Enabling inter-agency collaboration on cumulative effects

Managing the cumulative effects that arise from human activities and natural events is one of the most urgent and complex problems facing marine resource use decision makers today. 

Cumulative effects management in Aotearoa New Zealand is fragmented and inconsistent. This is largely due to disjointed legislative regimes and institutions. There is a need to account for interactions at different scales; data scarcity and uncertainty; and conflicting societal and economic expectations, values, and rights that are poorly integrated into decision-making. A consistent, ki uta ki tai (mountains-to-sea) strategy is needed because human and natural stressors cross political, jurisdictional, cultural and geographic boundaries.  

Until now, there has been little impetus for changing behaviours and management of marine ecosystems. Through this research, many of the agencies and institutions interested in cumulative effects management are working together to address this challenge.  

We showed where values, knowledge, and practices can be aligned to create more systematic approaches to managing cumulative effects and developing a framework that will help agencies and institutions do this. Our research recommendations will let managers make more informed decisions within existing legislative and institutional constraints.

This research builds on the work of the Navigating marine social-ecological systems project.