone interspersed with branched rhamnose residues, ii) branched (1→5)-arabinan and iii) linear (1→4)-galactan, which occurred together in cell wall fractions and were not all extracted by classical extractants (such as hot aqueous EDTA), some being tightly bound in the cellulosic residue after alkali extraction. c) A fucogalactoxyloglucan some of which was extracted by water or EDTA, but the majority was extracted by subsequent treatment with either alkali or in part by a strong chaotropic reagent (6M GTC). Thus the fucogalactoxyloglucan was probably bound in the cell wall by strong hydrogen bonding. Some other bonding may be involved in the GTC-resistant fraction. d) A branched xylan which was removed by GTC and alkali, the larger level being removed by GTC. e) A galactoglucomannan, identified only by 4-linked mannose residues in hot water extracts and strong alkali fractions. f) Hydroxyproline-containing protein which was extracted from the cell wall by a variety of reagents but hydroxyproline-rich protein remains tighly bound after alkali extraction. g) Lignin which was tentatively identified in the cell wall. It appeared likely that cross-linking with lignin would be responsible for the non-extractability of some polysaccharides and protein from the walls. A mild acid chlorite treatment followed by alkali extraction removed most of the residual pectic components, xylan and protein from the walls. A basis has been laid for the further investigation of the wall structure and isolation of polysaccharides