What could EBM look like in Tasman and Golden Bays?

We are investigating how to successfully put EBM into practice in Aotearoa New Zealand’s marine environment.

Project Leader	Duration	Budget
Judi Hewitt (NIWA)	July 2017 – September 2019	$400,000

Overview

We are applying the knowledge, tools and processes from other Sustainable Seas Challenge projects to a case study focused on the health of the seafloor in Tasman and Golden Bays.

We are working with researchers in the Managed Seas Programme, to trial several modelling tools which will help us predict how animals and plants living on the seafloor respond to different management scenarios. We are exploring which tools are easy to use by non-modellers and provide the best information to make management decisions.

We will trial a decision-making framework which includes non-monetary values, such as social, cultural or ecological values. We will also trial the use of system mapping in EBM for the marine environment. This will help build shared understandings of how financial, social, management, environment and ecology connect.

Finally, we will use SeaSketch (a collaborative marine planning tool) to store information about the Bays and use it, the models and the system mapping approach to identify knowledge and relationship gaps and prioritise them for future work. Councils, central government agencies, universities and Crown Research Institutes will then be able to use our findings to inform and prioritise science research strategies.

Related News

New expertise for leadership team26 May 2020 Video: Why Tasman and Golden Bays?27 May 2020

Project proposal

866 KB | pdf

Location

Tools & Resources

This project has produced or contributed to:

Systems mapping: Scallop decline in Tasman-Golden Bay

MapReport

This work was a pilot to explore whether systems mapping could be useful for ecosystem-based management (EBM).

Causal loop mapping pilot

Graphic

A whānau perspective for Te Tai-o-Aorere ki Mohua (June 2024)

Causal loop mapping pilot

Report

A whānau perspective for Te Tai-o-Aorere ki Mohua (June 2024)

Related projects & activities

Tipping points in ecosystem structure, function and services

We investigated how marine ecosystems respond to change, and identified tipping points, risks and ways of managing them.

This project has produced or contributed to

Ecosystem models

We developed simulation models for the Tasman and Golden Bays marine ecosystem to test what is likely to happen in different scenarios.

This project has produced or contributed to

Credit: Paula Blackett

Testing participatory processes for marine management

We identified the best ways to involve interested parties in decision-making about the governance and management of marine environments.

This project has produced or contributed to

EBM-enabling narratives for New Zealand

This project developed multimedia resources that can be used to explore what EBM for Aotearoa New Zealand looks like now, and how it could look in the future.

This project has produced or contributed to

Credit: Leigh Tait NIWA

Measuring ecosystem services and assessing impacts

We developed new ways to measure and map the ecosystem services provided by marine ecosystems.

This project has produced or contributed to

Participatory tools

We are developing web-based tools to enable New Zealanders to interact with and use knowledge generated by our research.

This project has produced or contributed to

Credit: Dave Allen NIWA

Development of valuation frameworks and principles

We identified frameworks and principles for recognising the multiple values of the marine environment to support EBM.

This project has produced or contributed to

Credit: NZ Story/Chris Williams

EBM within Aotearoa New Zealand’s existing legislative framework

We investigated how well EBM aligns with Aotearoa New Zealand’s legislation, policy and governance relating to the marine environment.

This project has produced or contributed to

Novel risk assessment tools for EBM

We are reviewing new methods to help assess and manage risks to Aotearoa New Zealand’s marine ecosystems.

This project has produced or contributed to

Credit: Crispin Middleton NIWA 2018

Spatially-explicit decision support tools

We developed tools to help decision-makers explore how best to use and share marine spaces.

This project has produced or contributed to

Ecosystem connectivity: tracking biochemical fluxes to inform EBM

We traced the fate of water and sediments from land through coastal food webs, evaluating connections between coastal and deep sea habitats, and identified the effects of key coastal developments (such as aquaculture) on food web connectivity.

This project has produced or contributed to

He Pou Tokomanawa: kaitiakitanga in practice in our marine environment

We developed a culturally-relevant pathway to enable mana whenua iwi to evaluate and contribute to management of Aotearoa New Zealand’s marine environment.

This project has produced or contributed to

Mauri Moana, Mauri Tangata, Mauri Ora

We explored ways to assess the values New Zealanders hold for the marine environment.

This project has produced or contributed to