Marine Resources of Tokelau Atolls FAKAOFO Marine Resource Management Plan Background Report December 2004 Prepared for: Government of Tokelau Authors: Dr David Fisk, Joanna Axford, Mary Power for South Pacific Regional Environment Programme Table of Contents Acknowledgements i Executive Summary & Recommendations ii TABLE OF CONTENTS............................................................................1 1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................2 1.1 Background ........................................................................................................................ 2 1.2 Methodology ...................................................................................................................... 4 1.3 Previous Studies ................................................................................................................. 5 2 ECOLOGY AND MARINE RESOURCE STATUS ……………………………7 2.1 Geography .......................................................................................................................... 7 2.2 Environmental Conditions and Biogeography ................................................................... 8 2.3 Resource and Habitat Accessibility.................................................................................. 17 2.4 Resource Management ..................................................................................................... 18 2.5 Ecosystem and Resource Status ....................................................................................... 20 2.5.1 Habitat Characteristics............................................................................................. 20 2.5.2 Biotic Characteristics................................................................................................ 21 2.5.3Disturbance and Health Indices................................................................................. 30 2.6 Conclusions ...................................................................................................................... 33 3 COMMUNITY PERCEPTIONS ON RESOURCES AND RESOURCE MANAGEMENT................................................................................37 3.1 Rationale for Investigation into Community Perceptions................................................ 37 3.2 Socio-cultural setting of Fakaofo Atoll............................................................................ 37 3.3 Important qualities of Fakaofo Atoll................................................................................ 38 3.4 Changes in Fakaofo Atoll................................................................................................. 38 3.5 Concerns........................................................................................................................... 40 3.6 Traditional Resource Management .................................................................................. 41 3.7 Fakahao (Conservation)................................................................................................... 42 3.7.1 Te fakahao (the Conservation Area) ......................................................................... 43 3.7.2 Fakahao management ............................................................................................... 44 3.7.3 Changes in the te fakahao area since implementation.............................................. 45 3.7.4 Status of te fakahao (is it successful?) ...................................................................... 46 3.7.5 Reaching Success in te fakahao (increasing success)............................................... 46 3.7.6 General perceptions of the fakahao .......................................................................... 48 4. HOUSEHOLD SURVEYS ..................................................................49 4.1 Results .............................................................................................................................. 49 4.1.1 Fishing Methods........................................................................................................ 49 4.1.2 Sea Food Consumption ............................................................................................. 50 4.1.3Exports ....................................................................................................................... 52 4.1.4Women’s participation in Fishing Activities............................................................. 53 5 RECOMMENDATIONS .......................................................................54 5.1 Specific High Value Areas (incl Target Species/Objectives) .......................................... 55 5.2 Conservation Areas .......................................................................................................... 56 5.3 Permanent and Temporary Closures ................................................................................ 57 5.4 Control on Harvest Practices............................................................................................ 57 5.5 Policy on Export Activities .............................................................................................. 58 5.6 Plan Removal of Wrecks.................................................................................................. 58 5.7 Waste Management Plan.................................................................................................. 59 5.8 Atoll Wide Issues ............................................................................................................. 59 5.9 Biological Monitoring...................................................................................................... 59 6. REFERENCES..................................................................................61 ANNEXES..............................................................................................63 Annex 1 Fakaofo Fish List with Local Names. :.................................................................... 63 Annex 2 Biological Monitoring Program............................................................................... 66 Acknowledgements SPREP gratefully acknowledges the assistance and support given to this survey by a range of people: In Apia, many thanks to Falani Aukuso and his staff at the Apia Tokelau Liaison Office for their support and advice. On Fakaofo, to the Council of Elders of Fakaofo, for their wonderful hospitality and also for making available the Tupuelega to assist in the survey work. Thanks also to Keli Neemia, Afega Gaualofa, Katieli Peleti, Tulafono Penehe, Telefoni Peliata and Tu Matini for assistance and guidance. To the school principal for allowing us to talk to the students and distribute environmental awareness materials. And finally, to Mose Pelasio for assisting with logistics and to Suia Pelasio looking for after us on the island. And finally, the team who took part in the various components of the survey Mary Power (SPREP), Project Development and Coordination Foua Toloa, Tokelau Liaison and Finfish Surveys Dr David Fisk, Marine Resource Survey Team Leader Joanna Axford – Community Surveys Caroline Vieux – Resource Assessment Gordon LaPraik – Dive Coordinator and Resource Assessment Seema Deo (SPREP) – Education Activities Miriam Philips (SPREP) – community and education activities And finally to Steve and the crew of the good ship ‘Evohe’ for their splendid support. Authors: Dr David Fisk, Oceania Consulting – [email protected] Joanna Axford, University of Queensland – [email protected] Mary Power, SPREP (now SPC) – [email protected] i Executive Summary & Recommendations Background to this Survey In 2002, the Tokelau government approached SPREP for assistance with marine resource management of their atolls. A scoping study was undertaken in Tokelau over two separate visits in 2002 and 2003 to assess the level of community and leadership interest in revitalizing the proposed marine resource management project. The scoping study found that the communities and their traditional leaders of all atolls were very supportive of the government proposal and that all three atoll communities were keen to be involved. SPREP put together a multi-disciplinary team (including scientists, educators, managers, and community specialists) to visit each of the Tokelau Atolls to undertake an assessment of the status and use patterns of the inshore and lagoon resources of the atolls as first step towards establishing a marine conservation program in Tokelau. The team also worked with the community on each atoll to establish an overview of community perceptions of atoll resource status, general concerns, as well as their attitudes towards conservation approaches to marine resources. The project did not focus on assessing the biodiversity of Tokaleau’s marine resources. Instead, it was designed to address issues raised by the community in particular, and to assess the general state of the marine environment and the status of harvested resources. In addition, the project was designed to assess the effectiveness of any management measures in place and the level of community support for management. The surveys aimed to: • Undertake a rapid assessment of the status of significant marine resources and ecosystems; • Undertake a series of surveys to gauge types and intensity of fishing activity; • Conduct a series of workshops and interviews to engage all sectors of the community and traditional leaders, enabling the community