title: Editorial: The rapid rise of streams and rivers in conservation assessment

authors: Collier, Kevin J.

subjects: stream or river conservation

abstract: The last few years have seen a remarkable rise in the number of publications on stream or river conservation planning or assessment, culminating most recently with a special issue of Freshwater Biology (Figure 1). There is no doubt that conservation planning for lotic systems has come a long way in the last 20 years. When I first delved into this field in the late 1980s, river ecologists were struggling to interpret and apply conservation criteria originally developed for terrestrial systems, and grappling with the seemingly intractable issues of how to deal with complex linear networks, multidimensional connections, and the high temporal and spatial variability of ecosystems with a paucity of biological data. This editorial takes stock of where we are now in terms of river conservation assessment, how we got here from the initial days of conservation criteria, and how far we have come along the journey towards achieving the goal of effective and enduring stream and river conservation. The focus is on developments since 1990 when the inaugural Conservation and Management of Rivers conference in York had a major focus on conservation assessment (Boon et al., 1992).

text: Editorial: The rapid rise of streams and rivers in conservation assessment The last few years have seen a remarkable rise in the number of publications on stream or river conservation planning or assessment, culminating most recently with a special issue of Freshwater Biology (Figure 1). There is no doubt that conservation planning for lotic systems has come a long way in the last 20 years. When I first delved into this field in the late 1980s, river ecologists were struggling to interpret and apply conservation criteria originally developed for terrestrial systems, and grappling with the seemingly intractable issues of how to deal with complex linear networks, multidimensional connections, and the high temporal and spatial variability of ecosystems with a paucity of biological data. This editorial takes stock of where we are now in terms of river conservation assessment, how we got here from the initial days of conservation criteria, and how far we have come along the journey towards achieving the goal of effective and enduring stream and river conservation. The focus is on developments since 1990 when the inaugural Conservation and Management of Rivers conference in York had a major focus on conservation assessment (Boon et al., 1992).

year: 2011

title: The effects of foreign direct investment on domestic firms: The case of Vietnam

authors: Ha, Van Thi Cam

subjects: Foreign direct investment

abstract: Thanks to the economic reform after the launch of “Doi moi” in 1986, Vietnam has made significant gains and has transformed from an economically poor country in the 1980-90s towards a middle-income country by the 2010s. A dynamic market deeply integrated into the global economy has helped pave the way for foreign investment inflows to Vietnam. While it is clear that foreign direct investment plays a crucial role in the economy as a whole, the debate continues on whether foreign direct investment has positive or negative effects on domestic firms. In developing countries, foreign investment can be supportive to local enterprises where the former provides technological advantages that are beneficial. However, there are examples of where foreign presence negatively impacts on the development of local firms if they do not have adequate resources to absorb spillovers. This thesis examines whether the presence of foreign direct investment contributes to the development of Vietnamese firms from different angles including productivity, export activity, R&D and innovation and investment during the 2010-15 period. The thesis comprises four papers.
The first paper examines the impacts of foreign presence on domestic enterprise productivity within and between industries through horizontal and vertical channels. Panel data models are employed to investigate the linkage between foreign investment and local firm total factor productivity. The results indicate the presence of positive spillovers from foreign investment in downstream sectors to domestic firm productivity in upstream sectors through backward linkages, while a negative impact is found in the same sectors through horizontal linkages.
In the second paper, Heckman selection estimation is employed to investigate whether foreign investment has any influence on the exporting activity of domestic firms. The results suggest that while foreign investment in downstream sectors is found to encourage the export decision of local firms in the same and upstream sectors through horizontal and backward linkages, the export intensity of local firms only benefits from backward linkages. The linkages between exporting activity of local firms and the presence of foreign investment appears to be different when comparing low- and high-tech firms. 
While it is argued that foreign investment in a host country can encourage domestic firms to invest in R&D and innovation, there are few studies that consider the case of Vietnam. The third paper of the thesis fills this gap. The results suggest that there is a weak positive association between foreign investment and local firms R&D activity and innovation through forward linkages, while there is no significant evidence to support the view that multinational enterprises help improve local firms R&D behaviour through horizontal and backward linkages. 
The final paper in this thesis investigates the possibility of crowding-effects from foreign investment to local investment. System General Method of Moments estimation is employed to a sector-level balanced panel dataset to account for dynamic effects.  The results indicate that foreign investment significantly encourages domestic investment, and export-oriented sectors appear to be more sensitive to the impact from multinational investment.

text: The effects of foreign direct investment on domestic firms: The case of Vietnam Thanks to the economic reform after the launch of “Doi moi” in 1986, Vietnam has made significant gains and has transformed from an economically poor country in the 1980-90s towards a middle-income country by the 2010s. A dynamic market deeply integrated into the global economy has helped pave the way for foreign investment inflows to Vietnam. While it is clear that foreign direct investment plays a crucial role in the economy as a whole, the debate continues on whether foreign direct investment has positive or negative effects on domestic firms. In developing countries, foreign investment can be supportive to local enterprises where the former provides technological advantages that are beneficial. However, there are examples of where foreign presence negatively impacts on the development of local firms if they do not have adequate resources to absorb spillovers. This thesis examines whether the presence of foreign direct investment contributes to the development of Vietnamese firms from different angles including productivity, export activity, R&D and innovation and investment during the 2010-15 period. The thesis comprises four papers.
The first paper examines the impacts of foreign presence on domestic enterprise productivity within and between industries through horizontal and vertical channels. Panel data models are employed to investigate the linkage between foreign investment and local firm total factor productivity. The results indicate the presence of positive spillovers from foreign investment in downstream sectors to domestic firm productivity in upstream sectors through backward linkages, while a negative impact is found in the same sectors through horizontal linkages.
In the second paper, Heckman selection estimation is employed to investigate whether foreign investment has any influence on the exporting activity of domestic firms. The results suggest that while foreign investment in downstream sectors is found to encourage the export decision of local firms in the same and upstream sectors through horizontal and backward linkages, the export intensity of local firms only benefits from backward linkages. The linkages between exporting activity of local firms and the presence of foreign investment appears to be different when comparing low- and high-tech firms. 
While it is argued that foreign investment in a host country can encourage domestic firms to invest in R&D and innovation, there are few studies that consider the case of Vietnam. The third paper of the thesis fills this gap. The results suggest that there is a weak positive association between foreign investment and local firms R&D activity and innovation through forward linkages, while there is no significant evidence to support the view that multinational enterprises help improve local firms R&D behaviour through horizontal and backward linkages. 
The final paper in this thesis investigates the possibility of crowding-effects from foreign investment to local investment. System General Method of Moments estimation is employed to a sector-level balanced panel dataset to account for dynamic effects.  The results indicate that foreign investment significantly encourages domestic investment, and export-oriented sectors appear to be more sensitive to the impact from multinational investment.

year: 2021

title: Materials for enhancing denitrification performance in partially saturated vertical flow wetlands for marae

authors: Liu, Lucian XiaoRan

abstract: There are upwards of 773 marae in New Zealand which are responsible for many key events for the indigenous people, Māori, many of which are located rurally and have inadequate on-site wastewater treatment mostly comprising of a septic tank followed by land application. Māori have many strong beliefs about water and subsequently criteria surround the treatment of wastewater due to the effects it can have on people and environment. One proposed solution that meets criteria are treatment wetlands, more specifically partially saturated vertical flow wetlands which require a smaller footprint and produce better effluent than traditional wetland designs. NIWA (National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research) has experimented with mesocosm scale versions of this design and has encountered issues with denitrification in the saturated zone.

This research is therefore directed at enhancing denitrification in the saturated zone with materials that are able to supplement organic carbon for denitrification. Several woodchip materials (Eastern Cottonwood, Mahogany, Manuka, Eucalyptus, Crack Willow, Princess Tree and Pine) along with two industry by-product materials (Brewers Spent Grain and Slum gum) and Coir (Coconut derivative) were examined for denitrification capabilities and to serve in producing a leachate for dosing the proposed system to supplement organic carbon for denitrification.

The research is split into three phases; the first examines the ability of materials to release organic carbon into water over 60 days, the second examines the same but over three 10 day cycles, and the third quantifies denitrification performance of the materials at lab scale.

Results showed that producing a suitable leachate is not possible without the use of fresh material for each batch. By-product materials had great capacity for releasing organic carbon into water and denitrification (up to 85.5% nitrate removal) but had limited lifespans as media. While woodchip materials did not exhibit as great carbon release, they achieved comparable denitrification (74.2-74.5% nitrate removal) with long lifespans. Therefore, a woodchip and industry by-product mix could be the solution. Alternatively, there are many woodchip species, some which could have better denitrification capacity or suitable industry by-products with longer useful lifespans.

text: Materials for enhancing denitrification performance in partially saturated vertical flow wetlands for marae There are upwards of 773 marae in New Zealand which are responsible for many key events for the indigenous people, Māori, many of which are located rurally and have inadequate on-site wastewater treatment mostly comprising of a septic tank followed by land application. Māori have many strong beliefs about water and subsequently criteria surround the treatment of wastewater due to the effects it can have on people and environment. One proposed solution that meets criteria are treatment wetlands, more specifically partially saturated vertical flow wetlands which require a smaller footprint and produce better effluent than traditional wetland designs. NIWA (National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research) has experimented with mesocosm scale versions of this design and has encountered issues with denitrification in the saturated zone.

This research is therefore directed at enhancing denitrification in the saturated zone with materials that are able to supplement organic carbon for denitrification. Several woodchip materials (Eastern Cottonwood, Mahogany, Manuka, Eucalyptus, Crack Willow, Princess Tree and Pine) along with two industry by-product materials (Brewers Spent Grain and Slum gum) and Coir (Coconut derivative) were examined for denitrification capabilities and to serve in producing a leachate for dosing the proposed system to supplement organic carbon for denitrification.

The research is split into three phases; the first examines the ability of materials to release organic carbon into water over 60 days, the second examines the same but over three 10 day cycles, and the third quantifies denitrification performance of the materials at lab scale.

Results showed that producing a suitable leachate is not possible without the use of fresh material for each batch. By-product materials had great capacity for releasing organic carbon into water and denitrification (up to 85.5% nitrate removal) but had limited lifespans as media. While woodchip materials did not exhibit as great carbon release, they achieved comparable denitrification (74.2-74.5% nitrate removal) with long lifespans. Therefore, a woodchip and industry by-product mix could be the solution. Alternatively, there are many woodchip species, some which could have better denitrification capacity or suitable industry by-products with longer useful lifespans.

year: 2023