Assessing Anchor Damage on Coral Reefs: A Case Study in Selection of Environmental Indicators

Because environmental conservation can remove scarce natural resources from competing uses, it is important to gain support for conservation programs by demonstrating that management actions have been effective in achieving their goals. One way to do this is to show that selected significant environmental variables (indicators) vary between managed and unmanaged areas or change over time following implementation of a management regime. However, identifying indicators that reflect environmental conditions relevant to management practices has proven difficult. This paper focuses on developing a framework for choosing indicators in a coral reef habitat. The framework consisted of three phases: (1) information gathering to identify candidate variables; (2) field-testing candidate variables at sites that differ in intensity of human activity, thus identifying potential indicators; and (3) evaluating potential indicators against a set of feasibility criteria to identify the most useful indicators. To identify indicators suitable to measure the success of a management strategy to reduce anchor damage to a coral reef, 24 candidate variables were identified and evaluated at sites with different intensities of anchoring. In this study, measures that reflected injuries to coral colonies were generally more efficient than traditional measures of coral cover in describing the effects of anchoring. The number of overturned colonies was identified as the single most useful indicator of coral reef condition associated with anchoring intensities. The indicator selection framework developed here has the advantages of being transparent, cost efficient, and readily transferable to other types of human activities and management strategies.     

Spatial and Temporal Effects of Port Facilities Expansion on the Surface Area of Shallow Coral Reefs

There is a close relationship between ports and reef areas, mainly because reefs provide protection to vessels against extreme weather events like storms and hurricanes. This historical relationship has generated severe impacts on reef ecosystems. In order to identify the main impacts from the construction of port facilities in shallow coral reef areas, we analyzed and described the effects of land reclamation and coastal structure construction associated to port growth throughout a century in the Sistema Arrecifal Veracruzano National Park, Mexico. We used aerial photographs and maps of the nineteenth and early twentieth century to assess the impacts caused by port expansion activities on shallow coral reefs. Three types of impacts were identified: (a) direct reef area loss caused by landfills and perpendicular coastal structures construction leading to the loss of nearly 50 % of the fringing reef near to the port; (b) fragmentation in short- and medium-term scale, which affects two fringing reefs, and (c) long-term modification of coastal dynamics leading to sedimentation and loss of a complete reef area. On the eve of a new expansion of Veracruz Port, we used the New Port Project Plan, long-shore net drift geomorphic indicators and the port impact typology from the 100-year period assessment to evaluate a possible future scenario. The scenario describes how the new expansion project will repeat the three types of impacts affecting a whole reef area, which is currently part of the National Park.     

Impact of human trampling in different zones of a coral reef flat

The effects of trampling on the coral communities of the outer reef flat and reef crest were investigated at Heron Island at the southern end of the Great Barrier Reef. Eighteen months of trampling at various intensities increased the percentage cover of unoccupied substrate and the cover of mobile rubble. The morphology of the coral was the most important feature relating to trampling resistance. Branching corals were reduced on the outer reef flat, and most broken branches were recorded in the initial phases of the experiment. The reef crest was much more resistant.A short-term trampling experiment showed that trampling detached a greater mass and larger fragments of coral on the outer reef flat than on the reef crest. Further trampling reduced the sizes of the detached fragments on the outer reef flat. A drift experiment indicated that greatest movement of fragments occurred on the reef crest and here the largest fragments moved greater distances.We concluded that all habitats would be changed by reef walking and that by one measure the outer reef flat was 16 times more vulnerable than the reef crest. The routes taken by reef walkers need to be chosen in relation to the trampling resistance of the habitat.     

Managing Dive Tourism for the Sustainable Use of Coral Reefs: Validating Diver Perceptions of Attractive Site Features

It has been argued that strategies to manage natural areas important for tourism and recreation should integrate an understanding of tourist preferences for specific natural features. However, the accuracy of tourist recalled perceptions of environmental attributes, which are usually derived from post hoc surveys and used to establish management priorities, is currently unmeasured. We tested the validity of the relationship between tourist-stated preferences and actual condition of coral reefs around the Caribbean island of Bonaire. Using standardized questionnaires, we asked 200 divers to select their most and least favorite dive sites and the attributes that contributed to that selection. We also carried out ecological surveys at 76 of the 81 dives sites around the island to assess the actual conditions of the attributes indicated as important for site selection. Fish- and coral-related attributes were key features affecting dive enjoyment. In general, divers appeared to be able to perceive differences between sites in the true condition of biological attributes such as fish species richness, total number of fish schools, live coral cover, coral species richness, and reef structural complexity, although men and women divers differed in their ability to perceive/recall some of the attributes. Perceived differences in environmental attributes, such as surface conditions, underwater current, and the likelihood of encountering rare fish and sea turtles, were not empirically validated. The fact that divers perceive correctly differences in the condition of some of the key biological attributes that affect dive enjoyment reinforces the need to maintain overall reef condition at satisfactory levels. However, variation in accuracy of perceptions owing to demographic factors and attribute type suggests the need for caution when using public perceptions to develop environmental management strategies, particularly for coral reefs.     

Application of non-market valuation to the Florida Keys marine reserve management

The quality of the coral reefs in the Florida Keys is essential to sustain nature-based tourism in the Keys. The recently established marine reserves (MR) are expected to improve the reef environment, particularly coral and fish abundance and diversity. In this paper, a combined model of travel cost and contingent behavior was estimated in order to measure the non-market recreational benefits of reef quality improvements. The results indicated that an average visitor would undertake 43-80% more number of trips to the Florida Keys and experience a 69% increase in the use values per trip, as a result of the MR-induced reef quality improvements. The above non-market value estimates were further applied to evaluating alternative management proposals for funding the MR program. It was found that the annual management costs of the MR program would constitute an insignificant portion--only around one to 2%--of the annual recreational benefits that the MR would generate. The results provide a strong economic justification for designing user-based funding mechanisms in order to make the MR program self-sustaining in the future.     

A Decision Support Framework for Science-Based, Multi-Stakeholder Deliberation: A Coral Reef Example

We present a decision support framework for science-based assessment and multi-stakeholder deliberation. The framework consists of two parts: a DPSIR (Drivers–Pressures–States–Impacts–Responses) analysis to identify the important causal relationships among anthropogenic environmental stressors, processes, and outcomes; and a Decision Landscape analysis to depict the legal, social, and institutional dimensions of environmental decisions. The Decision Landscape incorporates interactions among government agencies, regulated businesses, non-government organizations, and other stakeholders. It also identifies where scientific information regarding environmental processes is collected and transmitted to improve knowledge about elements of the DPSIR and to improve the scientific basis for decisions. Our application of the decision support framework to coral reef protection and restoration in the Florida Keys focusing on anthropogenic stressors, such as wastewater, proved to be successful and offered several insights. Using information from a management plan, it was possible to capture the current state of the science with a DPSIR analysis as well as important decision options, decision makers and applicable laws with a the Decision Landscape analysis. A structured elicitation of values and beliefs conducted at a coral reef management workshop held in Key West, Florida provided a diversity of opinion and also indicated a prioritization of several environmental stressors affecting coral reef health. The integrated DPSIR/Decision landscape framework for the Florida Keys developed based on the elicited opinion and the DPSIR analysis can be used to inform management decisions, to reveal the role that further scientific information and research might play to populate the framework, and to facilitate better-informed agreement among participants.     

A Framework for Responding to Coral Disease Outbreaks that Facilitates Adaptive Management

Predicted increases in coral disease outbreaks associated with climate change have implications for coral reef ecosystems and the people and industries that depend on them. It is critical that coral reef managers understand these implications and have the ability to assess and reduce risk, detect and contain outbreaks, and monitor and minimise impacts. Here, we present a coral disease response framework that has four core components: (1) an early warning system, (2) a tiered impact assessment program, (3) scaled management actions and (4) a communication plan. The early warning system combines predictive tools that monitor the risk of outbreaks of temperature-dependent coral diseases with in situ observations provided by a network of observers who regularly report on coral health and reef state. Verified reports of an increase in disease prevalence trigger a tiered response of more detailed impact assessment, targeted research and/or management actions. The response is scaled to the risk posed by the outbreak, which is a function of the severity and spatial extent of the impacts. We review potential management actions to mitigate coral disease impacts and facilitate recovery, considering emerging strategies unique to coral disease and more established strategies to support reef resilience. We also describe approaches to communicating about coral disease outbreaks that will address common misperceptions and raise awareness of the coral disease threat. By adopting this framework, managers and researchers can establish a community of practice and can develop response plans for the management of coral disease outbreaks based on local needs. The collaborations between managers and researchers we suggest will enable adaptive management of disease impacts following evaluating the cost-effectiveness of emerging response actions and incrementally improving our understanding of outbreak causation.     

Snorkelling and trampling in shallow-water fringing reefs: risk assessment and proposed management strategy

Shallow reefs (reef flats <1.5 m) in the northern Red Sea are impacted by growing tourism that includes swimmers, snorkellers and reef walkers but have largely been neglected in past studies. We selected a fringing reef along the lagoon of Dahab (Sinai, Egypt) as a model for a management strategy. Point-intercept line transects were used to determine substrate composition, coral community and condition, and the coral damage index (CDI) was applied. Approximately 84% of the coral colonies showed signs of damage such as breakage, partial mortality or algal overgrowth, especially affecting the most frequent coral genus Acropora. Questionnaires were used to determine the visitors' socio-economic background and personal attitudes regarding snorkelling, SCUBA-diving and interest in visiting a prospective snorkelling trail. Experiencing nature (97%) was by far the strongest motivation, and interest in further education about reef ecology and skill training was high. Less experienced snorkellers and divers--the target group for further education and skill training--were those most prepared to financially support such a trail. We therefore recommend a guided underwater snorkelling trail and restricting recreational use to a less sensitive 'ecotourism zone' while protecting the shallow reef flat. Artificial structures can complete the trail and offer the opportunity to snorkel over deeper areas at unfavourable tide or wind conditions. This approach provides a strategy for the management and conservation of shallow-water reefs, which are facing increasing human impact here and elsewhere.     

Valuing snorkeling visits to the Florida Keys with stated and revealed preference models

Coastal coral reefs, especially in the Florida Keys, are declining at a disturbing rate. Marine ecologists and reef scientists have emphasized the importance of establishing nonmarket values of coral reefs to assess the cost effectiveness of coral reef management and remediation programs. The purpose of this paper is to develop a travel cost-contingent valuation model of demand for trips to the Florida Keys focusing on willingness to pay (WTP) to preserve the current water quality and health of the coral reefs. The stated and revealed preference models allow the marginal valuation of recreationists to adjust depending on current and planned trip commitments in valuing nonmarginal policy changes in recreational opportunities. The integrated model incorporates key factors for establishing baseline amenity values for tourist dive sites, including perceptions of reef quality and dive conditions, the role of substitute sites, and the quality and availability of tourist facilities and recreation opportunities. The travel cost and WTP model differ in identifying critical variables and provide insight into the adjustment of trip decisions across alternative destination sites and the valuation of trips. In contrast to the travel cost model, a measure of the availability of substitute sites and total recreation activities does not have a significant impact on WTP valuations reported by snorkelers. Snorkelers engage in a relatively focused set of activities, suggesting that these recreationists may not shift expenditures to other sites or other recreation activities in the Florida Keys when confronted with increased access costs for the snorkeling experience.     

Use of Integrated Landscape Indicators to Evaluate the Health of Linked Watersheds and Coral Reef Environments in the Hawaiian Islands

A linkage between the condition of watersheds and adjacent nearshore coral reef communities is an assumed paradigm in the concept of integrated coastal management. However, quantitative evidence for this "catchment to sea" or "ridge to reef" relationship on oceanic islands is lacking and would benefit from the use of appropriate marine and terrestrial landscape indicators to quantify and evaluate ecological status on a large spatial scale. To address this need, our study compared the Hawai'i Watershed Health Index (HI-WHI) and Reef Health Index (HI-RHI) derived independently of each other over the past decade. Comparisons were made across 170 coral reef stations at 52 reef sites adjacent to 42 watersheds throughout the main Hawaiian Islands. A significant positive relationship was shown between the health of watersheds and that of adjacent reef environments when all sites and depths were considered. This relationship was strongest for sites facing in a southerly direction, but diminished for north facing coasts exposed to persistent high surf. High surf conditions along the north shore increase local wave driven currents and flush watershed-derived materials away from nearshore waters. Consequently, reefs in these locales are less vulnerable to the deposition of land derived sediments, nutrients and pollutants transported from watersheds to ocean. Use of integrated landscape health indices can be applied to improve regional-scale conservation and resource management.     

Starting point or solution? Community-based marine protected areas in the Philippines

In 1985, in response to declining coral reef conditions, local residents and officials established small, no-take marine sanctuaries on Balicasag and Pamilacan Islands through a community-based process. The implementation of marine protected areas (MPAs) on Balicasag and Pamilacan Islands has been a partial success. As a direct result of protection, living hard coral cover has increased by 119% in Balicasag's sanctuary and by 67% in the non-sanctuary during the period 1984 to 1999, but Balicasag's reef is increasingly affected by breakage from anchors from dive boats and Crown-of-thorns starfish infestations. During the same period, living hard coral cover decreased by 20% in Pamilacan's sanctuary and by 45% in the non-sanctuary from 1984 to 1999. The decrease in living hard coral cover in Pamilacan's sanctuary is most likely a result of the 1998 bleaching event, Crown-of-thorn starfish and possible storm damage. Although there was an initial increase in the economically important target fish abundance in the Balicasag sanctuary and non-sanctuary and in the Pamilacan sanctuary during the first two years of implementation in the mid-1980s, there has since been a significant decline. Mean target fish abundance for the Balicasag non-sanctuary at 230 (+/- 65) individuals per 500 m2 is not significantly different from control sites without MPAs on nearby Panglao and Cabilao Islands at 164 (+/- 67) individuals per 500 m2. In general, fish abundance and diversity inside and outside the sanctuaries peaked in 1986, a year after the establishment of the sanctuaries when enforcement was strictest. Therefore, despite considerable success in enforcing regulations associated with these small MPAs at Balicasag and Pamilacan Islands, a trend of declining fish abundance and species richness among economically valuable species immediately outside the no-take areas highlights the limitations of small and isolated MPAs. This study contributes to the growing sentiment that it is not realistic for scattered, small no-take areas to maintain fish abundance and diversity on surrounding reefs when intensive fishing effort immediately adjacent to no-take areas removes most fish that exit these areas. This finding emphasizes the importance of nesting individual MPAs within broader management regimes that lead to overall fishing effort reduction and networking of MPAs. Among other recommendations, the authors advocate for continued support for community-based MPAs, a network of MPAs, reduced fishing effort in areas surrounding the MPAs and other management measures to improve the quality of the coral reef habitats.     

Application of Zoning and “Limits of Acceptable Change” to Manage Snorkelling Tourism

Zoning and applying Limits of Acceptable Change (LAC) are two promising strategies for managing tourism in Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). Typically, these management strategies require the collection and integration of ecological and socioeconomic data. This problem is illustrated by a case study of Koh Chang National Marine Park, Thailand. Biophysical surveys assessed coral communities in the MPA to derive indices of reef diversity and vulnerability. Social surveys assessed visitor perceptions and satisfaction with conditions encountered on snorkelling tours. Notably, increased coral mortality caused a significant decrease in visitor satisfaction. The two studies were integrated to prescribe zoning and “Limits of Acceptable Change” (LAC). As a biophysical indicator, the data suggest a LAC value of 0.35 for the coral mortality index. As a social indicator, the data suggest that a significant fraction of visitors would find a LAC value of under 30 snorkellers per site as acceptable. The draft zoning plan prescribed four different types of zones: (I) a Conservation Zone with no access apart from monitoring or research; (II) Tourism Zones with high tourism intensities at less vulnerable reefs; (III) Ecotourism zones with a social LAC standard of <30 snorkellers per site, and (IV) General Use Zones to meet local artisanal fishery needs. This study illustrates how ecological and socioeconomic field studies in MPAs can be integrated to craft zoning plans addressing multiple objectives.     

Climate Change, Coral Reef Ecosystems, and Management Options for Marine Protected Areas

Marine protected areas (MPAs) provide place-based management of marine ecosystems through various degrees and types of protective actions. Habitats such as coral reefs are especially susceptible to degradation resulting from climate change, as evidenced by mass bleaching events over the past two decades. Marine ecosystems are being altered by direct effects of climate change including ocean warming, ocean acidification, rising sea level, changing circulation patterns, increasing severity of storms, and changing freshwater influxes. As impacts of climate change strengthen they may exacerbate effects of existing stressors and require new or modified management approaches; MPA networks are generally accepted as an improvement over individual MPAs to address multiple threats to the marine environment. While MPA networks are considered a potentially effective management approach for conserving marine biodiversity, they should be established in conjunction with other management strategies, such as fisheries regulations and reductions of nutrients and other forms of land-based pollution. Information about interactions between climate change and more “traditional” stressors is limited. MPA managers are faced with high levels of uncertainty about likely outcomes of management actions because climate change impacts have strong interactions with existing stressors, such as land-based sources of pollution, overfishing and destructive fishing practices, invasive species, and diseases. Management options include ameliorating existing stressors, protecting potentially resilient areas, developing networks of MPAs, and integrating climate change into MPA planning, management, and evaluation.     

Community involvement in marine protected areas: the case of Puerto Morelos reef, México

The case of Puerto Morelos reef marine protected area (MPA) provides an example of a community-based marine conservation initiative to protect a coral reef ecosystem. The establishment and maintenance of this MPA had five stages: (a) identification of community leaders who would participate in the project; (b) generation of consensus on the need to protect the reef through discussions among local stakeholders, NGOs and reef scientists; (c) involvement of government agencies in establishing the status of a MPA; (d) take-over of decision-making by centralized governmental agencies; and (e) continuous problem-solving process between the government and stakeholders. Over a 9-year period, the control of the MPA was taken over by government and stakeholders' participation downgraded from a decision-making to an advice-giving role. Government shortcomings to manage this MPA could be circumvented via collaborative co-management. Given the small population size of the community and strong sense of ownership, there was a high level of participation in the decision-making processes and scientific advisors are present in the area.     

Visitor Perceptions and the Shifting Social Carrying Capacity of South Sinai’s Coral Reefs

To investigate how the perceptions and behaviour of visitors to coral reefs are influenced by their prior experience and knowledge of marine life, a questionnaire-based study was undertaken at sites in the Ras Mohammed National Park and at Sharm El Sheikh, South Sinai, Egypt. It was evident that over the 10–20 years during which these reefs have deteriorated (mainly due to reef-flat trampling), there have been interrelated shifts in the nature of visitors making use of them. First, there has been a shift from experienced divers and snorkellers to inexperienced snorkellers and non-snorkellers with a poorer knowledge of reef biology. Second, there has been a shift in the predominant nationalities of visitors, from German and British, through Italian, to Russian. More recent user groups both stated and showed that they had less experience of snorkelling; they also showed less knowledge of marine life and less interest in learning about it. Visitor perceptions of both the state of the marine life on the reefs and the acceptability of current visitor numbers also varied between groups. More recent visitor groups and visitors with less knowledge were more satisfied with reef health. In general, however, visitor perceptions of reef health did not correlate well with actual reef conditions, probably because more experienced visitors preferred less impacted sites with which they were nevertheless less satisfied than inexperienced visitors at heavily impacted sites. More recent visitor groups were also less bothered by crowding on the shore or in the water. Consequently, the apparent “social carrying capacity” of sites seems to be increasing to a level well above the likely “ecological carrying capacity”.     

Influence of Social, Biophysical, and Managerial Conditions on Tourism Experiences Within the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area

N  = 1475) traveling with tourism operations of different sizes who traveled to different sites completed surveys. Results indicated that snorkelers who traveled with larger operations (more people and infrastructure) differed from those traveling with smaller operations (few people and little on-site infrastructure) on benefits received and in the way that specific conditions influenced their enjoyment. Benefits related to nature, escape, and family helped to define reef experiences. Conditions related to coral, fish, and operator staff had a positive influence on the enjoyment of most visitors but, number of people on the trip and site infrastructure may have the greatest potential as setting indicators. Data support the potential usefulness of visitor input in applying the LAC concept to a marine environment where tourism and recreational uses are rapidly changing.     

Options for Managing Hypoxic Blackwater in River Systems: Case Studies and Framework

Hypoxic blackwater events occur when large amounts of organic material are leached into a water body (e.g., during floodplain inundation) and rapid metabolism of this carbon depletes oxygen from the water column, often with catastrophic effects on the aquatic environment. River regulation may have increased the frequency and severity of hypoxic blackwater events in lowland river systems, necessitating management intervention to mitigate the impacts of these events on aquatic biota. We examine the effectiveness of a range of mitigation interventions that have been used during large-scale hypoxic blackwater events in the Murray–Darling Basin, Australia and that may be applicable in other environments at risk from hypoxic blackwater. Strategies for hypoxia mitigation include: delivery of dilution flows; enhancement of physical re-aeration rates by increasing surface turbulence; and diversion of blackwater into shallow off-channel storages. We show that the impact of dilution water delivery is determined by relative volumes and water quality and can be predicted using simple models. At the dilution water inflow point, localized oxygenated plumes may also act as refuges. Physical re-aeration strategies generally result in only a small increase in dissolved oxygen but may be beneficial for local refuge protection. Dilution and natural re-aeration processes in large, shallow lake systems can be sufficient to compensate for hypoxic inflows and water processed in off-channel lakes may be able to be returned to the river channel as dilution flows. We provide a set of predictive models (as electronic supplementary material) for estimation of the re-aeration potential of intervention activities and a framework to guide the adaptive management of future hypoxic blackwater events.     

Marine litter in coral reef areas along the Jordan Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea

Composition and abundance of submerged marine litter at six selected sites within a coral reef area along the Jordanian coast of the Gulf of Aqaba have been estimated. The litter was collected in clean up voluntary campaigns that took place in the period between 25 August 2003 and 29 February 2004. A total of 10,506 items weighing 1159 kg were collected during the survey. Mean litter density in the individual sampling sites varied between 1 and 6 items/m(2) with an overall mean density of 2.8 items/m(2). The mean weight of the collected items per sampling site varied between 0.06 and 1.06 kg/m(2) with an overall mean of 0.31 kg/m(2). Plastic accounted for 42% of the collected items, fishing gear was the second most abundant (31%) while metal was the third most abundant item (17%). By comparison, cardboard constituted 1%, and rubber and other items accounted for less than 1% of the total items collected during the campaigns. Approximately 61% of the plastics consisted of bags followed by bottles (24%), plastic containers and sheets accounted for 13 and 2%, respectively. Statistical analysis indicates no significant differences between the sites in terms of litter count and weight. Potential sources are pointed out and recommendations and actions to address the problem are suggested.     

The role of scientific studies in building consensus in environmental decision making: a coral reef example

We present a new approach for characterizing the potential of scientific studies to reduce conflict among stakeholders in an analytic-deliberative environmental decision-making process. The approach computes a normalized metric, the Expected Consensus Index of New Research (ECINR), for identifying where additional scientific research will best support improved decisions and resolve possible conflicts over preferred management actions. The ECINR reflects the expected change in agreement among parties over preferred management actions with the implementation and consideration of new scientific studies. We demonstrate the ECINR method based on a preliminary application to coral reef protection and restoration in the Guánica Bay Watershed, Puerto Rico, focusing on assessing and managing anthropogenic stressors, including sedimentation and pollution from land-based sources such as sewage, agriculture, and development. Structured elicitations of values and beliefs conducted at a coral reef decision support workshop held at La Parguera, Puerto Rico, are used to develop information for illustrating the methodology. The ECINR analysis was focused on a final study group of seven stakeholders, consisting of resource managers and scientists, who were not in agreement on the efficacy and respective benefits of reducing loadings from three sources: sewage, agriculture, and development. The scenario assumed that loadings would be reduced incrementally from each source through a series of management steps, which would be ranked in order of maximizing anticipated benefits. An examination of whether beliefs exhibited greater confidence and coherence between stakeholders when informed by plausible study results followed. The results suggest that new scientific research would be generally likely to bring people who initially disagreed to agree. Seventy-five percent of the hypothetical research results were projected to result in more agreement among the stakeholders. However, there can be situations where prior beliefs may be too different from the study results to shift perspectives enough to result in more agreement. Furthermore, in a few cases, hypothetical research results were projected to lead to more conflict among stakeholders. Priority research, according to the seven stakeholders, would be to quantify loadings from agriculture and sewage, and not loadings from development, since it is predicted to make little difference in the outcome. Assuming the stakeholders are conflict-averse, they would likely opt for research on sewage loadings as the highest priority. Though preliminary, these results suggest that ECINR can provide useful insights into the social implications of a research program.     

The legacy of migration in response to climate stress: learning from the Gilbertese resettlement in the Solomon Islands

The long‐term threat of sea‐level rise to coral atoll and reef island communities in Kiribati, Tuvalu and other nations has raised the possibility of international migration. Historical resettlements in the Pacific may provide valuable insight into the long‐term effect of future climate change‐related migration on communities. This study evaluates the challenges faced by Gilbertese people resettled from modern‐day Kiribati to Ghizo in the Solomon Islands by the British colonial administration in the mid‐1900s. Drawing upon field interviews (n = 45) conducted in 2011 and the available historical literature, the study examines the circumstances of the initial failed resettlement in the equatorial Phoenix Islands, the subsequent relocation to Ghizo, and the recent concerns of the Gilbertese in Ghizo. Focus is placed on the struggle to recover from the 2007 tsunami that devastated the unprepared community. The analysis reveals that uncertainty about land tenure (raised by 61% of respondents) persists 60 years after resettlement, and is linked to the ability to recover from the tsunami, tensions with the Melanesian population, concerns over political representation, cultural decline, and education and employment opportunities. The Gilbertese experience can serve as a cautionary tale for policymakers considering mechanisms for facilitating climate change‐related migration.