Mapping the economic costs and benefits of Coral Triangle Initiative (CTI) and Mangrove Rehabilitation Projects (MRP) in Solomon Islands: a study of two MPAs and one MRP

Abstract

This paper reports a study of costs and benefits of Coral Triangle Initiatives (CTI) and Mangrove Rehabilitation Projects (MRP) in the Solomon Islands. It was observed that the communities have different attitudes and perceptions toward climate change challenges. The different scales and magnitudes of climate change impacts that are perceived at these sites, and the different subsistence realities make them have varied responses and points of view regarding such impacts. For instance, respondents from Oibola experienced the most adverse impacts from climatic change events compared to those living in the Naro and Sairaghi sites. Introduction of CTI and MRP has driven the villagers to travel out far from their traditional fishing grounds to catch enough fish to sell and support their families. This implies higher fishing costs and time for commute. From a social perspective, this weakens the communal bond in the community. In spite of these trade-offs, the respondents expressed satisfaction with the level of benefits received from the projects, which included the rehabilitation of the ecosystems and breeding grounds for fish and habitats around the area. We mapped the costs and benefits of these projects to the villagers, and although no amounts or figures were disclosed, the benefits are compared against corresponding costs. One key factor for the success of the initiatives was the cooperation and involvement of recipient villagers, and even including the management MPAs.

Keywords:

• coral triangle initiatives
• mangrove rehabilitation projects
• mapping of cost and benefits
• sustainable development

Acknowledgements

The researchers would sincerely thank Director of PACE-SD for funding the study. We would also acknowledge the immense help received from the scholars whose articles are cited and included as references in this paper. Further gratitude also extended to authors/editors/publishers of all those articles, journals and books from where the literature for this article has been reviewed and discussed. A special thank you is also extended to Professor Elisabeth Holland, Director of PACE-SD for her advice in this publication.