Barriers and Strategies to the Development of Co-Management Regimes in New Zealand: The Case of Te Waihora

Abstract

Lake Te Waihora, near Christchurch on the South Island of New Zealand, has been at the forefront of a public policy debate concerning the co-management of Conservation Lands. Several developments have strengthened the assertion by Ngai Tahu, a Maori tribe, that they should be much more involved in the management of the water body. Yet despite these catalysts for co-management, several conservation-oriented interest groups with their close ties to the Department of Conservation and their ability to engender public concern successfully prevented a quick agreement. In response Ngai Tahu has sought to employ a variety of strategies (i.e., utilize the courts, display the viability of co-management, build partnerships, and develop their human and financial resources) in combination to help them secure co-management of Te Waihora. In the end these strategies were successful. An analysis of this is case compared to Pinkerton's theoretical propositions on the development of co-management regimes. This comparison is then given evidence to support six of the propositions and evidence to refute the remaining two. In addition, a new proposition, and a new dimension on a proposition, were developed. The study concluded that further testing of propositions is required to determine which ones hold up under the rigor of co-management case contexts. A further area of suggested research is to analyze the capacity of those bodies seeking shared management to determine their ability to recognize facilitating opportunities and implement strategies successfully to overcome barriers.