For 40 years or more, air quality policy has been based on the paradigm of the air quality standard as a uniform criterion of acceptable environmental degradation, built on the foundations of the precautionary principle. However, developments in health science have undermined some of the...

This new research project will highlight the degree to which and in what ways New Zealanders are living beyond their 'fair earth share' of global resources. The Ecological Footprint (EF) has been proven as an effective indicator providing the means to communicate complex environmental data in a...

Sustainable development policy is explored through the national sustainable development strategies of two countries, Scotland and New Zealand, over the period 2003-2007. Since governance of issues starts with formulation of strategic direction, texts that purport to address sustainable...

New technologies are needed to address sustainability issues through emerging forms of governance. These will be concerned with agency, performance and citizenship as much as with traditional biophysical concerns. The governance of water is a complex and critical issue where sustainability...

This work presents data and analysis quantifying the total (direct and indirect) resource use and outputs (products and pollutants) of the New Zealand dairy industry for the year April 1997 to March 1998. It also identifies those sectors supplying the dairy industry which make significant...

This paper documents the results of a participatory modelling trial involving an influence matrix with a group of researchers and community members in the Motueka Catchment of New Zealand. In this trail, the influence matrix was used to calculate whole-of-system sustainability-values used to:...

The terms "sustainability" and "ecotourism" have become much used in recent years, yet there have been few examinations of how they might apply in practical cases. Kaikoura, a small coastal town (population 3600) on the east coast of New Zealand's South Island, has a rapidly developing tourism...

The production and processing of primary products has been the foundation of the New Zealand economy for 150 years. However, the economic benefit gained from the food and fibre industries has come with associated environmental costs. While the producer-centric approach is the prevalent way of...

Sustainability models are analysed and the ontological relationship between the dimensions of sustainability are discussed. A sustainable values framework generated from some New Zealand research is presented. The focus is then narrowed predominantly to social sustainability and technological...

To promote the social, economic, environmental and cultural well-being of communities, the New Zealand Local Government Act 2002 requires local authorities to produce a Long Term Council Community Plan (LTCCP). The LTCCP covers a ten-year period and focuses on the preferred future and vision of...