Fiji

FIJI Post-Disaster Needs Assessment
Available literature was used to calculate the economic valuation of ecosystem services in the cyclone-affected area and,
thus, estimate the damage and losses caused by TC Winston. The total value of damage to environmental assets is
approximately F$233 million of which 51 percent is damage to coral reefs, 37 percent to native forests and 12 percent to
mangroves. The total value of losses for these three environmental assets is approximately F$630 million. 110 Total recovery
needs are around F$61 million, while reconstruction needs are approximately F$13 million.
Environment Sector Background
Fiji has a range of ecosystems, including seagrass beds, coral reefs, mangroves, wetlands, tropical forests and grasslands.
Native forests, mangroves and coral reefs cover 1,423,280 hectares (ha) of land and coastal area.
600000
500000
Assets in affected areas cyclone
Assets in non affected areas
400000
Hectares
300000
200000
100000
0
Native Forest
Figure 31: Hectares of Assets in Affected Areas
Source: Estimations by Assessment Team.
Mangrove
Assest Type
Coral reefs
Native Forests cover about 969,050 ha of land, of which 47 percent is in cyclone-affected provinces. Only a small
percentage (approximately 2.7 percent or 43,000 ha) is currently in protected areas with another 57,000 ha proposed for
conservation/protection (National Environment Council-IP Report; Olson et al., 2010; Fiji Biodiversity Strategy and Action
Plan, 2007). Dry forests are among the most critically endangered forest types. Multiple pressures have degraded the
condition of forests, including illegal logging, unsustainable harvesting of timber by traditional landholders, clearance for
agriculture, collection of firewood, and invasive vine and tree species, particularly African tulip.
Mangroves cover 54,190 ha of coastal areas, of which 67 percent are in cyclone-affected provinces. The major pressures
on mangrove forests are illegal logging and fuelwood collection, which led to around a 25 percent loss of total mangrove
area from 2003 to 2013 (MACBIO, 2016).
Coral Reefs cover approximately 454,000 ha of nearshore and marine areas in Fiji. Of these, almost 80 percent is within
a 50km radius from the cyclone’s path. Almost 17 percent of coral reefs are under conservation and local protection, an
increase from 12 percent in 2010. This resulted from the decision by local communities to establish the Fiji Locally Managed
Marine Area.
Assessment of Disaster Effects on the Environment (F$862 million)
The combined damage and losses for the environment sector amount to F$862 million, of which F$233 million is attributable
to damage, F$595 million are losses from ecosystem assets and F$34 million is attributable to losses generated by waste
management requirements following TC Winston.
Damage to the Environment (F$232 million)
For native forests and mangroves, damage included fallen trees and extensive loss of foliage stripped by the cyclone. For
coral reefs, damage included uprooting of hard corals, and extensive death of fish and other marine life (see Box 1). Total
damage is F$232 million, with the majority of this attributable to coral reef damage.
110
This figure includes a recovery timeframe that is aligned with the recovery periods considered for other sectors within this PDNA.
However, the recovery period for the environment sector could stretch to 10 years for coral reefs and 15 years for native forests and
mangroves; therefore, total losses may be higher than those reflected in this report.
96 Tropical Cyclone Winston, February 20, 2016