title: The plastic problem: Stormwater's role in polluting Lake Rotorua

authors: Kerebs, Aria

subjects: macroplastic

abstract: With the ever-increasing rate of plastic production, pollution of the aquatic environment is worsening. While microplastics (<5 mm), and marine plastic pollution are well studied, less is known about large plastic and its fate in freshwater systems. Large plastics include mesoplastics (5 mm – 2.5 cm) and macroplastics (>2.5 cm). This study aims to provide a baseline quantification of large plastics entering Lake Rotorua, focusing on the Rotorua city urban stormwater streams which are a known source of plastic entering the lake. A five-month sampling campaign collected large plastics from seven 50 m stream reaches across Rotorua city, including four sites along the longitudinal gradient of the Utuhina Stream (Headwater, Devon, Blomfield, and Depot Street sites) and three stream mouth sites (Waingaehe, Owhata Point, and Waiowhiro Stream). Sampled plastics were visually classified by polymer type to determine what plastics have been entering the lake, this was done using the New Zealand recycling and polymer guidelines. Results of the field campaign and plastic polymer classification were coupled with a systematic literature review of in situ plastic capturing devices and community initiatives to inform potential plastic reduction management options for Rotorua city. Devices were assessed against tailored suitability criteria (including Rotorua stormwater stream specific variables like channel depth and narrowness). The monthly sampling captured a total of nearly 6 kg of plastic, 30.2% (51 of 169 collected samples) of which was recyclable plastics (polyethylene terephthalate (PET), high-density polyethylene (HDPE), and polypropylene (PP)). From the literature review, booms and boom-receptacles were the best suited devices for Rotorua streams; however, they are best paired with stormwater traps to increase effectiveness. Additionally, education on recycling procedures and the plastic lifecycle, increasing awareness, and implementation of community-led initiatives are management strategies that are best coupled with in-situ devices. The findings from this study provide a foundational understanding of large plastic in the Rotorua urban stormwater system.

text: The plastic problem: Stormwater's role in polluting Lake Rotorua With the ever-increasing rate of plastic production, pollution of the aquatic environment is worsening. While microplastics (<5 mm), and marine plastic pollution are well studied, less is known about large plastic and its fate in freshwater systems. Large plastics include mesoplastics (5 mm – 2.5 cm) and macroplastics (>2.5 cm). This study aims to provide a baseline quantification of large plastics entering Lake Rotorua, focusing on the Rotorua city urban stormwater streams which are a known source of plastic entering the lake. A five-month sampling campaign collected large plastics from seven 50 m stream reaches across Rotorua city, including four sites along the longitudinal gradient of the Utuhina Stream (Headwater, Devon, Blomfield, and Depot Street sites) and three stream mouth sites (Waingaehe, Owhata Point, and Waiowhiro Stream). Sampled plastics were visually classified by polymer type to determine what plastics have been entering the lake, this was done using the New Zealand recycling and polymer guidelines. Results of the field campaign and plastic polymer classification were coupled with a systematic literature review of in situ plastic capturing devices and community initiatives to inform potential plastic reduction management options for Rotorua city. Devices were assessed against tailored suitability criteria (including Rotorua stormwater stream specific variables like channel depth and narrowness). The monthly sampling captured a total of nearly 6 kg of plastic, 30.2% (51 of 169 collected samples) of which was recyclable plastics (polyethylene terephthalate (PET), high-density polyethylene (HDPE), and polypropylene (PP)). From the literature review, booms and boom-receptacles were the best suited devices for Rotorua streams; however, they are best paired with stormwater traps to increase effectiveness. Additionally, education on recycling procedures and the plastic lifecycle, increasing awareness, and implementation of community-led initiatives are management strategies that are best coupled with in-situ devices. The findings from this study provide a foundational understanding of large plastic in the Rotorua urban stormwater system.

year: 2025

title: Gender identity change efforts faced by trans and nonbinary people in New Zealand: Associations with demographics, family rejection, internalized transphobia, and mental health.

authors: Veale, Jaimie

abstract: Based on their transphobic assumption that being transgender or nonbinary is pathological or otherwise undesirable, gender identity change efforts (GICE) attempt to make a person’s gender conform with their sex assigned at birth. While many professional bodies have noted that GICE practices are unethical, there has been little empirical research into the prevalence and correlates of GICE exposure. Counting Ourselves: The Aotearoa New Zealand Trans and Nonbinary Health Survey is a community-based study, which participants completed mostly online. Out of 610 participants who had ever spoken to a health professional about their gender, 19.7%, 95% CI [16.6%, 23.1%], reported GICE exposure, and a further 9.3% [7.2%, 11.9%] did not know. GICE exposure was higher among younger participants. Participants with GICE exposure were more likely than those without such exposure to report psychological distress, nonsuicidal self-injury, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts (e.g., suicidal ideation OR = 2.39). GICE partially mediated the effect of family rejection on mental health, and internalized transphobia partially mediated the effect of GICE on mental health. These correlates between GICE and mental health replicate recent findings from the U.S. Trans Survey, and the mediation analyses help to understand potential causal mechanisms underlying these correlations. Although our findings are limited by being a convenience sample, they are consistent with the hypothesis that GICE exposure is harmful to transgender or nonbinary people’s mental health. Moreover, these findings support moves by many professional bodies to emphasize that GICE is unethical and the legal steps taken by a growing number of jurisdictions to ban such practices. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved)

text: Gender identity change efforts faced by trans and nonbinary people in New Zealand: Associations with demographics, family rejection, internalized transphobia, and mental health. Based on their transphobic assumption that being transgender or nonbinary is pathological or otherwise undesirable, gender identity change efforts (GICE) attempt to make a person’s gender conform with their sex assigned at birth. While many professional bodies have noted that GICE practices are unethical, there has been little empirical research into the prevalence and correlates of GICE exposure. Counting Ourselves: The Aotearoa New Zealand Trans and Nonbinary Health Survey is a community-based study, which participants completed mostly online. Out of 610 participants who had ever spoken to a health professional about their gender, 19.7%, 95% CI [16.6%, 23.1%], reported GICE exposure, and a further 9.3% [7.2%, 11.9%] did not know. GICE exposure was higher among younger participants. Participants with GICE exposure were more likely than those without such exposure to report psychological distress, nonsuicidal self-injury, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts (e.g., suicidal ideation OR = 2.39). GICE partially mediated the effect of family rejection on mental health, and internalized transphobia partially mediated the effect of GICE on mental health. These correlates between GICE and mental health replicate recent findings from the U.S. Trans Survey, and the mediation analyses help to understand potential causal mechanisms underlying these correlations. Although our findings are limited by being a convenience sample, they are consistent with the hypothesis that GICE exposure is harmful to transgender or nonbinary people’s mental health. Moreover, these findings support moves by many professional bodies to emphasize that GICE is unethical and the legal steps taken by a growing number of jurisdictions to ban such practices. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved)

year: 2021

title: Testing a suicidal ideation-to-action framework among Queer and Takatāpui people in Aotearoa New Zealand: An examination of the three-step theory

authors: Schimanski, Irie

abstract: The three-step theory (3ST) of suicide is well-established in the general population and shows promise for explaining suicidal ideation among Queer samples. This study examined the applicability of the 3ST using data from 250 Queer (n = 213) and Takatāpui (n = 37) people aged 18-74 living in Aotearoa New Zealand. The analytic approach entailed hierarchical multiple regression, ANOVA, t-tests, and logistic regression. Step-one was partially supported, with discrimination and hopelessness independently associated with suicidal ideation, but not their interaction. Step-two was fully supported, showing social support associated with lower suicidal ideation when social support exceeded discrimination, compared with the inverse. Full support for step-three was observed, finding higher self-harm among participants with histories of attempted suicide than those who had never attempted. An adapted version of the 3ST for Queer and Takatāpui people is presented, offering novel approaches to testing the ideation-to-action framework with these communities.

text: Testing a suicidal ideation-to-action framework among Queer and Takatāpui people in Aotearoa New Zealand: An examination of the three-step theory The three-step theory (3ST) of suicide is well-established in the general population and shows promise for explaining suicidal ideation among Queer samples. This study examined the applicability of the 3ST using data from 250 Queer (n = 213) and Takatāpui (n = 37) people aged 18-74 living in Aotearoa New Zealand. The analytic approach entailed hierarchical multiple regression, ANOVA, t-tests, and logistic regression. Step-one was partially supported, with discrimination and hopelessness independently associated with suicidal ideation, but not their interaction. Step-two was fully supported, showing social support associated with lower suicidal ideation when social support exceeded discrimination, compared with the inverse. Full support for step-three was observed, finding higher self-harm among participants with histories of attempted suicide than those who had never attempted. An adapted version of the 3ST for Queer and Takatāpui people is presented, offering novel approaches to testing the ideation-to-action framework with these communities.

year: 2025-08-01