Port Vila, Vanuatu
City population: 299882
Duration: 2019 – 2020
Implementation status: Other
Scale: Meso-scale: Regional, metropolitan and urban level
Project area: unknown
Type of area: Agricultural area or farmland
Last updated: October 2021

The Tagabe Riparian Corridor Regeneration Project is an integrated catchment project ‘designed to build resilience into the riparian system to safeguard human wellbeing in the face of current and future climate change challenges and key population/ resources demands’ (Ref. 4). The project is focused on the ‘riparian margins of mid to lower catchment streams in the Tagabe catchment’ (Ref. 4,5). Activities consist of ‘riparian revegetation and stream bank protection; sustainable land management of adjacent farmlands; and point source pollution prevention and remediation’ through a series of 5-year management periods (Ref. 4,5). The project was part of the larger PEBACC (Pacific Ecosystem-based Adaptation to Climate Change) project and is now supported by the Vanuatu Government and various other initiatives like the Pacific R2R – Ridge to Reef programme (Ref. 8,9).

Blacksand Bahai'i Community with Bags of Rubbish, followed by Planting of Vetiver and Native Plants
Blacksand Bahai'i Community with Bags of Rubbish, followed by Planting of Vetiver and Native Plants
Source: Ref. 6

Overview

Nature-based solution

  • Grey infrastructure featuring greens
  • Blue infrastructure
  • Riverbank/Lakeside greens
  • Rivers/streams/canals/estuaries

Key challenges

  • Climate action for adaptation, resilience and mitigation (SDG 13)
  • Climate change adaptation
  • Water management (SDG 6)
  • Flood protection
  • Improvements to water quality
  • Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
  • Habitat and biodiversity restoration

Focus

Management and improved protection of rivers and other blue areas, Ecological restoration of ecosystems

Project objectives

The Tagabe Riparian Corridor Regeneration Project aims to ‘develop a resilient water catchment system that supports human wellbeing and the local economy through the protection and enhancement of ecological infrastructure capable of maximizing the delivery of provisioning services (food, freshwater, and raw materials such as wood & fibre), regulating services (prevention of disturbance such as flood, cyclone & drought regulation), supporting services (species maintenance, or biodiversity conservation) and cultural services for the Port Vila population’ (Ref. 5). Specific aims of the project are (Ref. 5): - ‘Protection and enhancement of woody vegetation along stream banks and on adjacent lands’; - ‘Sustainable land management practices on adjacent lands delivering reduced sedimentation and reduced non-point source pollutants’; - ‘Reduction/ elimination of point source pollutant delivery to streams’.

Implementation activities

- Implementation plan developed in 2017 (Ref. 5); - Conduct baseline studies, community consultations & develop a methodology (Ref. 4,5); - Community education and public awareness as a key deliverable in community consultations and funder consultations (Ref. 5) – awareness campaigns for the project were launched in July 2019 to the following: Ifira Paramount Chief and Ifira Council of Chiefs; Tanvasoko Area Council and Blacksands Chiefs; the Chiefs of Sulphur Bay Smol and Sulphur Bay Big (Ref. 6); - Restore vegetation along the banks & mouth of Tagabe River (Ref. 1,4) – via community training, tree nurseries establishment, fencing, and riparian plantings (Ref. 5) – Blacksands coastal community planting in 2019 (Ref. 6); Tagabe Bridge Community planting in 2020 (Ref. 7); - Sustainable land management of adjacent farmlands (Ref. 4) – via community training, changed land management practices in targeted area (Ref. 5); - Point source pollution prevention and remediation (Ref. 4) – via changed practices at target sites (Ref. 5); - Conduct community-based project monitoring/ reporting (Ref. 5).

Climate-focused activities

Climate change adaptation:

  • Renaturalization of rivers and other water bodies

Biodiversity conservation or restoration-focused activities

Biodiversity restoration:

  • Rehabilitate and restore damaged or destroyed ecosystems
  • Public engagement

Main beneficiaries

  • National-level government
  • Citizens or community groups

Governance

Management set-up

  • Co-governance with government and non-government actors

Type of initiating organisation

  • National government
  • Regional government
  • Transnational network

Participatory approaches/ community involvement

  • Consultation (e.g. workshop, surveys, community meetings, town halls)
  • Joint implementation (e.g. tree planting)

Details on the roles of the organisations involved in the project

- Key members of the project steering group: Vanuatu Department of Forestry (Ref. 1,6), Department of Water (Ref. 6), Department of Environmental Conservation and Protection (Ref. 6), Shefa Provincial Government (Ref. 6), Ifira Marine Management (Ref. 6), and SPREP PEBACC project (Ref. 6). - SPREP – Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (an inter-governmental organization/ agency) (Ref. 3,4,5,6). - PEBACC – Pacific Ecosystem-based Adaptation to Climate Change project – a network that provides support for EbA policy, planning, and implementation (Ref. 3,4). - German government funding through PEBACC project (Ref. 4,10). - Ecosystem Services – a private consulting firm – developed and implemented a plan to restore vegetation along the banks and at the mouth of the Tagabe River (Ref. 1). - Communities within the Tagabe River catchment (Ref. 1,4).

Project implemented in response to ...

... an EU policy or strategy? No
... a national policy or strategy? Yes (Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction Policy; National Environment Policy and Implementation Plan; Vanuatu Forest Policy; National Oceans Policy (Ref. 4))
... a local policy or strategy? Yes (Greater Port Vila Planning Scheme; Tagabe Water Management Area Management Plan; Efate Land Management Area land proposal (Ref. 5))

Financing

Total cost

Unknown

Source(s) of funding

  • Public regional budget
  • Multilateral funds/international funding

Type of funding

  • Earmarked public budget
  • Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities)

Non-financial contribution

Type of non-financial contribution
  • Provision of labour
Who provided the non-financial contribution?
  • Citizens (e.g. volunteering)

Impacts and Monitoring

Environmental impacts

  • Environmental quality
  • Improved waste management
  • Water management and blue areas
  • Enhanced protection and restoration of freshwater ecosystems
  • Green space and habitat
  • Increased green space area
  • Increased conservation or restoration of ecosystems
  • Increased number of species present

Economic impacts

  • Unknown

Socio-cultural impacts

  • Social justice and cohesion
  • Increased involvement of locals in the management of green spaces
  • Education
  • Increased knowledge of locals about local nature

Type of reported impacts

Achieved impacts

Presence of formal monitoring system

Unknown

Presence of indicators used in reporting

Yes

Presence of monitoring/ evaluation reports

No evidence in public records

Availability of a web-based monitoring tool

No evidence in public records

References

1. Ecosystem Services. (n.d.). Riparian Restoration: Tagabe River Project. Ecosystem Services. Available at: Source link [Accessed: 15 September 2021].
2. SPREP. (2021). Project Publications and Reports. SPREP. Available at: Source link [Accessed: 18 September 2021].
3. Blaschke, P.M. and Timmermans, H. (2018). Ecosystem-based adaptation in Port Vila, Vanuatu. Panel discussion on Front-Line Islands and Cities: building resilient island communities. ICLEI 9th Global Forum on Urban Resilience and Adaptation. Retrieved from: Source link [Document provided].
4. SPREP. (2018). Planning for ecosystem-based adaptation in Port Vila, Vanuatu: Synthesis report. Apia: Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme. Retrieved from: Source link [Document provided].
5. Zari, M.B., Blaschke, P., Livesey, C., Martinez-Almoyna, C., Weaver, S., Archie, K.M., Jackson, B., Komugabe, A., Maxwell, D., Rastandeh, A., and Renwick, J. (2017). Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) Project Implementation Plans, Port Vila, Vanuatu. Victoria University of Wellington. Retrieved from: Source link [Document provided].
6. PEBACC. (2019). Newsletter: Issue 8, December 2019. PEBACC. Retrieved from: Source link [Document provided].
7. PEBACC. (2020). Newsletter: Issue 9, Jan-May 2020. PEBACC. Retrieved from: Source link [Document provided].
8. PEBACC. (2020). Newsletter: Issue 10, August 2020. PEBACC. Retrieved from: Source link [Document provided].
9. Mangisi-Mafileo, I. (2020). Restoring Tagabe River, Now and Beyond. Pacific R2R – Ridge to Reef. Available at: Source link [Accessed: 18 September 2021].
10. SPREP. (2021).Pacific Ecosystem-Based Adaptation to Climate Source link. Available at: Source link [Accessed: 18 September 2021].
Irifa Paramount Chief, Ifira Council of Chiefs with Tagabe Riparian Restoration Project Steering Group
Irifa Paramount Chief, Ifira Council of Chiefs with Tagabe Riparian Restoration Project Steering Group
Source: Ref. 6
Steering Committee Presenting Seedlings to Chiefs and Community Representative from Sulphur Bay Big and Sulphur Bay Smol
Source: Ref. 6
Information about this nature-based solution was collected as part of the UNA global extension project funded by the British Academy.