title: Mangrove (Avicennia marina subsp. australasica) litter production and decomposition in a temperate estuary

authors: Gladstone-Gallagher, Rebecca

subjects: detritus

abstract: Mangrove forests can provide important cross-boundary subsidies of organic matter to adjacent habitats through the production, export, decomposition and assimilation of litter. We quantified two of these components in a temperate mangrove forest in Whangamata Harbour, New Zealand: 1) litter production; and 2) decomposition rates as a function of tidal elevation, sediment type and burial depth. Litter traps sampled monthly for a year measured an annual detrital input of 3.24–5.38 t DW ha−1, of which 77% occurred in summer. Decomposition rates depended on litter type, with leaves decomposing faster (63 d to decay by 50%) than pneumatophore and wood material (316 and 460 d, respectively). Buried leaf and wood litter decomposed 1.3–1.4 times slower than litter on the sediment surface; however, tidal elevation and sediment type (mud vs. sand) had no effect. The slow decay of litter (an order of magnitude slower than tropical mangrove litter) suggests that its incorporation into temperate marine food webs may be relatively slow.

text: Mangrove (Avicennia marina subsp. australasica) litter production and decomposition in a temperate estuary Mangrove forests can provide important cross-boundary subsidies of organic matter to adjacent habitats through the production, export, decomposition and assimilation of litter. We quantified two of these components in a temperate mangrove forest in Whangamata Harbour, New Zealand: 1) litter production; and 2) decomposition rates as a function of tidal elevation, sediment type and burial depth. Litter traps sampled monthly for a year measured an annual detrital input of 3.24–5.38 t DW ha−1, of which 77% occurred in summer. Decomposition rates depended on litter type, with leaves decomposing faster (63 d to decay by 50%) than pneumatophore and wood material (316 and 460 d, respectively). Buried leaf and wood litter decomposed 1.3–1.4 times slower than litter on the sediment surface; however, tidal elevation and sediment type (mud vs. sand) had no effect. The slow decay of litter (an order of magnitude slower than tropical mangrove litter) suggests that its incorporation into temperate marine food webs may be relatively slow.

year: 2013

title: Accountability in the retail and distribution sectors of the New Zealand electricity industry

authors: Hooks, Jill

abstract: Since the mid-1980s organisation of the electricity industry in New Zealand has been radically reformed. The public sector reforms implemented by successive governments between 1984 and 1999 aimed to reduce or eliminate government involvement in business activities and to create competition within industries, some of which might otherwise be natural monopolies. A “light-handed” regulatory regime was introduced to monitor and control the electricity industry. To date, this regime has rejected the use of price controls and associated methods in favour of market-based methods involving competition and transparent accountability. Corporate annual reports are therefore one of the prime ways in which organisations meet their accountability obligations. 

This research describes and explains the development of a disclosure index and the results of its application to the 1999 annual reports of the 33 electricity retail and distribution companies. The index was developed with the support of a panel representing 15 stakeholder groups. The disclosure index is a complex measure. It emphasises accountability through the provision of both financial and non-financial information to meet the needs of a wide range of stakeholders. It is designed to assess the comprehensiveness (both in extent and quality) of annual report disclosures. It also incorporates a best-practice model of annual reporting for electricity retail and distribution companies. 

The use of the disclosure index highlights an information gap between stakeholder expectations of information disclosure and the current level of disclosure in electricity company annual reports. Out of a maximum possible Index score of 100, the average score is 56 with a range from 15 to 72. Key areas of inadequate disclosure from an accountability perspective relate to performance measures (financial and non-financial), segmental information, asset valuation details, and cost of electricity purchased/generated. The research also identified a need for trust-owned companies to be as accountable as public companies. In this respect, copies of the annual report in its entirety should be available to interested parties on request. The concern is to make electricity companies and their activities more transparent by providing sufficient, understandable and easily accessible financial and non-financial information to allow stakeholders to fairly assess performance. The annual report is an appropriate vehicle for providing this information as it is a comprehensive document available to the public on a routine basis. Improved disclosure to meet best-practice levels would contribute significantly to the effective information sharing between companies and stakeholder groups - thus improving the accountability of each entity. Feedback from the research provides each company with indications of the parts of their reports which need attention if they wish to improve the quality of their reporting.

text: Accountability in the retail and distribution sectors of the New Zealand electricity industry Since the mid-1980s organisation of the electricity industry in New Zealand has been radically reformed. The public sector reforms implemented by successive governments between 1984 and 1999 aimed to reduce or eliminate government involvement in business activities and to create competition within industries, some of which might otherwise be natural monopolies. A “light-handed” regulatory regime was introduced to monitor and control the electricity industry. To date, this regime has rejected the use of price controls and associated methods in favour of market-based methods involving competition and transparent accountability. Corporate annual reports are therefore one of the prime ways in which organisations meet their accountability obligations. 

This research describes and explains the development of a disclosure index and the results of its application to the 1999 annual reports of the 33 electricity retail and distribution companies. The index was developed with the support of a panel representing 15 stakeholder groups. The disclosure index is a complex measure. It emphasises accountability through the provision of both financial and non-financial information to meet the needs of a wide range of stakeholders. It is designed to assess the comprehensiveness (both in extent and quality) of annual report disclosures. It also incorporates a best-practice model of annual reporting for electricity retail and distribution companies. 

The use of the disclosure index highlights an information gap between stakeholder expectations of information disclosure and the current level of disclosure in electricity company annual reports. Out of a maximum possible Index score of 100, the average score is 56 with a range from 15 to 72. Key areas of inadequate disclosure from an accountability perspective relate to performance measures (financial and non-financial), segmental information, asset valuation details, and cost of electricity purchased/generated. The research also identified a need for trust-owned companies to be as accountable as public companies. In this respect, copies of the annual report in its entirety should be available to interested parties on request. The concern is to make electricity companies and their activities more transparent by providing sufficient, understandable and easily accessible financial and non-financial information to allow stakeholders to fairly assess performance. The annual report is an appropriate vehicle for providing this information as it is a comprehensive document available to the public on a routine basis. Improved disclosure to meet best-practice levels would contribute significantly to the effective information sharing between companies and stakeholder groups - thus improving the accountability of each entity. Feedback from the research provides each company with indications of the parts of their reports which need attention if they wish to improve the quality of their reporting.

year: 2000

title: Kaupapa Māori and a new curriculum in Aotearoa/New Zealand

authors: Chalmers, Lex

subjects: curriculum review

abstract: While geographical education is our focus in this paper, the broader colonial history of education is the backdrop against which we first view the principles of Māori geographies in education. The essay underscores the importance of ‘authenticity’, the participation of local communities and local studies connected to local environments and histories. We use an educational program of the Raglan Area School on Whaingaroa Harbour as an illustrative example. The geographies of Whaingaroa Harbour provide an exemplary context for programs in geographical education and we suggest that the new curriculum in both English and Te Reo Māori (Māori language) can enhance the movement towards bi-cultural education in Aotearoa/New Zealand. Our argument is that the 2007 curriculum creates the opportunity; the impediments lie in providing appropriate resources and developing community support for the delivery of the bicultural educational approaches. is an important issue in debates about educational policy and implementing a new curriculum in Aotearoa/New Zealand. This paper explores how the development of the 2007 curriculum in Aotearoa/New Zealand attempted to address curriculum, teaching and learning options for Māori. Māori are a significant national community with needs and aspirations in education. Māori have tangata whenua status in Aotearoa/New Zealand, where this term acknowledges the arrival and settlement of migrant people of the Pacific centuries prior to significant European colonization in the 19th Century. While progress has been made in Māori education since the significant Treaty of Waitangi Act in 1975, we wish to explore the potential of Kaupapa Māori (Māori practice) in the development of a new curriculum, Te Marautanga o Aotearoa.

text: Kaupapa Māori and a new curriculum in Aotearoa/New Zealand While geographical education is our focus in this paper, the broader colonial history of education is the backdrop against which we first view the principles of Māori geographies in education. The essay underscores the importance of ‘authenticity’, the participation of local communities and local studies connected to local environments and histories. We use an educational program of the Raglan Area School on Whaingaroa Harbour as an illustrative example. The geographies of Whaingaroa Harbour provide an exemplary context for programs in geographical education and we suggest that the new curriculum in both English and Te Reo Māori (Māori language) can enhance the movement towards bi-cultural education in Aotearoa/New Zealand. Our argument is that the 2007 curriculum creates the opportunity; the impediments lie in providing appropriate resources and developing community support for the delivery of the bicultural educational approaches. is an important issue in debates about educational policy and implementing a new curriculum in Aotearoa/New Zealand. This paper explores how the development of the 2007 curriculum in Aotearoa/New Zealand attempted to address curriculum, teaching and learning options for Māori. Māori are a significant national community with needs and aspirations in education. Māori have tangata whenua status in Aotearoa/New Zealand, where this term acknowledges the arrival and settlement of migrant people of the Pacific centuries prior to significant European colonization in the 19th Century. While progress has been made in Māori education since the significant Treaty of Waitangi Act in 1975, we wish to explore the potential of Kaupapa Māori (Māori practice) in the development of a new curriculum, Te Marautanga o Aotearoa.

year: 2010