Joeli Veitayaki

Connecting the dots: policy connections between Pacific Island shipping and global CO2 and pollutant emission reduction

The relationships between the global discourse on emissions reduction, particularly in regard to international shipping, and the need for more sustainable Pacific Island sea transport services are discussed. Renewable energy applications for such shipping are not currently considered in the drive to reduce fossil fuel dependency in the region. The domestic Pacific Island shipping scenario and international shipping and emissions reduction efforts are summarized. Data availability is limited; however, the authors extrapolate from Fiji data to give a ‘best guess’ of the likely range of emissions produced by the Pacific Island shipping and argue that reduction targets are achievable based on results of experiments in the last oil crisis. Five policy areas are identified that connect the local need with the global discourse and give rise to the promotion of sustainable, low-carbon maritime transport for this unique region.

Community-based action in Fiji’s Gau Island: a model for the Pacific?

Purpose n n n n nDrawing on qualitative fieldwork on a remote outer island in Fiji, this paper aims to address a shortcoming in the literature on climate adaptation in the Pacific. Internationally community-based adaptation (CBA) is recognised as a promising approach to help vulnerable populations adjust to climate change. However, with pilot projects in their infancy documented experience for Pacific Islands remains scarce. This limits the ability of the region – faced with persisting development challenges and predicted significant climate impacts – to learn from and build on previous experiences and develop robust responses to climate change. n n n n nDesign/methodology/approach n n n n nBy using a community-based initiative in response to environmental challenges and unsustainable development as a proxy, the paper interrogates the potential usefulness of the CBA framework for the Pacific and identifies potential strengths and weaknesses. Sketching out the process and its outcomes, it shows how the initiative has resulted in a diversity of strategies, ranging from pollution control measures, to improved governance of resources and community participation in decision making, to livelihood and income diversification. n n n n nFindings n n n n nFindings indicate that CBA could have a lot of potential for building more resilient communities in the face of climate change and other pressures associated with modernising Pacific societies. However, to be effective, interventions should pay attention to people’s development aspirations; immediate economic, social and environmental benefits; dynamics of village governance, social rules and protocols; and traditional forms of knowledge that can inform sustainable solutions. n n n n nOriginality/value n n n n nThe conclusions provide a reflection on the CBA framework in general and make concrete suggestions for practitioners on how the framework could be usefully implemented in the Pacific context.

Food Availability for Particle-Feeding Bivalves, Anadara spp., in Fiji

Abstract: n We compared food availability of filter-feeding bivalves, Anadara spp., between two Fijian sites of different mangrove richness to evaluate impacts of environmental variables on Anadara spp. abundance and body size. Suspended particles including planktonic organisms and detritus were more abundant in the fishery grounds of the mangrove-rich site (MR) than in the mangrove-poor site (MP). Athough no substantial difference was observed in abundance of Anadara spp., dry weights of soft tissue were heavier for animals at MR than those at MP. Respiration rates (i.e., minimum metabolic requirements) of Anadara spp. decreased with increasing animal weight. Unicellular planktonic biomass was estimated to support the Anadara community metabolic requirements (i.e., minimum food requirement) for 9.2 to 85.7 days at MR and 1.4 to 67.4 days at MP, indicating that the planktonic biomass cannot support sufficient growth of the bivalve population at some locations. These results suggest that suspended particles support increased shell sizes of Anadara spp. and that resuspended detritus is a supplement or alternative food resource for these bivalves in mangrovecoral associated ecosystems.

Staking Their Claims: The Management of Marine Resources in the Exclusive Economic Zones of the Pacific Islands

The 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (LOSC) was tailor-made for Pacific Island. These islands consist of 22 self-governing nations on about 500,000 square kilometers of land scattered across about thirty million square kilometers of the Pacific Ocean. The Pacific Island countries have declared their Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) and Extended Fisheries Zones (EFZs) and are cooperating with each other to stake their claims. The countries are sharing limited expertise, experience, facilities, infrastructure, resources and markets but are achieving admirable success in effectively acting upon their rights within their EEZ and EFZ and are setting the pace in influencing international events and practice. Pacific Island countries have formulated international management arrangements that safeguard the EEZ and EFZ and the marine resources within. The countries are using the EEZ and EFZ provisions to effectively stake their claims and are providing a good model for regional cooperation and collaboration based on the equitable pursuit of common economic goals, the peaceful use of ocean resources and the effective management of the marine environment. In addition, the Pacific Island states are working with distant water fishing nations (DWFN) to establish management regimes covering the EEZs and EFZs and the high seas as promoted by the 1995 UN Fish Stocks Agreement. The 1982 LOSC has gained widespread acceptance among the Pacific Islands. The small island developing states in the Pacific saw in the LOSC the opportunity to formalize a system for the use and management of the region’s most important resource base, fisheries. The Pacific Islands countries were united in their support. In 1982, one of its members, Fiji became the first country in the world to sign and ratify the LOSC. By 2002, all of the 13 Pacific Island member-countries of the South Pacific Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA), the regional fishery organization for the coastal States of the western and central Pacific Ocean, had ratified the LOSC. In addition, these countries

The Pacific Islands Regional Ocean Policy: The Quest for Good Ocean Governance

]oeli Veitayaki first met Elisabeth Mann Borgese during the International Ocean Institute Class B Training Programme at Dalhousie University in 1992. From then to their last meeting at the Oeeans and Coasts at Rio+lO Conferenee in Paris in 2001, he was always amazed at her great knowledge and farsightedness, which never seemed affeeted by her advaneed years. Elisabeth was years ahead of us in her thoughts, whieh she had a powerful and eonvineing way of putting aeross to uso The world is poorer without EMB. Robin South first met Elisabeth Mann Borgese when she visited Fiji to diseuss the foundation of IOI-Paeifie Islands (then IOI-South Paeifie) in 1992, and eontinued to work closely with her from then until he moved to Townsville in early 2002 to establish IOI-Australia. Elisabeth played a key role during the hosting of Pacem in Maribus in Fiji in 1999, and strongly supported the establishment of IOI-Australia. Following her death, the 101 training facility in Townsville was dedieated to Elisabeths memory.

Mangroves in Small Island Development States in the Pacific: An Overview of a Highly Important and Seriously Threatened Resource

Mangroves are critical resources in small island developing countries in the Pacific where they provide food, a range of products and ecological services that are used by coastal communities. In many of the countries that have mangroves, between 50–80 % of commercial and subsistence fish species used by people spend some part of their life cycle in the mangroves where the detritus and the existing life forms contribute to the productivity of the coastal water that is vital for the habitation of these islands. Mangroves also protect the shorelines and are harvested for timber and non-timber products such as charcoal, dye and medicine. Ironically, this important resource is increasingly cleared in large amounts to allow for infrastructure development, agriculture, fish farming, hotel sites, industrial areas and dumps. Most small island countries in the Pacific Islands do not have any effective management plans for their mangrove forests, which are now under serious threat because of their increasing alteration to accommodate other uses. In addition, the changes in climate and sea levels and their impacts and how these are being addressed and attended to at different levels in the Pacific Islands will be discussed to show the attempts at all levels to accommodate the changing conditions. Many of these countries still cannot determine the factors that influence the sustainability of their mangroves which normally come under the responsibility of ministries or departments of forestry, fisheries, natural resources, environment and lands. It is common to have jurisdictional overlaps and conflicting sectoral policies. This overview will present the current state of mangroves and some of the issues that characterise their use in the Pacific Islands, the threats they face and the management arrangements that are in place. The chapter will also illustrate the roles of the customary and traditional owners of the resource and governments at the local, national and regional levels and the challenges that mangrove management must overcome in order to ensure the integrity and health of this habitat that is fundamental to human wellbeing.

The Recovery of a Tropical Marine Mollusk Fishery: A Transdisciplinary Community-Based Approach in Navakavu, Fiji

This paper presents findings from a species-by-species assessment of the collapse and recovery of a tropical mollusk fishery in Navakavu, Fiji. The results are based on field surveys, photo documentation, collection of voucher specimens, participant observation, and testimonies of past and current generations of female and male fishers. The results show the degradation of fisheries resources at almost all trophic levels over the past 40 years due to overfishing, destructive fishing techniques, and environmental degradation, as well as the positive impacts of the establishment of a locally managed marine area (LMMA) and associated marine protected area (MPA), known locally as “Vueti Navakavu.” Since its establishment in 2002, nearly 300 mollusk species, including gastropods, bivalves, and cephalopods, are either being seen for the first time in over 40 years or are clearly increasing in abundance and/or size class. There has been a particularly dramatic increase in the abundance of a wide range of cone shells (Conus spp.), cowries (Cypraea spp.), conches (Strombidae), murexes (Muricidae), auger shells (Terebridae), and turban snails (Turbanidae), as well as octopus, squid, and seahare, all of which are of economic, cultural, and ecological importance. The results show that sustained effective marine conservation can, in general, lead to the recovery of seriously degraded fisheries and, in particular, of tropical mollusk fauna. This assessment highlights the value of synthesizing up-to-date taxonomic and scientific knowledge with the knowledge of older fishers, who have long-term multi-species knowledge of changing fisheries.

IN THE WAKE OF WINSTON – CLIMATE CHANGE, MOBILITY AND RESILIENCY IN FIJI

When tropical cyclone Winston hit Fiji on 20 February 2016, it became the strongest storm recorded in the southern hemisphere and the second strongest storm ever recorded in the world. Forty-four people died as a result of the superstorm, and the ongoing governmental recovery plans have estimated nearly three billion Fijian dollars (£1.1 billion) in damages. Fijian Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama, in a national address following Winston, stated ‘almost no part of our nation has been left unscarred’. This paper explores the adaptation measures for extreme weather and climate change in Fiji following Winston, as well as the author’s experiences both as a survivor of Winston and as a volunteer aid-relief worker living in Suva, the Fijian capital, at the time of the superstorm. Notably, Winston struck 5 days after Fiji became the first nation to ratify the United Nations Climate deal agreed to by 195 nations in Paris in December 2015. Many Pacific island nations have played a vital role in leading the global dialogue on climate change. In the lead up to the Paris summit, Prime Minister Bainimarama, stressed that ‘unless the world acts decisively in the coming weeks to begin addressing the greatest challenge of our age, then the Pacific, as we know it, is doomed.’ This is undoubtedly true and a global response is desperately needed, but equally true is the importance for such a reaction to be a cultural and faith-integrated process across multiple scales, ranging from village and community to regional, in scope. One critical aspect of extreme weather and climate change response in the Pacific is migration. However, the impacts of migration include organizing, adaptation and urban poverty, a further source of vulnerability. Consequently, human mobility in response to extreme weather and climate change is far more complex than originally addressed and is deserving of deeper consideration.