Climate change could have grave social, financial and cultural consequences for residents and communities of the Kaipara Harbour catchment area, according to new research carried out by a US-based academic for the Integrated Kaipara Harbour Management Group (IKHMG).
University of Arizona graduate student Danielle Johnson carried out her research last winter and concluded that people working in agriculture and aquaculture, living in isolation or on limited means, and Kaipara iwi, hapu and whanau would be the most vulnerable to socio-economic pressures arising from climate change in the region.
“Despite the growing body of information about the biophysical impacts of climate change in the Kaipara (such as rising sea levels, increased air and water temperatures, more flood and storm events and pest incursion), very little is known about how these changes will affect Kaipara communities on a socio-economic or cultural level,” she says. “And while climate change adaptation planning in the Kaipara seeks to respond to biophysical impacts, the socio-economic and cultural implications of climate change are not yet major areas of focus in adaptation planning.”
She found a range of potential impacts and challenges, including loss of earnings, increased stress and anxiety, difficulties with accessing adequate fish, shellfish and traditional medicinal plants, and a reduction in opportunities for cultural activities and gatherings.
Her research found that people in the Kaipara wanted adaptation strategies that would work to build the resilience of the region and its communities in the short term to lessen the impacts of climate change in the future. These included building and reinforcing physical defences, strengthening the local economy and job market, helping farmers to become more adaptable, restoring the catchment via community-based endeavours and partnerships, and encouraging sustainable best practice in farming, forestry, sand mining and fishing.
The research project was designed to help the IKHMG understand the social and cultural dimensions of climate change impacts and adaptation in the region. In future, the group hopes to develop climate change vulnerability assessments for Kaipara communities, encourage partnerships between communities and regional and local government to produce appropriate climate change adaptation strategies, and share information with communities to aid climate change adaptation.
