Integrating coastal ecosystem values in decision making and policy – a case study of the south-east Queensland region

Abstract

Coastal areas are important as regions where human populations are concentrated and as places that support highly productive ecosystems which provide many natural resources fundamental to human societies. Increasing pressure on coastal systems from population growth and development-related activities is causing ecosystem loss and degradation.Further, a diversity of people, perspectives and interests concentrated in coastal areas creates This research applies a case study approach to the region of south-east Queensland, Australia.The case offers significant insight as the (sub-national) region is an important scale of governance for public policy and because the complex administrative arrangements and rapid growth of south-east Queensland provide a policy-rich situation for analysis. A total of 69 interviews were conducted in investigation across the three research questions. First, Qmethodology was used to systematically study stakeholder perspectives (n=43) of coastal ecosystem values using mangroves as a case study setting. The mediation of decisions that support either the conservation or development of mangrove areas provides a tangible proxy for broader decisions regarding the coast. Second, a descriptive-normative analysis of institutions was applied using data elicited from review of policy documents and interview of experts (n=6) to distinguish the governance sub-domains throughout the region that influence coastal decisions. The third and final study phase used policy documents and interviews of policy actors (n=20) related to retrospective decision cases from each governance sub-domain to identify decision attributes that influenced integration or exclusion of different coastal ecosystem values.The first research component revealed four core reasons why coastal ecosystems are valued throughout the region: as green infrastructure; for recreational opportunity and well-being; to sustain regional industries and communities; and for coastal living. These different perspectives potentially influence coastal management depending on which ecosystem services are prioritised in the decision structure. Decisions in favour of 'provisioning' A number of significant implications arise from these research findings. First, the competitive and constrained nature of coastal areas within the region promotes the economic value of coastal land that can potentially privilege policies for development over those that provide broad indirect public benefit. Local governments are likely to play a major role and have conflicting interests in these decisions. A second key implication is that institutions to support regional governance arrangements for sustainable coastal management are underutilised (e.g. regional networks, regional environmental reporting and regional level planning processes) and those of individual governance sub-domains often compete or conflict (e.g. practices that undermine official goals and formal regulations). The final implication is that a shared basis to direct future governing for sustainable...