SCIENTIFIC CHARACTERIZATION AND MONITORING: ITS APPLICATION TO INTEGRATED COASTAL MANAGEMENT IN MALAYSIA

Abstract

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is assisting Asian region member nations to develop and implement coastal management approaches to improve fisheries resources. Approaches are adapted to specific geographic, political, and cultural needs of each member nation. In Malaysia, the Department of Fisheries Malaysia, FAO, and the Bay of Bengal Program have been working together in the design and implementation of a Special Area Management (SAM) approach to address the issues facing the Pulau Payar Marine Park along the west coast of Malaysia. Early results of the scientific work have assisted in achieving the SAM project objectives. For example, science applied in the project helped participants to view the issues objectively, to gauge the effectiveness of past management actions, and to guide decisions on future actions. Important success stories of the SAM project discussed in the paper include: (1) Pulau Payar Marine Park appears to be succeeding at what it set out to do (i.e., sustain or enhance fisheries productivity); (2) “unmanaged tourism” seems to have greater adverse impact than previous fisheries practices; (3) it is possible to identify and promote tourist activities that reduce or eliminate harm to coral reefs; (4) the ground has been laid to tackle the infrastructure and development-related issues identified through the multi-sectoral SAM process as having major impacts on both water quality and coral reefs; and (5) multi-sectoral and scientific input can be successfully sought and incorporated to identify issues for management attention and decision making.