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Whose Beach, Which Nature? Coproducing Coastal Naturecultures and Erosion Control in Aotearoa New Zealand

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Environmental Transformations and Cultural Responses

Abstract

Coastal erosion is a crucial issue in the Anthropocene. Hard coastal protection structures are increasingly controversial because they can destroy beaches while protecting private property. The chapter describes a political, legal and cultural conflict over a seawall construction by a local council at the Aotearoa New Zealand coast. Leading coastal scientists supported local resistance against the project. Regardless of the political environment promoting a transition towards “soft” protection, the seawall could not be prevented—but its materiality might become enrolled in a different coastal policy in the future. The conflict shows how different understandings of nature translate into different ideas of how to live with the ocean. Coastal protection emerges as a sociomaterial practice; it coproduces natural and cultural orders, or coastal naturecultures.

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  1. Bremen, Germany

    Friederike Gesing

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  1. Academic/Ed, Munich, Germany

    Eveline Dürr

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    Arno Pascht

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Gesing, F. (2017). Whose Beach, Which Nature? Coproducing Coastal Naturecultures and Erosion Control in Aotearoa New Zealand. In: Dürr, E., Pascht, A. (eds) Environmental Transformations and Cultural Responses. Palgrave Macmillan, New York. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-53349-4_6

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