Consideration of customary marine tenure system in the establishment of marine protected areas in the South Pacific

The biodiversity of the South Pacific region is of global importance. Changes accompanying economic development have undermined the Pacific’s traditional social systems, including their capacity for resource management, and the environment has suffered as a result. The South Pacific’s social and land/marine tenure systems require local ownership involvements and management. Centralized administration and management systems which began in the colonial period had failed to promote marine resource management. Customary landowners need to be involved from the very beginning in decisions about the future of their resources. The need to establish marine protected areas (MPA) is urgent. Population growth, urbanization and rapid development are causing overharvesting of finite marine resources as well as pollution of the coastal zone. The success of MPA will depend on the customary right holders and their ability to satisfy both their subsistence needs and their aspiration for economic development. This paper proposes the establishment of MPAs in the South Pacific by using a strategy of community based management that has been established in the customary marine tenure system. The use of some traditional conservation method could also be effectively incorporated into MPA systems.