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Impact assessment effectiveness in Otago Regional and District Councils
No full textThe Resource Management Act (RMA, 1991) has been in place for over 28 years. Section 88 of the RMA (1991) requires ‘impact assessment’, under the name ‘Assessment of Environmental Effects’ (AEE) in accordance with Schedule 4 of the Act. There is a requirement for all resource consents, large and small, to have an accompanying AEE. There are a wide range of different forms of AEE that arise from different authorship. From a mother and father wanting to build a garage to multimillion-dollar infrastructure projects, all require an AEE. The wide scale of AEE presents challenges for planners. What is an effective AEE at these different scales? This research looks to answer this question through the perspective of planners working in a range of councils in the Otago region of the South Island of New Zealand. Effectiveness, as a component of impact assessment, is of growing academic interest. Several theories of how to interpret effectiveness exist. The most prominent theory evaluates impact assessment in relation to Procedural, Substantive, Transactive and Normative effectiveness.
Interviews with planners working in councils, to understand their views of effectiveness, were the primary sources of information for this research. Processing planners from the Otago Regional Council, Dunedin City Council, Waitaki District Council, and Clutha District Council were interviewed. Other sources of information include the National Monitoring System data, which collects data related to RMA matters from councils around New Zealand, and a case study. These sources of data supported one another and helped to provide a greater level of certainty in the results of the research.
This research compared the results of interviews, NMS data, and the case study to Procedural, Substantive, Transactive and Normative effectiveness. In general, impact assessment was found to be procedurally, substantively, and transactively effective, though specific problems were mentioned, particularly with regard to normative effectiveness. Procedurally, AEE adequately assess environmental effects. Substantively, planners were aware of the objectives of the legislation and were able to achieve substantive effectiveness throughout the AEE assessment process. Tools, such as non-formal communication, enabled a high level of transactive effectiveness. Normative effectiveness was the least well-attested with respondents recognising that barriers existed preventing AEE from being normatively effective.
A common theme in the literature is to develop a general framework and then adapt it to the specific local conditions. There are a range of categorisations of effectiveness. Each framework assesses achievement of impact assessment in each category. This research sought to adopt a framework for effectiveness in New Zealand. The research showed that substantive matters are the primary form of effectiveness in New Zealand. All other forms of effectiveness are subservient to substantive aims of the RMA. There is a close relationship between substantive, procedural and transactive effectiveness. Normative effectiveness was less well attested, though there was recognition of systematic barriers preventing normative effectiveness from becoming more prominent in New Zealand
The influence of entrepreneurial desire and self-efficacy on entrepreneurial intention: A study in the context of tourism and hospitality students
No full textTourism is one of the most important industries in New Zealand and is the country’s biggest export earner, employer, and its fastest-growing economic generator (Tourism Industry Aotearoa (TIA), 2017). The industry is dominated by small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which account for 85% of businesses (TIA, 2017). Therefore, the growth of the tourism industry is directly linked with the continued year on year growth of tourism SMEs in New Zealand. One of the approaches used to promote the development of this sector is through the engagement in entrepreneurship. For that reason, entrepreneurial intentions should be the initial focus in the promotion of entrepreneurship in the tourism and hospitality industry because it explains why and how the process of new venture creations occur (Baron, 2004).
The literature on entrepreneurial intentions is converging on two dominant models, the entrepreneurial event model (Shapero & Sokol, 1982) and the theory of planned behaviours (Ajzen, 1991). However, the models were shown to have overlooked a motivational impetus that explains the process and conditions leading to intentions. On the other hand, personal desires are a critical driver of intentions that can explicate the motivational mechanism of intentional acts (Bagozzi, 1992). Therefore, the inclusion of entrepreneurial desires in entrepreneurial intention models is vital in predicting the intentions, especially in the context of tourism and hospitality industry whereby lifestyle aspiration is one of the primary motives of many founding businesses. Likewise, the motivational functions of entrepreneurial self- efficacy (ESE), entrepreneurial role models, and anticipated emotions should also be investigated as the drivers of entrepreneurial intentions.
The study used a quantitative method to understand and predict entrepreneurial intentions of the tourism and hospitality students in New Zealand. A survey was conducted at Queenstown Resort College, a tourism and hospitality institution based in Queenstown, New Zealand. The survey was designed with five validated scales adopted from the literature on entrepreneurial intention, ESE, desire, and anticipated emotions, which is divided into positive and negative emotion scales. Data from 177 responses were then analysed through Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling to test seven hypotheses about the relationships between entrepreneurial intention and its motivational drivers. The results found that ESE and entrepreneurial desires directly influenced entrepreneurial intentions. Additionally, the relationship between entrepreneurial desires and entrepreneurial intentions were partially mediated by ESE. Also, entrepreneurial role models not only had a positive and significant effect on ESE but also on entrepreneurial desires. Finally, entrepreneurial desires were found to be predicted by positive anticipated emotions.
These findings contribute to the current understanding of the motivational mechanism that leads to entrepreneurial intentions, especially in the tourism and hospitality (T&H) context. Different from the previous two entrepreneurial models, the results of the study highlighted the importance of motivational elements, i.e. entrepreneurial desires, as a predictor of entrepreneurial intentions. Therefore, developing T&H student’s intentions for an entrepreneurial career needs to start from stimulating their desires for tourism entrepreneurship. Furthermore, the positive impacts of entrepreneurial desires on ESE provide new knowledge to ESE theory by including the motivational influence of entrepreneurial desires as a new determinant of ESE in the attempt to achieve entrepreneurial goals. Taken together, these findings suggest that future studies on entrepreneurial intentions in the T&H context should include the examination of entrepreneurial desires and ESE as key drivers of intentions for becoming entrepreneurs. Additionally, the study underlined the importance of motivational aspects of entrepreneurial role models and positive anticipated emotions that stimulate T&H student’s desires for entrepreneurial careers
Exploration of the techniques and applications of δ2H, δ18O and δ13C stable isotope analysis for the authentication of raw cotton
No full textAs the practices of fraud and use of child labour in the cotton industry become more sophisticated and harder to prevent[1], undermining detection using falsified documentation becomes easy to achieve[2]. Stable isotopes are frequently used in analytical forensics as a means of authenticating raw cotton by utilizing the stable isotope ratio determinations of light elements H, O, C, N and S. The use of stable isotope in analytical forensics tend to complement the conventional chemical methods of analysis which are not as able to determine the regional provenance of cotton explicitly.
The δ2H and δ18O isotopic values of precipitation vary across the globe. This variation provides a unique fingerprint for different parts of the world. The δ13C incorporated through the water taken up by the plant via roots and the process of photosynthesis in the cotton plant is reflected in the cellulose fibre[3]. Hence, these isotopic ratios are potentially ideal means of determining the origin of the raw cotton samples.
This work presents, for the first time, the effects of manufacturing processing techniques on the 2H and 18O isotopic values of cotton through the analysis of 2H and 18O isotopic abundance of the processed cotton fibres on High-Temperature Conversion-Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometry (TC/EA-IRMS). Exploration of environmental drivers that can contribute to the variations in the stable isotope ratios and reasons for regional differences in stable isotope ratios of cotton are also discussed in this dissertation.
These effects are assessed to determine any potential alteration to the manufacturing processes of cotton and to confirm a robust statistical measure of the natural range and variance of stable isotopic ratios of cotton in different parts of the world respectively. Hence, employing multivariate statistics as a means of demonstrating and modeling the correlation between the variations and geographical regions from where the cotton samples originate. The results are presented for raw cotton from 22 countries around the world and processed cotton from the USA. The results for the raw cotton study deduced that there is a significant difference in raw cotton from different countries around the world. Moreover, the second part of the study which was done with the processed cotton proved that cotton could be traced back to its origin even after it has undergone different processing techniques.
The results demonstrate the potential for an underlying presumption of results for δ2H, δ18O and δ13C isotopic values of cotton
Sharks and New Zealand News Media
No full textSharks could be the most feared animal in the world. They could also be the most misrepresented. Although traumatic, human-shark interactions are incredibly rare events. Yet historically, mass media disproportionately portray sharks as deadly and dangerous human killers through melodramatic headlines, sensationalised stories and overly graphic accounts.
Previous studies by McCagh et al. (2015) and Fraser-Baxter and Medvecky (2018) used media discourse analysis to evaluate the role of the media during human-shark interactions and the ensuing development of shark policies. This study used similar methods, although adaptions were required to fit the New Zealand context. We sought to paint a broad picture of New Zealand’s shark discourse through news media outlets, analysing consistencies and changes within the discourse over time. Public opinion directly affects marine policy decision making, therefore by examining shark discourse within New Zealand, we identify what the New Zealand public have been exposed to. Our findings may offer ways forward in improving the adequate but less than ideal shark policy and management strategies in place.
Data collection was achieved through automated and manual analyses. A text mining software called Leximancer was used for the automated analysis which determined the main themes and concepts of the text. A manual word search was used to determine frequencies of emotive and prescriptive terms for the manual analysis.
We analysed every shark related news media article across all available (9) different newspapers in New Zealand from January 1st 1989 to December 31st 2018, giving us a sample of 5, 191 articles. Analyses consisted of an overall analysis of all 5, 191 articles, an analysis of three different decade groups (1989-1998, 1999-2008 and 2009-2018), and two clusters of years of interest (1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013). The years of interest were selected years because these were periods of time that stood out in terms of being periods of higher than usual article volume. Our study provides a first ever look into how news media articles have historically communicated sharks to the public over the last 30 years.
Our findings showed that from January 1st 1989 to December 31st 2018, New Zealand news media articles about sharks heavily focused on human-shark interaction and the risks sharks pose to humans. These findings stayed consistent over time with human-shark interaction significantly dominating any other discourse such as shark conservation or management. The terms ‘attack’ and ‘white’ (shark) were commonly associated with the shark concept. There was no detection of discourse focusing on conservation, management or biology in any analysis except for the year 2013. The use of emotive terms soared following New Zealand’s last fatal human-shark interaction in 2013 and when sensational human-shark interactions occurred in Australia. Overall, Emotive terms were more frequently used that prescriptive terms in each analysis.
Our findings suggest that the nine analysed News Media outlets ought to change their approach in shark discourse. We recommend an increased consistent focus on shark policy, biology or conservation rather than human-shark interaction. We further recommend an increase in the use of prescriptive terms, which should be used in place of emotive terms. Our recommendations would provide greater scientific accuracy within shark discourse, and help minimise the representation of sharks as deadly and dangerous killers. Our recommendations may also give rise to more comprehensive shark policy and management strategies, which are required in order to stabilise the global longevity of sharks.
This was a two part thesis. Along with this academic thesis, three creative science-based popular articles were written to help articulate the environmental value of sharks
Placing Korngold : Erich Wolfgang Korngold's place in the twentieth century and in the great tradition
No full textThis thesis investigates the way Korngold's reception and reputation changed during the twentieth century. In 1930 Erich Wolfgang Korngold and Arnold Schoenberg were composers cited respectively as second and fourth "most famous" Viennese musicians of their time. They shared a common starting point within the tradition of high Western art music since both emerged from the German-Viennese classical musical world of the later nineteenth century. In the 1920s their musical paths diverged, and while Schoenberg was regarded by many as retaining a leading position in music at least until the 1970s, Korngold's position was much less certain and consistent. While Schoenberg was revered by art music connoisseurs and musicologists as emblematic of twentieth-century music, Korngold lost his reputation among this group and only regained high profile during the last quarter of the century.
The changing fortunes of Korngold' s reputation forms the material of this dissertation, which seeks to explain why his reception should have been so variable by focusing on the attitudes and thinking lying behind the articles and reviews written about him during this period. This process reveals the shift in Western musicological thinking which before the World Wars sought to evaluate what was valuable in art music according to elitist hierarchy, but which by the end of the twentieth century determined that value in music might lie more in its function and context and that the Western tradition continued in a way quite unforeseen
Genetics of the snake star Astrobrachion constrictum (Ophiuroidea: Asteroschematidae) in Fiordland, New Zealand
No full textThis thesis was initiated to address two of the questions posed by Stewart's 1995 study on the biology of Astrobrachion constrictum; Is gene flow between fiords restricted in this ophiuroid species and are the colour morphs as different genetically as they are visually? Specimens of A. constrictum were collected from four sites
within Doubtful Sound and one site in each of Nancy Sound, Preservation Inlet and Chalky Inlet. The genetics of these populations of the snake star were assessed using mitochondrial DNA and allozyme analysis. These results were analysed using G-test and AMOV A. Both G-test and AMOV A anlaysis showed that there was no significant genetic differentiation between populations within the same fiords (G[21] = 11.97; P > 0.9) (Fsc = -0.037, P > 0.05) or among fiords (G[21] = 23.32; P > 0.2) (FST = 0.013, P > 0.05). This result was unexpected as the Fiordland environment appears to present several barriers to dispersal, and genetic differentiation of Fiordland populations has been demonstrated in other echinoderm species. Genetic differences between the five colour morphs of A. constrictum were also assessed using mitochondrial DNA and allozyme analysis. G-test and AMOV A analysis of these results also showed no significant differences between colour morphs (G[28] = 13.88; P > 0.9) (F[ST] = -0.089, P > 0.05) indicating that they are conspecific. While studying the population genetics of the snake star two individuals were discovered which appeared to be heteroplasmic. Through the use of PCR cloning, SSCP and sequencing, the presence of heteroplasmy within these two individuals was demonstrated. This is the first reported case of heteroplasmy in an ophiuroid species and probably arose through paternal leakage. Cytochrome Oxidase I sequence obtained from the population analysis was also used in conjunction with sequences from Genbank to assess the phylogeny of echinoderms. Several studies have addressed echinoderm phylogeny over the past century but have failed to clarify the relationship between the echinozoa ( echinoids and holothuroids ), ophiuroids and asteroids. A relatively fast evolving gene was used in this study in an attempt to clarify this relationship. Of the nineteen trees generated with PAUP (Swofford, 1993), only one gave a topology indicating monophyly for all five classes. This was trimmed and compared with three previous hypotheses using the Kishino-Hasegawa test. Results from this showed no significant difference between hypotheses. This is probably due the large amount of noise introduced into the study through the use of a rapidly evolving gene
Biochemical and structural analysis of Candida albicans multidrug efflux pump Cdr1
No full textPleiotropic drug resistance (PDR) ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters are abundant eukaryotic membrane proteins that pump a vast array of different compounds across organelle and cell membranes. Overexpression of the archetype fungal PDR transporter Cdr1 is the main cause of azole drug resistance in Candida albicans, a major fungal pathogen that can cause serious, life threatening, invasive fungal infections in immunocompromised individuals. Fluconazole, an azole antifungal, is commonly used to treat these infections. Azole resistance of C. albicans isolates, however, is of serious clinical concern with often fatal outcomes. An attractive approach to overcome azole resistance is the use of efflux pump inhibitors in combination with azoles. In order to achieve this result, understanding how these efflux pumps work and obtaining high-resolution structures will help to develop suitable inhibitors that do not easily give rise to resistance. Yet, to date, no structure for any PDR ABC transporter has been solved. PDR transporters are one of the largest membrane protein superfamilies. Many plants and fungi have more than ten, some up to 50, different PDR transporters; which indicates that they are likely to be important for their survival in complex, frequently changing, environments. As such, they are of great importance to human fungal disease, and in agriculture.
The objectives of this project were to: i) investigate the role of cysteine amino acids in the stability, trafficking and function of C. albicans Cdr1; ii) hyperexpress Cdr1 in the eukaryotic model organism, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and optimise the isolation and purification of Cdr1; and iii) attempt to determine the structure of Cdr1 with X-ray crystallography or cryo-EM.
In this PhD project, a successful workflow was developed that led to the purification of 0.5 mg Cdr1 per litre of the culture medium in pure, stable, monodisperse form that was used to perform structural investigations of Cdr1 with X-ray crystallography and cryo-EM. In addition, 21 cysteine-deficient Cdr1 mutants were created, and biochemically characterised, which revealed that the six conserved extracellular cysteines were most critical for proper Cdr1 expression, localisation, and function. One fully functional ‘almost Cys-less’ version of Cdr1, Cdr1P-CID, with all but the six conserved extracellular cysteines replaced with serine, alanine or isoleucine was constructed. Cdr1P-CID will be critical in cysteine-crosslinking studies that will help confirm the biological significance of any future structure of Cdr1. An additional four mutants were constructed to generate catalytically inactive transporters. Two conserved nucleotide binding domain residues (D327 and E1027) contributing catalytic bases for ATP-hydrolysis, were replaced with asparagine or glutamine. In addition to those three mutants (Cdr1-D327N, -E1027Q, and -D327N-E1027Q), a fourth catalytically inactive Cdr1 mutant (Cdr1-K901A) was also generated.
Detergent screening, using 31 detergents with different chemistries, revealed that n-dodecyl-β-D-maltopyranoside (DDM) and lauryl maltose neopentyl glycol (LMNG) worked best for Cdr1 solubilisation and/or purification. They provided purified monomeric Cdr1 molecules for crystallography and electron microscopy. Crystal trials using four different commercial crystal screens identified some conditions that resulted in small crystal formations that need to be optimised in order to grow bigger crystals. Protocols for negative stain EM and cryo-EM were optimised which resulted in the first very low-resolution (~18 Å) structures of negative stained detergent-purified Cdr1, however more work is needed to resolve ambiguities between the structures. This study has revealed important insights into the structure-function relationship of C. albicans Cdr1 and laid the foundations for obtaining high-resolution Cdr1 structures
Elucidating the Relationship between Psychopathic Personality Traits and Fearlessness: A Reconsideration of the Low-fear Hypothesis
No full textDeficits in fear have long been posited as an important etiological factor in the development of psychopathy, a personality disorder characterized by severe interpersonal and social impairments masked by an outward appearance of superficial affability. While there has been much empirical evidence establishing a link between psychopathy and deficits in fear, there are still many questions regarding the nature of this association and much ongoing debate surrounding the conceptualization of psychopathy and demarcation of fear into conscious and unconscious components. The current study examined the association between various theoretical models of psychopathy and different dimensons of fear in order to elucidate the relationship between psychopathic traits and fearlessness. Self-report and informant-report responses were collected on a battery of psychopathy and fear related measures in a mixed student and community sample (N = 305). Analysis of the fear measures revealed two higher order dimensions labeled ‘Danger Seeking’ and ‘Affective Fearlessness’, which were differently associated with different psychopathy trait domains. Overall, Danger Seeking was associated with most psychopathy domains across conceptual models, but Affective Fearlessness was only significantly associated with emotional stability features, suggesting that fear deficits in psychopathy may not extend to reduced emotional experience of fear. The current findings have implications for etiological theories of psychopathy, and future research should investigate further the relationship between psychopathy and different components of fear
Biochemical and structural analysis of Candida albicans multidrug efflux pump Cdr1
No full textPleiotropic drug resistance (PDR) ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters are abundant eukaryotic membrane proteins that pump a vast array of different compounds across organelle and cell membranes. Overexpression of the archetype fungal PDR transporter Cdr1 is the main cause of azole drug resistance in Candida albicans, a major fungal pathogen that can cause serious, life threatening, invasive fungal infections in immunocompromised individuals. Fluconazole, an azole antifungal, is commonly used to treat these infections. Azole resistance of C. albicans isolates, however, is of serious clinical concern with often fatal outcomes. An attractive approach to overcome azole resistance is the use of efflux pump inhibitors in combination with azoles. In order to achieve this result, understanding how these efflux pumps work and obtaining high-resolution structures will help to develop suitable inhibitors that do not easily give rise to resistance. Yet, to date, no structure for any PDR ABC transporter has been solved. PDR transporters are one of the largest membrane protein superfamilies. Many plants and fungi have more than ten, some up to 50, different PDR transporters; which indicates that they are likely to be important for their survival in complex, frequently changing, environments. As such, they are of great importance to human fungal disease, and in agriculture.
The objectives of this project were to: i) investigate the role of cysteine amino acids in the stability, trafficking and function of C. albicans Cdr1; ii) hyperexpress Cdr1 in the eukaryotic model organism, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and optimise the isolation and purification of Cdr1; and iii) attempt to determine the structure of Cdr1 with X-ray crystallography or cryo-EM.
In this PhD project, a successful workflow was developed that led to the purification of 0.5 mg Cdr1 per litre of the culture medium in pure, stable, monodisperse form that was used to perform structural investigations of Cdr1 with X-ray crystallography and cryo-EM. In addition, 21 cysteine-deficient Cdr1 mutants were created, and biochemically characterised, which revealed that the six conserved extracellular cysteines were most critical for proper Cdr1 expression, localisation, and function. One fully functional ‘almost Cys-less’ version of Cdr1, Cdr1P-CID, with all but the six conserved extracellular cysteines replaced with serine, alanine or isoleucine was constructed. Cdr1P-CID will be critical in cysteine-crosslinking studies that will help confirm the biological significance of any future structure of Cdr1. An additional four mutants were constructed to generate catalytically inactive transporters. Two conserved nucleotide binding domain residues (D327 and E1027) contributing catalytic bases for ATP-hydrolysis, were replaced with asparagine or glutamine. In addition to those three mutants (Cdr1-D327N, -E1027Q, and -D327N-E1027Q), a fourth catalytically inactive Cdr1 mutant (Cdr1-K901A) was also generated.
Detergent screening, using 31 detergents with different chemistries, revealed that n-dodecyl-β-D-maltopyranoside (DDM) and lauryl maltose neopentyl glycol (LMNG) worked best for Cdr1 solubilisation and/or purification. They provided purified monomeric Cdr1 molecules for crystallography and electron microscopy. Crystal trials using four different commercial crystal screens identified some conditions that resulted in small crystal formations that need to be optimised in order to grow bigger crystals. Protocols for negative stain EM and cryo-EM were optimised which resulted in the first very low-resolution (~18 Å) structures of negative stained detergent-purified Cdr1, however more work is needed to resolve ambiguities between the structures. This study has revealed important insights into the structure-function relationship of C. albicans Cdr1 and laid the foundations for obtaining high-resolution Cdr1 structures
A multi-scale approach to assessing the spatio-temporal variability of seasonal snow in the Clutha Catchment, New Zealand
No full textSeasonal snow is an important, but under-observed component of New Zealand's hydrological cycle. Measurement and characterisation of seasonal snow is complicated because it varies over a range of spatial and temporal scales. This makes spatially distributed in situ observations difficult to acquire, and limits efforts to scale point-based observations up to larger areas. Sparse observations of seasonal snow lead to reduced understanding of seasonal snow processes, and subsequent uncertainty in efforts to model seasonal snow. This thesis addresses these issues within the Clutha Catchment, New Zealand's largest, by leveraging remote sensing and geospatial approaches to map and characterise seasonal snow both regionally, and at very high spatial resolution over a small alpine basin.
A daily snow covered area (SCA) time series and regional scale snow cover climatology is derived from MODIS imagery for the period 20002016. Metrics including annual snow cover duration (SCD) anomaly and daily SCA and snowline elevation (SLE) were derived and assessed for temporal trends. On average, SCA peaks in late June (~30 % of the catchment area), with 10 % of the catchment area sustaining snow cover for > 120 d yr -1. A persistent mid-winter reduction in SCA is attributed to the prevalence of winter blocking anticyclones in the New Zealand region. No significant decrease in SCD occurred over the period 20002016, but substantial spatial and temporal variability was observed. Raster principal component analysis (rPCA) identified distinct modes of spatial variability within the time series. Spatio-temporal variability extends beyond that associated with topographic controls, which can result in out of phase snow cover conditions across the catchment. Specific spatial modes of SCD are associated with anomalous airflow from the NE, E and SE. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that the sensitivity of SCD to temperature and precipitation variability varies significantly across the catchment. In order to resolve sub-MODIS scale processes, the potential of remotely piloted aircraft system (RPAS) photogrammetry to map snow depth was evaluated within an alpine catchment of the Pisa Range. Differencing between snow-covered and snow-free digital surface models (DSMs) acquired during 2016 provided high resolution snow depth maps. The accuracy of snow depth maps was thoroughly assessed with in situ snow probe measurements, and by analysing residuals for snow-free areas between DSMs. This accuracy assessment demonstrated repeatability and revealed substantial departures of errors from a normal distribution. This reflects the influence of DSM co-registration and terrain characteristics on vertical uncertainty. Error propagation provided lower uncertainties for snow depth (±0.08 m, 90 % c.l.) than the characterization of uncertainties on snow-free areas (±0.14 m). Comparisons between RPAS and in situ snow depth measurements confirm this level of performance. Semivariogram analysis revealed that the RPAS outperformed systematic in situ measurements in resolving fine-scale spatial variability.
Following the successful evaluation of RPAS photogrammetry for mapping snow depth, further snow depth maps were acquired for 2017. A total of six snow depth maps that resolved fine scale spatial variability in snow distribution facilitated the assessment of topographic controls on snow depth and snow water equivalent (SWE) distribution. Topographic controls were assessed via regression tree analysis between snow depth and terrain indices, including the kernel density of tussock vegetation (KDtussock), elevation (ELEV), the topographic position index (TPI), a Shade index (Shade), and Sx (maximum upwind slope). Despite substantial differences in both total snow volume and spatial distribution, the range of spatial-autocorrelation for snow depth was comparable for both winters at 20 – 30 m. Regression tree modelling reproduced some of the observed spatial structure, and demonstrated temporal variability in the relative importance of controlling parameters. The impact of varying wind regimes on the spatial distribution of snow was highlighted. These findings illustrate the complexity of atmospheric controls on SCD within the Clutha Catchment and support the need to incorporate atmospheric processes that govern variability of the energy balance, as well as the re-distribution of snow by wind in order to improve the modelling of future changes in seasonal snow. Despite limitations accompanying RPAS photogrammetry, this study demonstrates a repeatable means of accurately mapping snow depth for an entire, yet relatively small, hydrological catchment (∼0.4 km2) at very high resolution. Snow depth maps provide geostatistically robust insights into seasonal snow processes, with unprecedented detail. This thesis demonstrates the utility of mapping snow at differing spatial scales for improved understanding of seasonal snow processes and highlights the need to robustly capture dynamic processes in spatial snow models