Land Use and Environmental Degradation in Mauritius: Interrogating the Governance Framework

Original research by:

Xavier G.H. Koenig,  Doctoral Student, Université des Mascareignes

Prakash N.K. Deenapanray, Adjunct Professor, Université des Mascareignes

The global environmental crisis is getting worse, with more biodiversity loss, deforestation, and ecosystem degradation. According to the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005), over 60% of the world’s ecosystems are being used unsustainably, causing irreversible damage to biodiversity and natural resources. In response, international frameworks such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF) aim to halt biodiversity loss, calling for land use policies that safeguard ecosystems.

In this global context, Mauritius is facing its own challenges in domesticating these frameworks to fight environmental degradation. Inadequate governance and a model that prioritises financial gains and economic growth over sustainability is preventing the responsible management of land use on the island.

The Extent of Desertification in Mauritius

Mauritius, one of two of the most ecologically devastated islands in the world, has lost much of its natural forest cover, with less than 1.3% of indigenous forest remaining. Over 80% of the island is privately owned, but this tenure security has not translated into ecosystem protection. Despite the introduction of a robust land tenure system, the country’s biodiversity continues to decline, largely driven by land use changes such as real estate development. The unchecked land use changes including deforestation and wetland backfilling, is leading to degradation and raises questions about governance. Without a solid and effective governance structure, these changes threaten the environment and the long-term well-being of the population.

The paper investigates the governance architecture underlying land use and environmental degradation in Mauritius and how it is contributing to unsustainable land use practices. It aims to explore how policy, legislation, and institutional frameworks in Mauritius affect land use and environmental outcomes.

How it was researched:

The authors conducted semi-structured interviews with 20 key informants from the government, civil society, private business, and research sectors. They corroborated these interviews with a review of relevant documentation, including policy papers, government reports, and legal texts.

Mauritius’ Governance Framework: Limitations and Gaps

The degradation of Mauritius’ ecosystems can be attributed to weaknesses in the governance framework affecting land use and the environment. While the country has developed an ambitious National Development Strategy (NDS), this plan has largely remained on paper, with key components not being effectively implemented.

The NDS, designed to facilitate sustainable development, frequently becomes secondary in priority when confronted with economic pressures that promise immediate financial returns. As a result, land use planning operates in a fragmented manner, leading to inconsistencies between policies, regulations, and development practices.

The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a formal process used to evaluate the potential environmental effects of a proposed development project in Mauritius before it is approved, ensuring that environmental factors are considered in decision-making. The EIA system is an integral component of Mauritius’ governance. While EIAs are legally required for most developments, they are often seen as a formality rather than a safeguard. The data found that EIAs typically assess projects in isolation, not considering the cumulative environmental impact of developments on a broader scale. In addition, the public has only 10 to 21 days to comment on EIA applications, which respondents argued is insufficient time to fully assess the potential impact of a project. The short consultation period makes it hard for the public to engage and provide sufficient evidence-based feedback in the environmental decision-making process.

The Role of Environmentally Sensitive Areas (ESAs)

Environmentally Sensitive Areas (ESAs) in Mauritius, including wetlands and forests, are critical in supporting biodiversity. However, these areas face increasing encroachment due to socio-economic pressures. While the ESA policy was drafted in 2009, it has never been fully implemented. Developers continue to push projects that degrade these areas, taking advantage of weak enforcement and vague legal protections. The 358-hectare Roches Noires Smart City project, for example, would encroach on wetlands and other sensitive ecosystems, sparking public and scientific outcry.

Financial Maximisation over Sustainability

From these analyses of land use and environmental governance and process, the paper finds that Mauritius has historically prioritised economic growth over environmental sustainability, a pattern which appears exacerbated today. The government’s current development model, which promotes large-scale real estate projects, tourism, and foreign direct investment (FDI), often comes at the expense of the natural environment. The Economic Development Board (EDB), tasked with attracting FDI, is perceived to have fast-tracked projects and influenced the stringency of the EIA process. This approach would align with what researchers term the “reinforcing economic optimisation” model (where policies are designed to manage environmental impacts while promoting economic growth). However, results suggest that the governance framework is going further than optimisation, that is, pushing for financial maximisation at the expense of ecosystems and nature.

This focus on economic growth results in trade-offs that consistently favour development over conservation. For instance, the failure to implement Strategic Environmental Assessments (SEAs) at a broader regional scale has limited the government’s ability to manage cumulative environmental impacts, a shortcoming now addressed in the Environment Act 2024. Similarly, key informants argue that developers can easily bypass environmental safeguards, including EIAs, by splitting large projects into smaller ones to avoid stricter regulations.

Proposing a Shift in Mauritius’ Economic Model

The authors suggest a shift in Mauritius’ economic model to balance environmental and economic goals. One proposal is to integrate natural capital accounting into decision-making. This approach would quantify the contribution of natural capital to the economy, national wealth, and the public good. Such accounting (and scenario modelling of various development pathways) would inform national planning and decisions that do not compromise natural assets for short-term gains and move the country towards nature-positive outcomes, in accordance with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

Additionally, the above approach will move us closer to a well-being economy rather than one solely focused on GDP growth; an indicator that is misused as a measure of how well communities and countries are faring and prospering. By integrating the contribution of nature in national wealth creation, the well-being economy will make explicit the significant contribution of nature towards the human well-being through numerous pathways. This could help Mauritius align its policies with long-term sustainability goals. A well-being economy prioritises environmental health, community resilience, and equity, recognising that ecosystems are vital to human health and quality of life. It will also prioritise longer-term thinking over short-term thinking. This shift would require reviewing current subsidies and perverse incentives that promote unsustainable land use and redirecting them towards conservation and sustainable development.

Conclusion

Mauritius’ current governance framework falls short of addressing the complex challenge of environmental degradation. While the island has secure land tenure systems and a well-developed policy framework, the maximisation of financial returns over environmental sustainability has led to unchecked degradation. To reverse this trend, Mauritius must review its economic model, integrating natural capital accounting, to ensure that environmental costs are fully considered in land use decisions. In addition, the public must be given reinforced means of participation at multiple stages of the policy and decision-making processes (integrated policy cycle); to secure their ability to effectively protect their natural heritage and the ecosystem services it provides; all of which are common goods.

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KEY FINDINGS

1. 1. Weak Commons and Compromise Approaches: Mauritius’ governance structure prioritises financial maximisation over ecosystem preservation. This biases decisions, enabling systematic land artificialisation, affecting ecosystem services and potentially encroaching on environmentally sensitive areas (ESAs).

   2. Lack of integration of ecosystems in land use planning: Despite the recognised role of natural ecosystems in citizen well-being, governance frameworks in Mauritius fail to quantifiably prioritise ecosystem protection in land use planning.

   3. Ineffective Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs): While EIAs are mandatory for major developments, the process is often perceived as inadequate. It focuses on individual projects without considering cumulative environmental impacts and constraints the ability of citizens to meaningfully challenge land use change decisions. Of note, the newly reintroduced SEA (Environment Act 2024) provides for the assessment of cumulative impacts.

   4. Financial maximisation at the expense of nature: Informants highlighted that economic growth often trumps environmental considerations. This is evident in the apparent government pressure to approve projects that bring foreign direct investment (FDI), sometimes at the expense of environmental sustainability.

   5. Challenges with Environmental Policy Implementation: The existing policies and strategies, such as the National Development Strategy or National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP), are often not effectively implemented, monitored and evaluated, and thus fail to hamper the continued ecosystem decline.

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OTHER RESEARCH BY THE AUTHORS:

Deenapanray, P.N.K., 2022. Reflections on the practice of CSR for poverty alleviation in Mauritius. Academia Letters. DOI: 10.20935/AL5929

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Original paper: Land use and environmental degradation in the island state of Mauritius: Governance and problem conceptions – ScienceDirect

Main Photo by Johann Juraver on Unsplash

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