Publication Search
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May 2019This document is a peer review of NZIER's report Economic impact of meeting 2050 emissions targets: Stage 2 modelling by Dr Niven Winchester. Read more -
May 2019The Productivity Commission and the Ministry for the Environment contracted a consortium of organisations (‘CMV’) with experience in modelling and the economics of climate change mitigation to undertake modelling of New Zealand’s transition to a low-emissions economy. The modelling examines pathways from the present to the two 2050 emissions reduction targets. Read more -
May 2019This report recommends river habitat modification indicators that can be used for national environmental reporting under the Environmental Reporting Act. Read more -
May 2019This report recommends river biodiversity and ecosystem process impact indicators that can be used for national environmental reporting under the Environmental Reporting Act. Read more -
May 2019This report gives a high-level overview of the ‘social good’ benefits associated with electrifying process heat and reducing coal use. Read more -
May 2019This report outlines recommended changes to the ‘Interim New Zealand Guidelines for Cyanobacteria in Recreational Fresh Waters’. Read more -
April 2019This report summarises analysis methods and outcomes for modelling New Zealand’s lake water quality. Read more -
April 2019This report summarises analysis methods and outcomes for state and trends across New Zealand’s lake water quality monitoring network. Read more -
April 2019This report summarises analysis methods and outcomes for modelling New Zealand’s river water quality. Read more -
April 2019This report summarises analysis methods and outcomes for state and trends across New Zealand’s river water quality monitoring network. Read more -
April 2019This report summaries the published literature on land-use impacts on New Zealand's freshwater and coastal environments. Read more -
April 2019This report summarises analysis methods and outcomes for modelling nitrate-nitrogen leaching from livestock in New Zealand, from 1990 to 2017. Read more -
December 2018This guide provides practical considerations, principles and methods to help regional council staff identify, assess, communicate and manage uncertainty in freshwater management. It may also be useful for iwi and hapū or community participants in regional freshwater planning processes to better understand these issues. Read more -
December 2018Ministry for the Environment, in partnership with Bay of Plenty Regional Council, commissioned Perrin Ag Consultants Ltd and Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research to develop mitigation bundles for use in evaluating the cost of improving water quality in the Kaituna-Pongakawa-Waitahanui and Rangitāiki Water Management Areas. Read more -
December 2018Ministry for the Environment, in partnership with Bay of Plenty Regional Council, commissioned Perrin Ag Consultants Ltd and Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research to assess the farm/orchard-gate economic impact of applying a range of mitigation practices to reduce losses of nitrogen, phosphorus, E. coli and sediment. Read more -
October 2018This document describes a framework for assessing the biophysical ecosystem health of fresh water in Aotearoa New Zealand. Read more -
September 2018This report, prepared for the Ministry for the Environment by NIWA, examines the potential impacts of climate change on hydrological conditions at 20 river mouths around the country. Read more -
September 2018This report has two sections: Section 1, facilitated by Te Ātiawa Manawhenua Ki Te Tau Ihu Trust, describes the history and cultural values associated with the Waitohi and Waikawa streams. Section 2, an interim report by the Marlborough District Council, addresses Water Quality in the Waitohi and Waikawa catchments. This work will be used to inform future work that both parties can undertake in these catchments. Read more -
September 2018The Ministry for the Environment commissioned this research to identify perceived barriers to the adoption of any of the three mechanisms proposed in the draft plan change for the Tutaekuri, Ahuriri, Ngaruroro and Karamu catchments (known as ‘TANK’). Read more -
September 2018This report offers preliminary guidance to water management groups(WMGs), regional councils and other interested parties on how WMGs can be structured and what regional council plans should contain to improve the likelihood that groups will achieve the freshwater outcomes desired by their communities. Read more -
August 2018These guidelines provide water managers with tools and guidance to assess, manage and monitor the water quality. They complement the existing National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management (Freshwater NPS) which is the main direction to local government about how to manage fresh water in New Zealand. Read more -
August 2018This technical guidance will help councils with the process set out in the Periphyton Attribute Note in the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2014 (as amended 2017). Read more -
August 2018Trend analyses performed on many sites are regularly aggregated by water quality variable and summarised in tabular, graphical or map format as part of environmental reporting. Read more -
August 2018This guide explains how the New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme (NZ ETS) is designed and how it operates (a snapshot as at August 2018). Read more -
June 2018This report synthesises the series of economic analyses: modelling and other supporting economic studies, and their different strengths and weaknesses, to assess the economic impacts of target options and the wider impacts of stronger climate action. Read more -
Emissions pricing impact on innovation and competitiveness: A review of the international literatureJune 2018This report reviews the international literature regarding the impact of emissions pricing on the innovation and competitiveness of industries. Read more -
June 2018The transition to a low-emissions economy will bring many costs and benefits. This report analyses the available evidence on the co-benefits (eg, health, congestion) of possible policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in New Zealand. Read more -
June 2018The bottom-up modelling approach taken in this report sets out the pathways for the transition and how decision-making impacts economic activity and greenhouse gas emissions under uncertain future states of the world. Read more -
June 2018In this report, the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research (NZIER) uses a dynamic Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model to explore the economic impacts of transitioning to targets and a lower-emissions future, and examines how the economy changes in response to the imposition of various targets. Read more -
June 2018This report by Sense Partners examines data and analyses on the ability of New Zealand businesses and sectors to innovate and compete in a world of uneven emissions prices. Read more -
May 2018Phormidium is a potentially toxic, mat-forming benthic cyanobacterium found in an increasing number of New Zealand rivers. This report outlines a study which assessed Phormidium toxin levels in the Cardrona (Otago), Mataura (Southland) and Hutt (Wellington) Rivers in 2017. Read more -
May 2018The Managing Upstream project aims to help inform management decisions when establishing freshwater objectives under the Freshwater NPS and increase knowledge on the state of different estuary types in New Zealand. Read more -
May 2018The Managing Upstream project aims to help inform management decisions when establishing freshwater objectives under the Freshwater NPS and increase knowledge on the state of different estuary types in New Zealand. Read more -
May 2018Phormidium is a potentially toxic, mat-forming benthic cyanobacterium found in an increasing number of New Zealand rivers. This report outlines a study which investigated drivers of Phormidium blooms in New Zealand rivers to predict risk of blooms. Read more -
May 2018This report provides an environmental classification system for a potential deposited sediment indicator in the National Objectives Framework. The system classifies streams according to their modelled reference state. This report is an interim deliverable for an ongoing research programme that builds on and refines its findings and will conclude in June 2018. Read more -
May 2018This research assesses the applicability of environmental classification systems for a potential suspended sediment indicator in the National Objectives Framework. It evaluated the relationship between modelled suspended sediment indicator values and observed values, land cover, and River Environment Classification typologies. This report is an interim deliverable for an ongoing research programme that builds on and refines its findings and will conclude in June 2018. Read more -
May 2018This report proposes updated guideline values for copper and zinc in marine and freshwaters. Read more -
April 2018This report, prepared by consultancy Mōhio, examines climate finance in New Zealand. It includes a snapshot of key existing climate finance flows and a look at the instruments available to the Government and private sector such as grants, debt and bonds. Read more -
March 2018This guide provides information about the attributes in Appendix 2 of the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2014 (as amended 2017). Read more -
March 2018The Ministry for the Environment commissioned Covec to explore options for market oversight of the Emissions Trading Scheme. This report addresses whether there is a need for regulation of the market in a similar way to regulation of financial markets, to address potential or existing problems. Read more -
March 2018The Ministry for the Environment commissioned Sapere to analyse the current information provision in the New Zealand Emissions Trading Scheme. The report offers recommendations on what, how and when information needs to be provided to the market to improve its efficiency. Read more -
March 2018This guide provides information about setting limits under the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2014 (as amended 2017). Read more -
March 2018This working paper produced by NIWA for the Ministry for the Environment in 2016 proposes a methodology for calculating over-allocation of fresh water. Read more -
March 2018This report has regional summaries of the work planned or underway to improve water quality in rivers and lakes in terms of human health. Read more -
February 2018An independent report has shown that water quality for sediment and E. coli have improved over the past 7-10 years in the Horizons Region. There are encouraging signs that local scale interventions are collectively contributing to regional scale water quality improvements. The case study, conducted by Land Water People Ltd and reviewed by NIWA and StatsNZ, was commissioned jointly by the Ministry for the Environment and Horizons Regional Council as a way to understand improving water quality trends in the Manawatū-Whanganui Region. Read more -
December 2017This guide provides information about the policy intent and requirements of the National Policy Statement for Freshwater Management 2014. Read more -
December 2017This guidance supports councils to manage and adapt to the increased coastal hazard risks posed by climate change and sea-level rise. Read more -
December 2017This document is a summary of the Ministry’s technical report, Coastal Hazards and Climate Change – Guidance for Local Government in New Zealand. It summaries the step-by-step approach developed in the guidance to help local government and others assess, plan for, and manage the increasing risks facing coastal communities. Read more -
December 2017This guide relates to the requirements in the National Policy Statement on Urban Development Capacity for local authorities to set targets in their regional policy statements and district plans (policies PC5 – PC 11). Read more -
December 2017This guide provides recommendations on how to give effect to the requirements of the National Policy Statement on Urban Development Capacity to produce the future development strategy (policies PC12 - PC14). Read more