Phase three is focussed on development a hybrid GIS-modelling system that will enable end-users to evaluate future planning options for Tauranga Harbour. This system will be a world first, in the sense that it couples spatial-dynamic relationships between terrestrial and estuarine ecosystems, as well as showing how these ecosystems inter-connect to the Tauranga economy, iwi/hapū cultural values, land use and other environmental factors. This Phase is led by Market Economics Ltd, with input from Massey University and other OTOT research partners.
Tauranga Harbour will be our test-bed, with tools/knowledge/processes readily transferred to other regions, other hapū/iwi and other ecosystem types, particularly coastal, through our deliberate benefit-transfer strategy.
Research Aim 5: Integrated Spatial Planning Tool (ISPT) – Integrated Solutions for Ecological Problems
The purpose of the Integrated Spatial Planning Tool (ISPT) is to integrate the ‘ecological data collected in ‘Manaaki Taha Moana’ (MAUX 0907), and in Research Aims 3-4, with ‘economic’ and ‘land use’ data. This will enable the co-management partners to make informed decisions not only about activities in the Harbour itself, but also activities on land that affect the ecological, economic, and cultural health of the Tauranga moana and its catchment.
The ISPT will consist of a number of interlinked modules, which can be run independently or simultaneously: (1) Tauranga Economy Module; (2) Land-Use Module; (3) Pollutants Transport Module; (4) Harbour Hydrodynamic Module; and (5) Tauranga Harbour Ecology Module. The modular approach will allow the tool to include module(s) related to cultural information, if and when it is deemed to be appropriate by the holders of said cultural information. Associated with the model are a number of ecological, economic, and cultural (if appropriate) performance indicators, which enable end-users to immediately understand the outcomes and trade-offs of a particular future scenario simulated using the ISPT.
RA5 has the following steps:
- Mediated Modelling of Tauranga Harbour
- Tauranga Economy Module
- Tauranga Land-Use Module
- Pollutants Transport Module
- Hydrodynamic Module
- Inter-tidal and Sub-tidal Ecology Module
- Model Integration and Validation
- Using the Integrated Spatial Planning Tool (ISPT) to Explore Challenges and Empower Co-Management Decision-Making