Carolina Planning Journal : Volume 43 / Planning for Uncertainty
members often possess abundant ecological knowledge, defined as a cumulative body of understanding, practices, and beliefs that evolves by adaptive processes, is handed down through generations by cultural transmission, and centers on the relationships of humans with one another and their environment (Berkes et al., 2000; Bethel et al., 2014: 1082). As noted by Burley (2010), Louisiana is one of a handful of locations in the U.S. where most people can trace their familial ties back generations, and many are engaged in natural resource-based activities that provide a lifetime of environmental observation and experience. Interest in TEK has grown due to a recognition that engaging community members based on their experiences can result in greater community support for sustainable resource management (Berkes et al., 2000), and augment science-based modeling to inform resource decisionmaking. Recent studies have shown that incorporating TEK in collaborative decision-making can reduce cost, bolster stakeholder confidence in the fairness of a process, and increase trust among stakeholders (Moller et al., 2004). There are numerous examples of using TEK in natural resource management, but few examples of its use in landuse planning, despite its potential for helping to identify local areas of concern and combine value priorities with risk impacts to identify priority focus areas. Exceptions include McEwen and collaborators (McEwen et al., 2016; McEwen & Jones, 2012; McEwen et al., 2012), who began using TEK to inform land use planning in the U.K. after the 2007 floods; and the Mi’kmaq Confederacy of Prince Edward Island, Canada, who have used TEK to develop appropriate landscape values and coastal protection strategies for significant cultural landmarks (MacFayden, 2015). Use of TEK in coordinated land use planning can play a key role in augmenting on-going modeling efforts, galvanizing support for large coastal restoration projects, and developing compromises given the reality of limited resources (Tompkins et al., 2008).
THE COAST AS COMMONS The Coastal Master Plan lays out a compelling case for the restoration economy and provides a pivotal moment for all coastal sectors to re-envision the future of Louisiana’s working coast. From a land use perspective, discussing alternative ways of inhabiting the coast is imperative. 86
However, there are community member concerns that restoration will be used to push people out and replace them with private industry (Colten, 2014). Wascom and Wilkins (2005) note there is little discussion of disputes arising from large-scale, publicly-funded restoration projects impacting private property. The authors argue that “creative methods of working with coastal managers and landowners must be in place before impassible legal roadblocks arise” (Wascom and Wilkins, 2004: 498). Yet, there has been little movement toward reigning in the practices that led to Louisiana’s coastal crisis. While some federal, state and local entities work to restore coastal wetlands, others continue to grant permits for petrochemical pipelines and industrial development in wetland environments. There must be a discussion— from the planning and administration perspective— about “bringing back the commons” (D. Popper & Popper, 1987). Without de-privatization, it is unlikely that federal or even state lawmakers will be willing to expend large sums of money on combating coastal erosion if they believe that the most substantial benefits will go to private parties. There will be winners and losers in any scenario. We already see declines in population and quality of life in southern Louisiana, much of which has fallen hardest on the poor. Further, based on limited funds and technology, there are no restoration scenarios that protect all communities and industries (LA OCD, 2015). Popper and Popper (2002: 23) define smart decline as “planning for less—fewer people, fewer buildings, fewer land uses.” The clearest application of this concept is in their proposal to establish a Buffalo Commons in severely shrinking parts of the Great Plains. The Poppers found that preservation and restoration of large parts of the Plains as “somewhere between traditional agriculture and pure wildness” offered “ecologically and economically restorative possibilities” (2004: 4). While there are similarities, examining Louisiana through this lens also represents uncharted territory—the canary in the coalmine for what may face many coastal regions. Business as usual in the face of climate change and the associated impacts (sea level rise, land loss, habitat degradation, increased storms, etc.) will be untenable.