Qualifications
BSc(Lond) PhD(Birm)Research Interests
My core research interests are the understanding and management of human impacts on environmental systems. My main area of research is impact assessment, a fundamental environmental management tool. However, I also maintain my interests in specific aspects of human impact on soil and vegetation systems, as indicated below.
IMPACT ASSESSMENT (EIA, SEA, HIA, SIA etc.):
- The international context for impact assessment: institutions, law, and current themes
- Theory and practice of IA, in New Zealand and overseas
- The institutionalisation and practice of health impact assessment (HIA) in New Zealand and in east and south Asia
- Regulatory impact assessment in New Zealand, UK, and EU
- Impact assessment in the developing country context
LAND USE IMPACTS ON SOIL AND VEGETATION SYSTEMS:
- The accumulation of copper from fungicide sprays in orchard and vineyard soils
- The effect of land use change on copper availability and plant uptake in old orchard soils
- Sources of heavy metals in soils of rural and urban environments: timber treatment; treated timber usage; playground equipment; diffuse aerial sources, etc
- Agriculture and forestry: nutrient changes, nitrate leaching from agricultural land, etc
- Ecology of introduced plant species, and land management