Ecospatial Outcomes of Neoliberal Planning: Habitat Management in Auckland Region, New Zealand

Abstract

In line with the paradigmatic shift towards spatial ecology, it is generally accepted that the conservation value of a habitat remnant cannot be determined in isolation from its wider landscape. Sensitivity to the spatial context of forest patches should, therefore, characterise habitat management. Conversely, neoliberal planning disregards ecospatial configuration because it abandons resource decisionmaking to the spatially ad hoc outcomes of market processes. Analysis of bush-lot subdivision—the foremost protection mechanism for indigenous habitat on private land in the Auckland Region—demonstrates that the neoliberal agenda for planning contradicts fundamental tenets of conservation ecology. With its foundations in voluntarism and market mechanisms, bush-lot subdivision induces selection bias in the location of protected remnants. Strategic and interventionist approaches will be required to moderate the impact of habitat loss, fragmentation, and perforation.