Karen Bayne

Mountain biking has increased in popularity in many countries over recent decades. Production forests provide not only an outstanding space for mountain bike riding, but also specific characteristics conducive to purpose-built track building. With recreational access to production forests, managers must balance commercial operations and industry environmental obligations with the interests and actions of riders. Production forests in New Zealand have accommodated mountain biking activities for decades. The trend from 1991 to 2022 showed overall increasing opportunities for mountain biking in production forests, particularly in smaller commercial peri-urban plantations and forest parks maintained as dedicated mountain bike parks. Over the same period, public mountain biking access to larger (>1500 ha) forests peaked in 2008. These recreational changes within forests, and the impact these changes have pressed onto forest managers, have not been well documented. This paper explores ...

Internationally there is a desire to transition farming systems towards more sustainable production in response to global and local social and environmental challenges. This transition has often been linked with a movement towards ‘sustainable intensification’ which, although having advantages, has raised questions about a lack of attention to, for example, social and ethical consideration of food and fibre production. Whilst there is general consensus that a transition is required, what is much less clear is what transitioned agricultural sectors would look like in terms of land-use configurations and how such a change can be achieved. Using New Zealand as an example, this paper provides some initial views on what such a reconfiguration may entail. The paper identifies and assesses a range of possible alternative land use configurations that, in general, lead to landscape/regional diversification. The importance of incorporating new high value low intensity (niche) systems into the...

Buying a property can be an exciting, but also daunting, prospect for home buyers. A recent innovation for potential buyers and sellers which can aid this process has been the introduction of real estate websites, containing searchable databases of property listings and several interior photos of the property on offer. These websites are often touted as offering convenience and efficiency for the house buyer by enabling them to narrow the number of homes to seriously consider, and make a more informed market choice (Littlefield, Bao and Cook, 2000). This thesis explores the adoption of real estate websites by recent house purchasers in the Bay of Plenty region of New Zealand, with particular focus on the determinants explaining attitudes to use and moderating factors affecting their decision to use the real estate website. Exploratory interviews were undertaken with realtors, and a mailout survey used to gather both behavioural and attitudinal data from recent home purchasers. The r...

New Zealand grown radiata pine competes with other softwood species and supplier nations within the international market across a range of applications. In terms of fitness for end use, wood quality goes beyond basic wood property measures and encompasses aspects of fitness from cradle to grave, from silvicultural and extraction requirements to service in use. Radiata pine holds its own against northern hemisphere species in many applications, and the New Zealand resource is of high quality compared to other radiata pine supplies. To lift the resource out of a commodity mode into niche production of desired rather than just suitable offerings, we must begin to determine what our customers appreciate at all points in the value chain from the timber supplied. Matching of these features to wood properties and the components of the resource containing those properties to appropriate processing pathways is required.

SWI has developed a project proposal around increasing the use of NZ and Australian radiata pine in residential construction. The overall approach is to “define options for using lower grade or mixed grade timber for a range of building products for the Australasian residential construction and building markets - thereby increasing the use of timber.” SWI has requested Scion investigate the market pull aspects of any potential technologies or designs that are deemed to increase the use of timber products. For a new “option” to be successful in the marketplace, it needs to satisfy some gap or shortcoming of existing solutions that has value for downstream end-users, such as the architect, builder or home buyer. The market issues, both at a macro and a micro level, need to be considered for any system that looks ‘promising’.

Stakeholders in plantation forestry are increasingly aware of the importance of the ecosystem services and non-market values associated with forests. In New Zealand, there is significant interest in establishing species other than Pinus radiata D. Don (the dominant plantation species) in the belief that alternative species are better suited to deliver these services. Significant risk is associated with this position as there is little objective data to support these views. To identify which species were likely to be planted to deliver ecosystem services, a survey was distributed to examine stakeholder perceptions. Stakeholders were asked which of 15 tree attributes contributed to the provision of five ecosystem services (amenity value, bioenergy production, carbon capture, the diversity of native habitat, and erosion control/water quality) and to identify which of 22 candidate tree species possessed those attributes. These data were combined to identify the species perceived most suitable for the delivery of each ecosystem service. Sequoia sempervirens (D.Don) Endl. closely matched the stakeholder derived ideotypes associated with all five ecosystem services. Comparisons to data from growth, physiological and ecological studies demonstrated that many of the opinions held by stakeholders were inaccurate, leading to erroneous assumptions regarding the suitability of most candidate species. Stakeholder perceptions substantially influence tree species selection, and plantations established on the basis of inaccurate opinions are unlikely to deliver the desired outcomes. Attitudinal surveys associated with engagement campaigns are essential to improve stakeholder knowledge, advancing the development of fit-for-purpose forest management that provides the required ecosystem services.

Credence or believability are paramount values in trade. The role of products’ credence attributes has been well-analysed in the agricultural and food sector. This study examined the application of credence attributes to forest management and forest products marketing for the first time. We describe specific credence attributes of forest products and highlight their values, benefits, and importance in international trade. We used Delphi interviews of experts and surveyed forest and trade experts to assess the perceived merits of credence attributes in the forestry sector. We also compared certification schemes and sustainable forest management (SFM) indicators against credence values. We found that credence attributes play an important role in the forestry sector for both timber forest products and non-timber forest products (NTFP). While some credence attributes, such as the legality of forest products, already form the basis for trade and certification and are standard practice, o...

This paper makes a contribution to understanding the impact of relational trust, as embodied within bonding, bridging and linking social capital, on rural innovation. Using cases of multi-stakeholder groups who work together on shared problems it explores how social capital and different forms of trust (companion, competence and commitment) influence rural innovation processes. Looking at both the ‘bright’ and ‘dark’ side of social capital, our focus is on how social capital and trust constrain and enable the process of innovation. The study highlights both positive and negative effects of social capital in the context of three fixed term projects that were part of New Zealand's Primary Innovation programme (2012–2017). Our findings show that there was a unique composition of social capital and trust at the outset of each project and that dark social capital was a critical constraint in each case. Enabling innovation processes required committed and dedicated brokers who provided bridging social capital and embodied competence trust to enable participants' confidence. Such brokers are capable of recognising and managing different ‘shades’ of social capital and trust in pursuing desired project outcomes. A main theoretical implication of this study is that a better understanding of social capital and trust is needed to enable innovation facilitators and project managers to design and undertake fixed term rural innovation projects effectively. This is because social capital determines whether the composition of relationships within networks of actors involved in innovation projects enables innovation, or to the contrary constrains innovation. Specifically the implications and implementation of bridging social capital and competence trust are key determinants of successful innovation processes.

In order to drive forest sector productivity, an emphasis has been placed on effectively transferring science knowledge to technical foresters. Having a communications plan and engaging the right stakeholders early can induce a rich learning environment that strengthens context, knowhow and ensures mechanisms are in place for knowledge to be transferred. Formalized structures such as reports and seminars have evolved to improve the science transfer process, but it appears that the key success factor in enhancing uptake and learning may require an environment that encourages relationship building, particularly trust building between parties in developing informal and formal relationships. Informal interactions, though not often acknowledged in business, foster the conditions conducive to good knowledge exchange – co-ordination, co-operation and communication. Enhancing conditions in which these three aspects grow can lead to increased social capital, changed paradigms and reduced bus...

The way we use buildings, the materials and technologies used in construction, and how the buildings themselves are designed and constructed are continually evolving; the built environment evolves with them. It is a commonly held view that this pace of change will accelerate in the foreseeable future. Scenarios are very useful devices for organising a large amount of seemingly unrelated information in a logical manner to stimulate discussion and learning about the choices that lie ahead. As part of long-term forward planning for the building industry of New Zealand, the Built Environment team at the New Zealand Forest Research Institute Ltd has generated a set of three thought-provoking and realistic scenarios to show what the Australasian urban environment might look like in 10–15 years’ time. The scenarios have been built from a very broad information base, and are generic enough to be useful to, amongst others, urban planners, property developers, and strategic planners in the co...

Previous research has suggested that the major barriers to increasing market share of wood products in non-residential building applications in Australia are fire performance and overall designer confidence in commercial and industrial timber-based construction. While the issue of fire performance is being addressed both through design solutions and amendments to building codes and standards, the issue of overall confidence in the use of wood as a structural material in non-residential applications requires further exploration. With the objective of determining the key reasons driving specifier confidence, focus groups and Interviews were held with 34 designers/ specifiers during March and April 2005. The issues deemed to be significant were similar to those found in previous studies. These issues were: · a lack of available information and assistance with timber design; · timber marketing that is targeted towards the residential sector and not segmented for specific building applic...

In the global marketplace producers of solidwood products are facing increasing competition from wood fibre and non-wood substitutes at an alarming rate. New Zealand has followed the global trend in evolution of building materials and products with a myriad of different products and design innovations entering the market. This has occurred in all systems, from claddings to framing systems, roofing and flooring. The new products range from light gauge steel and reinforced concrete framing to plastic claddings, composite product I-beams and wood substitutes made from recycled waste. What are the reasons for these changes? Over the past fifteen years or so, the built environment has gone through a process of continuous evolution and change which has impacted on the way we use buildings, the materials and technologies used in construction and the way in which they are designed and constructed. Product preferences are constantly changing due to both product innovation and changing consum...

The ‘quality’ of our nation’s residential built environment, in terms of fitness for purpose, instead of showing an increasing trend in practice towards more sustainable housing, has shown a number of trends towards more unsustainable practice over the last decade. The Now home project, initiated in December 2002, investigated the process or designed approach to new-build sustainable residential design. A house was designed using this approach, for building onsite at Olympic Place, Waitakere City, New Zealand to demonstrate the design concept through improving on the affordability, desirability and environmental efficiency through smart design practices. Improving the standard of these three as a whole was a key aspect of the project. Our goal was to achieve a design that was inspiring & affordable (appealing), healthy and resource efficient (sustainable), smart, innovative and marketable (educational) and fit for purpose for the needs of future society (well-built, cost-effective a...

The way we use buildings, the materials and technologies used in construction, and how the buildings themselves are designed and constructed are continually evolving; the built environment evolves with them. It is a commonly held view that this pace of change will accelerate in the foreseeable future. The Market Intelligence Team at Forest Research was asked to generate a set of 3–4 thought-provoking and realistic scenarios to show what the built environment might look like in 10–15 years’ time. The scenarios are expected to help identify value-adding opportunities for the Australasian wood resource. The scope of the work extends well beyond forestry. Our future built environment will be shaped by the way we live, work, and play — technology, consumer preferences, fashion, social values, and lifestyle choices are all factors here. A comprehensive understanding of what drives change in these areas underpins this project. The scenarios have been built from a very broad information bas...

Movement towards improving sustainable development of our urban environments is being driven by central (and recently local) Government via a number of ke y strategies. Quality urban design through sustainable development is seen as an essential component in t he success of our towns and cities, due to the impact the urban area has on the nation’s population. 86% of Ne w Zealander’s live in an urban area, and although we are still a mainly primary-producing nation, New Zeal and has limited resources and a desire to preserve the unspoilt wilderness of our unique natural environment. In 2003, the Ministry for the Environment’s released a “Sustainable Development Programme of Action” that in cludes a programme of action for Sustainable Cities. This paper reviews the background issues leading towards the perceived policy need for sustainable development in the urban environment in New Zealan d, and gives an overview of various policies and strategies aimed at achieving sustainable devel...

In future, the wood-based products industry will be competing in a smarter construction environment that is technologically efficient, cost sensitive and market aware. The construction industry has a challenge from two conflicting trends. On the one hand, a growing demand for convenient, affordable homes has encouraged standardisation of design, and rapid construction techniques, incorporating modular systems. On the other hand, there is growing awareness of the wider implications of the sustainability agenda, and increased insistence by regulators and public alike to deliver buildings which perform to increasingly high standards, but have positive environmental and social benefits. Wood-based products have the capacity to address both these trends. This report explores our understanding of the major criteria identified for future buildings, in order to gain a good background understanding of the implications for wooden building practise in the context of a more sustainable world. T...

Scenarios are useful devices for stimulating discussion about the choices that lie ahead. In 2001, researchers at Forest Research generated a set of thought-provoking and realistic scenarios of the Australasian built environment in 2010-2015. The primary intentions of these scenarios were to (a) help plan research into future building needs and (b) identify value-adding opportunities for the domestic wood resource. The research involved interviews and workshops with a wide range of specialists in both New Zealand and Australia, plus a detailed analysis of social, technological, environmental, economic and political trends and drivers of change (STEEP analysis). The end result was three distinct but equally plausible scenarios entitled Pining Away, The Industrial Revolution and The Renaissance. These scenarios examine, through the use of narrative, factors that could encourage or discourage various forms of urban growth in Australasia over the next ten to fifteen years.

This paper compares the structural performance of nine different light composite timber beams including I-beams. Beams were made with 9 mm plywood webs, which were glued to timber/LVL flanges. Finished beams had 'I' or rectangular cross sections with a height of 290 mm and width of 88 mm or 106 mm depending on their cross section. The differences between the profiles were the method of connection and number of webs. Extensive laboratory testing carried out to determine the effect of circular web-openings on the load/deflection and the shear capacity of the different profiles is described. This is followed by determination of the maximum bearing capacity of each design. This study also introduces a new testing method to evaluate the tension resistance of the flange/web connection in single and Double I-beams. Increasing the diameter of the circular hole was found to lead to a significant reduction in the maximum loading capacity of the beams while it had less effect on load/d...

Future housing forms in New Zealand will differ from those in use today. Researchers at Scion and BRANZ developed a set of four scenarios, each offering a unique description of the New Zealand housing sector in 2030 — Sunrise, Sunset; Change of Heart; the Vertical Village; and Gates of Heaven. A fifth status quo-style reference scenario helps to illustrate the differences between the scenarios. These scenarios and the accompanying data are a necessary first step towards enhancing the collective understanding of the issues raised and enabling sustainable housing market outcomes. Further work is required to maximise the benefits. With this in mind, researchers at Scion competed an actor testing exercise with the scenarios to evaluate how they might affect a building's form and function, and to ascertain what changes in materials and building processes may eventuate. Five future housing types were identified: single-person occupancy; housing for the elderly; home business; communal...

Building the Future – STEEP Analysis Compendium ii ABOUT THE STEEP COMPENDIUM This document is one of the fundamental sources of insight used in the preparation of the BRANZ report Building The Future . It is a collection of expert opinions on the fundamental drivers of the New Zealand built environment in 2025. These opinions are presented here as completed by their authors. Originally, they were intended as ‘ project only ’ document s, intended only for the consumption of the authors of Building The Future . In retrospect, they may well have value to others contemplating a similar scenario exercise and so have been released here as a collection of source material . The STEEP authors, a nd the authors of the overall report, met in February 2009 to challenge each other ’ s conclusions and build new understanding. This was taken forward into the scenario - building exercise and formed a valuable plank in the process. As with any collection of expert interpretations, it is counterprod...

New Zealand grown radiata pine competes with other softwood species and supplier nations within the international market across a range of applications. In terms of fitness for end use, wood quality goes beyond basic wood property measures and encompasses aspects of fitness from cradle to grave, from silvicultural and extraction requirements to service in use. Radiata pine holds its own against northern hemisphere species in many applications, and the New Zealand resource is of high quality compared to other radiata pine supplies. To lift the resource out of a commodity mode into niche production of desired rather than just suitable offerings, we must begin to determine what our customers appreciate at all points in the value chain from the timber supplied. Matching of these features to wood properties and the components of the resource containing those properties to appropriate processing pathways is required. Available to subscribers at: http://www.nzjf.org/issues.php

New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development Presentation 31 st October, 2006 • • • • A number of authors (Howard, 2000; Oskamp, 2000; Arkesteijn and Oerlemans, 2005; Sammer and Wüstenhagen, 2006; O'Hara and Stagl, 2002) recognise that there is both willingness amongst consumers to become more sustainable citizens, and also growing awareness that sustainability is an important issue. This white paper provides an overview of known reasons that consumers fail to take up sustainability measures, and provides NZSBC with some recommended strategies to enhance uptake.

This paper reports on an exercise conducted within a state-owned body (Crown Research Institute) in New Zealand aimed at building greater understanding of the key factors in successful research programmes. Success was defined in this study as a high level of uptake of the emerging science, with commensurate benefits to both industry and the community. The methodology had three parts. A review of the knowledge and technology transfer literature; a series of 15 semi-structured interviews with science leaders; and a facilitated workshop. The purpose of the review was to generate a robust framework upon which to centre the interview dialogues, and two models were selected. The results varied, reflecting the diversity of research services provided by the organization, but the findings were predominantly new and valuable. The importance of the long term relationship with the end users was the strongest recurring theme. The methodology may have wider application in both research and consul...

Most of the timber used in the Australian built environment is presently for low-rise residential construction. This market share is under constant erosion from competitive systems; therefore, entry into non-traditional sectors would benefit the industry through a wider market portfolio of building type applications, and a higher value product system development. Promising international applications for timber market expansion have shown potential, in particular, for in-fill framing and interior furniture and fit-out markets in the medium to high-rise residential and commercial buildings (particularly masonry). An earlier report (PN05.1020) identified reasons for the lack of timber use in the non-residential sector, and identified areas for the industry to focus on, including commercial, infill and fit-out markets. There exists a large opportunity in these non-traditional sectors for timber applications, however, present product offerings may not be suitable in their present form. T...

The extent of influence of environmental concerns in consumer choice of decking products was explored for environmentally-motivated, and non environmentally-motivated consumers. The study determined whether environmental considerations were a significant aspect in decking purchase decisions, and whether consumers who had strongly considered environmental aspects in their decision-making displayed significant differences in personality traits. The study found environmentally motivated consumers to be influenced to a greater extent by their own attitudes about the sustainability of a product, concern for environmental effects on a community, and social acceptance of their material decision. The study also found environmentally-motivated consumers to exhibit traits of being conformist, optimistic, intuitive and more family-oriented than those with less environmental motivation.

A monoculture of Pinus radiata forests are widely planted across New Zealand ~ 1.8 million hectares. These plantations are becoming less suited to a range of stakeholder needs. While forestry plantations will continue to have a primary role in the provision of timber resources, the focus in places is moving from production as the sole aim, because public interests and policy requirements emphasise greater provision of environmental services [1] The principle of sustained yield has steadily given way to sustainable forest management practice [2], [3] , which requires greater incorporation of ecological and social values in forest management. New multi functional forests may include recreation opportunities, risk mitigation, biodiversity and water conservation, and carbon sequestration services. At the same time, the forest ownership model within New Zealand has shifted. Large corporate ownership of vast tracts of forestry has been replaced by increasing numbers of forest owners with ...

This paper investigates the strength and deformation characteristics of lightweight timber composite beams manufactured with six different cross-sectional profiles in comparison with readily available laminated veneer lumber (LVL) and glued-laminated (Glulam) beams. All engineered ...