Using renewable energy for domestic consumption has been identified as a key strategy by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Critical to the success of this strategy is to know whether consumers are willing to pay to increase the proportion of...

This is a broad-ranging discussion of the role of economics and economists in the formation of government policies. The focus is on helping economists who wish to be influential in the policy process. The paper covers rationales for and against economist involvement in the policy process (market...

Modelling complex systems such as multiple-use reservoirs can be challenging. A legitimate question for scientists and modellers is how best to model their management under uncertain rainfall. This paper studies whether it is worth using a stochastic model that requires more effort than a much...

The greatest friction in trade and fishery between Japan and New Zealand was the Total Economic Relationship, which was insisted by the PM of NZ. NZ wanted to export dairy foods in exchange for admitting fishing. Both governments experienced a long and tough negotiation. Recently frictions have...

Lakes Taupo and Rotorua are important to New Zealand, but declining lake water quality is increasingly becoming a problem. Primary producers are said to be impacting heavily on the lakes' water quality through discharges that reach them through streams and ground water. The paper discusses the...

This study examined the economic impact of a wintering barn facility on a dairy farm in the Tararua District, relative to its ability to reduce nitrogen leaching, as a means of achieving Horizon’s proposed nitrogen discharge limit. The analysis showed that the provision of a wintering facility...

The intensity of agricultural production affects both nutrient and greenhouse gas emissions. Environmental policy designed to reduce one type of pollution may have complementary effects on the other type. This paper explores this issue in the Lake Rotorua catchment in New Zealand using an...

This paper describes further progress in a new approach to stakeholder consultation for policies about agricultural land uses and water quality in rural waterways; a process that was begun early in 2012. The initial consultation events provided the basis for a future draft of Greater Wellington...