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Climate Change and Biodiversity in Melanesia (CCBM) Project: Assessing Vulnerability in Marine and Terrestrial Ecosystems to Projected Climate Change
Project Summary
The Bernice P. Bishop Museum and the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP), in close collaboration with the Pacific Science Association (PSA) and the Indo-Pacific Conservation Alliance (IPCA), have completed an expert-led study to assess the vulnerability of biodiversity and island ecosystems in Melanesia to climate change. This project was one of four grants from the MacArthur Foundation to identify the implications of climate change in the regions where the Foundation funds conservation efforts and to develop conservation and management approaches that address these threats. Other studies addressed similar issues in Madagascar, Africa and the Caribbean.
The CCBM project focused on projected climate change impacts on both marine and terrestrial ecosystems of Melanesia. For the purposes of this study, Melanesia was defined as Fiji, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea and the Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua.
The CCBM project website contains various scientific reports and datasets. A Consensus Report summarizing the results is also available.
There were three main activities:
Activity One: Assessed the current scientific understanding of the impacts of climate change and other biogeochemical processes (e.g. ocean acidification) on island and marine ecosystems in Melanesia. The objective was to facilitate and document the best state-of-the-science consensus on the implications of these anthropogenic processes on current and future conservation strategies, planning, and policies.
Activity Two: Assessed the institutional and socioeconomic adaptive capacity of Melanesian countries to effectively respond to climate change impacts including legislation, policies and capacity assessment.
Activity Three: Developed an integrated assessment of the vulnerability of Melanesia’s biodiversity to climate change, based on Activities One and Two.
The assessment in Activity One includes an extensive review of the current scientific understanding of how climate change will affect Melanesia’s terrestrial and marine ecosystems. The information and data collated from literature reviews, data gathering, digital maps, satellite imagery and consultations with experts was compiled into an Environmental Information System (EIS) accessible via the Internet for use by government planning, conservation, research, and management groups. A multidisciplinary expert workshop was held in September 2007 in Hawai’i to assess the best scientific understanding of climate change impacts on Melanesia and develop a series of white papers that summarize current knowledge.
All information, data, expert advice and white papers was being synthesized into a consensus report, a draft of which was presented at the 8th Pacific Islands Conference on Nature Conservation and Protected Areas in Papua New Guinea in October 2007. Researchers, managers and stakeholders attending the conference were encouraged to provide feedback, additional information and recommendations. This input was incorporated into the consensus report. A final vulnerability assessment report, based on the consensus report and other data that is gathered, was completed in early 2009. This final report details current scientific understanding and predictions of how climate change will impact the region’s development and conservation efforts, specifies where additional research is needed, and lists suggestions for adapting conservation efforts to future projected climate changes.
Activity Two, led by SPREP, assessed the institutional and socio-economic capacity in Melanesia to adapt resource management practices, programs, policies and legislation to mitigate the impacts of climate change. In order to perform this assessment SPREP documented all current management policies and programs and identify impediments to and opportunities for successful biodiversity conservation and management in the face of projected climate warming and related effects. Additionally, the study will evaluate the consequences of climate change on two important economic sectors, such as coastal fisheries and tourism, and examine how conservation practices can be used to assess the impacts of climate change on those sectors.
After completing the two activity assessments, Bishop, SPREP, IPCA and PSA integrated the two reviews into a Final Integrated Vulnerability Assessment Report, including a set of recommendations for policymakers and managers in developing and implementing development and conservation strategies that reflect an appropriate and robust understanding of expected climate change. The final assessment will be incorporated into future revisions of the Action Strategy for Nature Conservation, the Pacific Islands Framework for Climate Change and other conservation plans and strategies. This report will also be used to develop a range of communication products for a variety of audiences in Melanesia and beyond.
The final results and products of CCBM provide government planners, conservationists and resource managers in Melanesia with information and tools they need to develop conservation approaches that can more successfully address the influence of climate change on biodiversity and social welfare. Additionally, the products will supply the MacArthur Foundation and other grant-making organizations with information they need to determine which proposals have the best potential to mitigate the impacts of climate change and merit funding. Efforts like this assessment are an essential step in ensuring that conservation efforts succeed in tomorrow’s climate.