Management Of Coastal Areas Research Articles

Integrated Coastal Area Management of the North Coast of Jakarta in the Use of Coastal Space

The coastal area is a transitional area between land ecosystems and marine ecosystems that meet each other in a fragile balance. Hence, in the management of coastal areas, spatial plans are needed to support economic growth and the development of coastal areas so that they are ecologically sustainable. This research is normative legal research with a philosophical and conceptual approach. The purpose of this study is to philosophically analyze the concept of integrated coastal area management in the utilization of Jakarta’s northern coastal space. The results of the study reveal that the utilization of the north coastal area of Jakarta faces 2 main issues; the first is the biophysical degradation of the coastal environment, namely pollution. The second is the issue of conflict of use and authority in the utilization of the north coast of Jakarta. Integrated coastal area management aims to guide the direction of coastal area development so that it is ecologically sustainable. In addition, integrated coastal area management aims to strengthen and harmonize sectorial management in coastal areas; promote rational economic development and sustainable use of coastal and marine resources, and facilitate the resolution of disputes over coastal areas. The recommendation is to continue referring integrated coastal area management in the management of coastal areas.
 Keywords: coastal area, coastal space, integrated coastal area management

Human exposures to multiple water sources in the southwestern coastal region of Bangladesh: water quality, pollution sources, and preliminary health risks appraisals.

The coastal areas of Bangladesh have poor accessibility to fresh drinking water and the groundwater is not suitable for drinking, cooking, and other domestic uses due to high levels of salinity and potentially toxic elements. The current study focuses on understanding of the distribution of some physicochemical parameters (temperature, pH, EC, TDS, and salinity) and chemical elements (Fe, Mn, Zn, Ca, Mg, Na, K, Cu, Co, Pb, As, Cr, Cd, and Ni) with health perspective in drinking water from the southwestern coastal area of Bangladesh. The physicochemical properties of the water samples were examined with a multiparameter meter, while the elemental concentrations were analyzed using atomic absorption spectrometer. Water quality index (WQI) and irrigation indices were utilized to determine the drinking water quality and irrigation feasibility, respectively, whereas hazard quotients (HQs) and hazard index (HI) were used to assess the probable pathways and the associated potential risks to human health. The concentrations of some toxic elements in measured samples were relatively higher compared to drinking water guidelines, indicating that ground and surface water are not apt for drinking and/or domestic uses. The multivariate statistical approaches linked the source of the pollutants in the studied water body mostly to the geogenic origin including saline water intrusion. WQI values ranged from 18 to 430, reflecting excellent to unsuitable categories of water quality. The assessment of human health risks due to exposure to contaminated water demonstrated both carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic health risks in the exposed residents of the study area. Therefore, appropriate long-term coastal area management strategies should be adopted in the study region for environmental sustainability. The findings of this research will be supportive in understanding the actual situation of fresh drinking water in the area for policymakers, planners, and environmentalists to take effective necessary measures to ensure safe drinking water in the study area.

Approaches for the sustainable management of the Apulian coastal areas: the potential of a geoportal

In order to identify the most suitable strategies and to support territorial decision- making processes, it is necessary to operate with an integrated vision of coastal systems, considering the complex phenomena of sediment production, erosion and subsequent transport from the supply systems to the coastal areas.In this work we propose a new approach to the management of the Apulian coastal areas based on a sustainable and low impact management of sediments and integrated with a WebGIS-based system. The webgis platform was developed to allow interactive and intuitive navigation between the different layers. The platform allows to identify the municipal / provincial / regional territory of interest and to identify the areas characterized by greater or lesser sediment production. The result is the creation of a webgis platform, which allows to identify, in the territorial planning process, the strategic areas for sediment production, and consequently to minimize the impact of the sediment deficit for the system coastal. This approach therefore represents a low-impact solution that will make it possible to mitigate the risk of coastal erosion and increase the resilience of coastal systems, also in consideration of the ongoing climate changes.

Integrating the local knowledge of fishers into an ecological model for the sustainable management of a protected coastal lagoon area in Uruguay

Abstract This study uses the local knowledge of artisanal fishers to assess ecosystem structure, functioning, and fishing impacts within a coastal lagoon in Uruguay. To this end, we used an Ecopath with Ecosim modelling approach based on fishers’ knowledge and scientific data. The model considered 23 functional groups, while three fleets represented fishing activities targeting different species. The model output shows a foodweb which spans four trophic levels, including fish species as top predators, such as the flatfish Paralichthys orbignyanus and the tararira Hoplias malabaricus. Furthermore, according to fishers’ knowledge, gastropods, polychaetes, and bivalves constitute primary consumers, while detritus and phytoplankton represent the primary food sources. The trophic impact analysis shows that the fish Mugil spp. and Odontesthes spp. generate important positive and negative impacts on most other ecosystem components, while fishing impacts occur at moderate exploitation levels on the targeted fish species. The indicators of the ecosystem effects of fishing including The Trophic Level of the Catch ranging from 2.4 to 2.6, the Primary Production Required showing relative low values of 2.3% and low probability of an ecosystem being sustainably fished alert us to the risk of ecosystem-level overfishing. The vast potential of fishers’ knowledge in research can allow the co-creation of new insights into ecosystem structure and function. By including fishers in research, local communities can be empowered and benefit from management decisions through their trust in science.

The Influence of Personal Selling and Promotion Through Social Media on Tourists' Decisions in Buying Fishing Tour Packages in the Coastal Areas of Bali

The purpose of this study was to analyze the effect of promotion on social media and personal selling on guests' decisions in buying fishing tour packages in the coastal areas of Bali. This study used the purposive sampling method to analyze it, samples from guests who had used fishing tour packages in the coastal areas of Bali. Data was taken from 60 customers. It is analyzed with Regression Analysis Technic, it has been validated, reliability, and classical assumptions. Research shows that 1) Promotion on social media has a positive and significant effect on purchasing fishing tour packages in Bali's coastal areas; 2) Personal selling has a positive and significant effect on the decision to buy fishing tour packages in the coastal areas of Bali;3) Promotions on social media and personal selling have a positive and significant effect on the decision to buy fishing tour packages in the coastal areas of Bali; 4) The variable effect of promoting through social and personal media becomes the guest's decision to purchase a fishing package in the coastal area; and 5) The personal selling variable is more dominant in influencing the purchasing decision of fishing tour packages in the coastal areas of Bali. The implication of this study is the management of Bali's coastal areas to increase promotion through social media and personal selling to get customer intentions and they make the decision to buy fishing tour packages in the coastal areas of Bali Keywords: Promotion trough social media, Personal selling, Buying decision.

A Preliminary Checklist of Molluscs in the Kelanang Coast at Banting: An Observational Study

This research aims to determine the updated species list of molluscs (Gastropods and Bivalves) populating the Kelanang coast at Banting (Selangor) in November 2022. Nine gastropod species and eight bivalve species were discovered in this study, with Pisania striata, Cominella quoyana, and Mereterix casta as the dominant species. This preliminary investigation could provide a continuous baseline for future taxonomical and biodiversity references as part of our efforts to develop coastal marine ecosystem management and conservation in the Banting coastal area. Further ecotoxicological studies to establish the potential biomonitors as good heavy metal pollution in the coastal waters of Banting are highly recommended.

High risk water pollution hazards affecting Aveiro coastal lagoon (Portugal) – A habitat risk assessment using InVEST

Anthropogenic pressures put at jeopardy ecosystem services (ES) provided by natural habitats. Ecosystem Based Management (EBM) approaches can support policymakers dealing with physical, chemical, and biological stresses caused by high-risk water pollution (HRWP) and sudden-accidental pollution (SAP). The objective of this study is to evaluate how alarming HRWP pressures might become in fragile marine, coastal, estuarine, and freshwater socio-ecological systems (MCEF-SES) surrounded by heavily industrialized and urbanized areas. To this end a spatially explicit analysis, using the InVEST-Habitat Risk Assessment (InVEST-HRA) model in combination with expert judgement from researchers from various fields, is performed. An application is provided for the case of the Ria de Aveiro (RdA) coastal lagoon in Portugal. Results show high spatial variance of HRWP hazards across RdA, with one major multi-layer risk hotspot at the center of the research area and a second patch of multiple risk hotspots towards the North of RdA. Salines emerge as the most threatened habitat followed by Intertidal flats and Saltmarshes. The most significant water pollution risk sources contributing to Salines cumulative risk are Fossil fuel processing, storage and sale units, Industrial units, Aquaculture, and the Marinas. Industries involving dangerous substances in the region threaten primarily Watercourses. This study confirms the InVEST-HRA model in combination with expert judgement is a transparent and easily replicable approach to build ES-based knowledge about habitat risks threatening MCEF-SES in a Natura 2000 site heavily pressured by HRWP hazards. After further valuation analysis, pondering gains and losses from regional development and environmental protection, this knowledge can support the planning and management of coastal areas and the prioritization of pollution abatement interventions. In particular, by estimating the loss that HRWP causes in the value of ecosystem services, defining HRWP abatement policies, assessing the effectiveness, costs and benefits of those abatement policies and, ultimately, evaluating the results for the well-being of local communities through global efficiency analysis, cost-benefit analysis or cost-effectiveness analysis. Hence, it bridges the gap between an informed EBM and the development policies of fragile regions.

Sustainable Management of the African Great Lake Coastal Areas: Motivations and Perspectives of Community Citizen Scientists

The long-term sustainability of the African Great Lakes is strongly connected to the management and monitoring of their coastal areas. Yet, the communities that live in these areas are rarely involved in monitoring and have limited influence on key management issues. Furthermore, regulatory activities and knowledge sharing in these transnational ecosystems are strongly limited by funding and infrastructure limitations. Citizen science has great potential to advance both scientific and public understanding of the state of the environment. However, there remains a limited understanding of participants’ motivations and expectations, especially in developing countries, where citizen science has great potential to complement regulatory monitoring. The present study explores the motivations of citizen scientists in villages along Lake Tanganyika’s northern coast and their potential to take a more active role in lake management. Motivations were examined through qualitative interviews, focus groups, and quantitative surveys with 110 citizen scientists and 110 non-citizen scientists from participating villages. Key motivational factors identified were the desire to contribute to scientific research and local knowledge, as well as aspects of financial compensation. The results confirm that participation in citizen science provides many benefits to participants beyond their role as data aggregators and final knowledge users. However, the incentives to participation varied to those typically considered in citizen science programs conducted in developed countries. To create sustainable long-term community based environmental monitoring, these motivations should be incorporated in the program design and participant recruitment.

The urgency to strengthen blue carbon ecosystem settings based on theory law development to use to realize sustainable development in Indonesia

The purpose of this study is first, to find out how the blue carbon ecosystem is currently regulated in Indonesia and secondly to find out how urgent it is to strengthen the regulation of blue carbon ecosystems in Indonesia to realize sustainable development in Indonesia. The research method used in this research is a normative juridical research method, the problem approach used in this writing is through the approach of various laws and regulations (statute approach). There are already several regulations that regulate good blue carbon ecosystems in the constitution and various laws and regulations, including Law Number 32 of 2009 concerning Environmental Protection and Management and Law Number 41 of 1999 concerning Forestry. In addition, it includes Law Number 32 of 2014 concerning Marine Affairs and Law Number 27 of 2007 concerning the Management of Coastal Areas and Small Islands as well as various other laws and regulations. However, there are still many areas that have not made regional regulations to protect mangrove areas, so the blue carbon ecosystem has not been optimally maintained. It is very necessary to establish regulations strictly to protect blue carbon ecosystems both from laws and regulations, as well as derivative regulations used to protect the use of blue carbon ecosystems to achieve sustainable development in Indonesia.

Juridical Review of Blue Economy in Indonesia


 The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic disaster has affected the economy in Indonesia. In the framework of economic recovery and transformation after the Covid-19 pandemic, Blue Economy is referred to as a new approach and a new source of economic growth that is more inclusive and sustainable, considering that Indonesia is an archipelagic country with 62% of its total area being sea. This study examines the concept of the Blue Economy from a legal perspective on the management and utilization of marine resources and the protection of coastal areas in Indonesia. By using normative legal research methods, the approaches are used, a statute approach and a conceptual approach. The research results show that with the issuance of UU No. 11 Tahun 2020, there is a simplification of the licensing process in applying for permits for the management and utilization of coastal areas and revisions made to documents regarding management in coastal areas. Then protection in coastal areas is intended to protect ecosystems in the sea for sustainable development, especially with conservation. Until finally it was discovered that the concept of the Blue Economy is a necessity that will materialize as the 'spirit' of positive law in Indonesia, especially in the management, utilization and protection arrangements in Indonesia's coastal areas.

Community-Based Sanitation Management Model Using Local Aspects of Coastal Areas

Previous findings showed that there are only a few studies on the core problem of environmental sanitation in coastal areas. The study Mawar and Wahidah (2018), the coastal community of Percut Sei Tuan only uses 20% clean water, does not have a latrine 42.9%, and does not have a SPAL of 46.7%. Therefore, this study aims to examine the cultural, gender, and stakeholder aspects of community-based sanitation management (CBSM). A cross-sectional design was used, and the sample population consists of family heads in the Percut Sei Tuan Sub-district. The sample size was calculated using a category survey formula of 414 households from the population. The samples were selected using a simple random sampling technique, and a questionnaire instrument, which was tested for its validity and reliability was used for data collection. The data were then analyzed using CFA (Confirmatory Factor Analysis) to assess the factors that influence CBSM. The results showed that gender roles have a significant effect on environmental sanitation management in coastal areas with a P0.001, and culture has a significant effect on CBSM with a P0.001. However, the role of stakeholders was insignificant in this study. CBSM in coastal areas was still very low in terms of participation in planning, implementation, and utilization. The involvement of women as an aspect of gender in the formation of a disciplined culture in sanitation management is very necessary to mobilize family members.

Juridical Review of the Authority of Local Governments in Management of Coastal Areas and Small Islands

The purpose of this research is to examine the authority of local governments in managing coastal areas and small islands and how the legal sanctions for violations of the management of the Coastal Zone and Small Islands. Coastal areas and small islands are part of natural resources controlled by the state and need to be preserved so that they can be used for the prosperity of the people. In this study, the method used is normative juridical, namely research that examines norms in positive law. The results of this study are the authority of the local government in managing coastal areas and small islands are regulated in Law No. 1 of 2014 concerning amendments to Law No. 27 of 2007 concerning the Management of Coastal Areas and Small Islands, which include: planning, utilization, monitoring, and controlling activities for human interaction in utilizing coastal resources and small islands as well as natural processes in a sustainable manner in an effort to improve community welfare and maintain the territorial integrity of Indonesia.

The (dis)engagement of mangrove forests and mangrove rice in academic and non-academic literature on Guinea-Bissau-a systematic review protocol.

Coastal areas in Guinea-Bissau and elsewhere in West Africa are bordered by mangrove forests. In several of these places, swaths of mangrove forest have been removed and the landscape has been technologically adapted for the production of mangrove rice-a regionally important staple. However, the effects of global warming, in particular sea-level rise, pose challenges to these socioecological environments. In this context, knowledge appears as an important resource and knowing what knowledge has been produced and which perspectives have guided that production may inform future responses to climate change. We have developed a systematic literature review protocol focusing on the main question: "How have mangrove forest and mangrove rice spaces been represented in the literature on Guinea-Bissau?" The main hypothesis is that although they occupy contiguous, interrelated and interactant spaces in coastal environments, mangrove forests and mangrove rice have been studied and analyzed independently in the literature. This is a protocol for conducting a systematic review that will include academic and non-academic literature in Portuguese, English and French. The academic literature will be retrieved from both Web of Science and Scopus using Boolean expressions. The non-academic literature will be accessed from relevant institutions, specialized libraries, and reference lists of previously selected items. Data extraction will follow a standard procedure based on an information sheet. Our analysis will be both qualitative (inductive and deductive coding, content analysis) and quantitative (word clouds, descriptive statistics and statistical testing). This systematic review will provide information about the conceptual framework that has been produced through research, policymaking, and conservation and development programs in the management of coastal areas. This study will identify the limitations of previous approaches and contribute to both future research and strategies for planning adaptation to climate change. Finally, the outputs will add to broader debates about people-nature coexistence and climate change adaptation and mitigation.

Penyusunan Peraturan Negeri Haruku Tentang Pengelolaan Sumber Daya Wilayah Pesisir

Introduction: Devotion to the Preparation of Haruku State Regulations Concerning the Management of Coastal and Marine Resources is an activity to form a state regulation so that all interests related to the Management of Coastal and Marine Areas Resources are accommodated and the creation of a regulation that creates harmony between communities.Purposes of Devotion: To produce a State Regulation product that regulates and organizes life in Haruku Country so that the people who are governed by the law obtain certainty, benefit and justice in the life of the state and society, especially in the Management of Coastal and Marine Area Resources. Method of Devotion: Activities are carried out using the method of compiling laws and regulations, especially the formation of village/traditional village legal products.Results of the Devotion: Preparation of state regulations as a form of practicing the principle of a welfare state where in Law No. 6 of 2014 concerning villages gives authority to villages to manage their own natural resources, both resources in mountainous areas and at sea. but then there are often various villages that find it difficult to manage their resources especially when you see that there are so many resources that exist in the sea and coastal areas starting from the abundance of fish, coral reefs, agar-agar and there are still many marine biota that must be managed properly by the people in In a country, this happens due to the lack of a clear regulation regarding the management of resources in coastal and marine areas as a benchmark, namely in one of the areas in Maluku, namely Haruku country, which does not yet have state regulations regarding the management of coastal and marine areas. So it is considered important. there is a state regulation that provides guarantees and guidance for the country in managing resources in coastal and marine areas as well as the intended state regulations giving authority, therefore in order to make these regulations, a Haruku country needs guidance in carrying out the preparation of these state regulations.

Erosion and accretion patterns on intertidal mudflats of the Yangtze River Estuary in response to storm conditions

Understanding of erosion and accretion patterns over intertidal mudflats during storm periods is vital for the management and sustainable development of coastal areas. This study aimed to investigate the effect of the 2014 storm Fung-wong on the erosion and accretion patterns of the Nanhui intertidal mudflats in the Yangtze estuary, China, based on field measurements and Delft3D numerical modeling. Results show that prolonged easterly winds during the storm enhance the flood velocity, weaken the ebb velocity, and even change the current direction. The current velocity, wave heights, and bed-level changes increased by 1–1.43 times, 2.40–3.88 times, and 2.28–2.70 times than those of normal weather, respectively. The mudflats show a spatial pattern of overall erosion but increasing erosion magnitude from the high (landward) mudflat to the low (seaward) mudflat during the storm. The magnitude of bed-level change increases with increasing wind speed, but the spatial pattern of erosion and accretion remains the same. The main reason for this pattern is the longer submersion duration of the low mudflat compared with the high mudflat, so the hydrodynamic process is longer and stronger, leading to an enhancement in bed shear stress and sediment transport rate. Wind speed increases the hydrodynamic intensity but does not affect on the submersion duration over each part of the intertidal mudflat. This study is helpful to improve the understanding of physical processes during storms on intertidal mudflats and provides a reference for their protection, utilization, and management, as well as for research in related disciplines.

New Methodology for Shoreline Extraction Using Optical and Radar (SAR) Satellite Imagery

Coastal environments are dynamic ecosystems, constantly subject to erosion/accretion processes. Erosional trends have unfortunately been intensifying for decades due to anthropic factors and an accelerated sea level rise might exacerbate the problem. It is crucial to preserve these areas for safeguarding not only coastal ecosystems and cultural heritage, but also the population living there. In this context, monitoring coastal areas is essential and geomatics techniques, especially satellite remote sensing imagery, might prove very advantageous. In this paper, a semi-automatic methodology to extract shorelines from SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar) Sentinel-1 and optical Sentinel-2 satellite images was developed. An experimental algorithm, called J-Net Dynamic, was tested in two pilot sites. The semi-automatic methodology was validated with GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) reference shorelines and demonstrated to be a powerful tool for a robust extraction of the shoreline both from optical and SAR images. The experimental algorithm was able to extract the shoreline closer to the reference with SAR images on the natural beach of Castelldefels and it was demonstrated to be less sensitive to speckle effects than the commonly used Canny Edge Detector. Using the SAR images of the urban beach of Somorrostro, the Canny detector was not able to extract the shoreline, while the new algorithm could do it but with low accuracy because of the noise induced by man-made structures. For further investigation, the Sentinel-2-extracted shorelines were also compared to the ones extracted by a state-of-the-art tool, CoastSat, in the two beaches using both automatic and manual thresholds. The mean errors obtained with J-Net Dynamic were generally higher than the ones from CoastSat using the manual threshold but lower if using the automatic one. The proposed methodology including the J-Net Dynamic algorithm proves to extract the shorelines closer to the reference in most of the cases and offers the great advantage of being able to work with both optical and SAR images. This feature could allow to reduce the time lag between satellite derived shorelines paving the way to an enhanced monitoring and management of coastal areas.

Sustainable coastal management in supporting blue economy: an Indonesian experience

The coastal regions had a great ecosystem and potential for the sustainability of life. At the same time, growing human and environmental pressures in coastal areas significantly impact coastal systems. Various problems arise in the development and utilisation of the coastal regions. The issues have prompted the importance of studying coastal area management policies. Specifically, legal uncertainty in the management of utilisation has initiated the formulation of the RZWP3K policy. This study uses stakeholder analysis to map the actors involved and their influence on coastal area management policies. This study was conducted using a qualitative method and stakeholder analysis to explore and classify the actors shaping coastal area management policies. The stakeholder analysis method classified constituents into important actors, contextual fixers, users, and audiences using variables of interest and impact. Developing policies for coastal management is hampered by the conflicting agendas of many parties and their multiple goals and worries. This study recommends that the government maintain stakeholders by keeping them informed, actively groomed, monitored and managed, or satisfied. This paper contributes to conceptual stakeholder analysis literature to analyse coastal area management policies.

The Sensitivity of Tidal Channel Systems to Initial Bed Conditions, Vegetation, and Tidal Asymmetry

AbstractIn tidal environments, channel networks act as essential drainage pathways. Although the complex interactions between environmental factors have been studied extensively, the effects of the initial bathymetry on tidal network ontogeny are poorly understood. In this contribution, we used a numerical model to mimic a schematic tidal basin subjected to tidal forcing. The effects of the initial bathymetry and vegetation growth are analyzed by changing the features of randomly generated bed perturbation and the intertidal platform slope. Different perturbation densities mildly affect the growth of tidal networks, which, at equilibrium, share similar values in terms of channel length, tidal prism, and cross‐sectional area. The complexity and structure of channel networks are more sensitive to variations in the perturbation distribution. Increasing the initial bathymetry slope can shorten channels and reduce the tidal prism and drainage efficiency. Vegetation growth is found to invariably promote channel lengthening and narrowing, increasing the complexity and drainage efficiency of the system. An asymmetrical tidal forcing generally leads to longer channels and smaller unchanneled lengths. Under ebb‐dominant conditions, channels get deeper, and the increased channel length ensures a higher drainage efficiency. The insights of our study provide a deeper understanding of the environmental factors controlling the equilibrium morphology of tidal channel systems and their overall resilience. Further implications concern the restoration and management of coastal areas through the informed use of topographic changes and planting arrangements. Finally, accounting for the uncertainties associated with initial conditions is relevant when modeling other earth systems and comparing them with real systems.

Quantifying and mapping the human footprint across Earth's coastal areas

Coastal regions are home to hundreds of millions of people around the planet and the majority of the world's countries include coastal areas. Connecting diverse marine and terrestrial environments, coastal ecosystems support rich biodiversity and provide a wide range of ecosystem services. Systematic mapping and quantification of coastal stressors globally can assist in directing conservation efforts in coastal areas, and help better understand the spatial correspondence between the distribution of marine and land-based stressors across coasts globally. To advance this goal, we quantified and mapped the presence and extent of 10 major terrestrial stressors and 10 marine stressors to develop a cumulative coastal footprint score. We found that the vast majority (97%) of all coastal grid cells globally (1 km pixels of the global coastline) had at least one major stressor present. Human population density was a strong predictor of coastal human footprint scores around the globe, and sandy beaches, which attract the public, had higher coastal footprint scores than non-sandy beaches. Overall, changes in sea surface temperature presented the stressor with greatest presence across all coastal areas, and with the highest average scores. At the country-sea scale, the coasts of Belgium, Monaco and Singapore had the highest overall coastal footprint globally, whereas Antarctica and the Arctic had the lowest coastal footprint scores. Beyond the polar coastal areas, we identified 160 areas of low human pressure (defined as areas >25 km2 composed of coastal grid cells in the lowest footprint decile), of which 38 (24%) were encompassed within protected areas, while 63 (39%) were unprotected, and the remainder were partially protected. We highlight the need to create platforms targeting both marine and land-based threats to coastal environments to further address the gaps in coastal area conservation and management.

Beach Scenic Quality versus Beach Concessions: Case Studies from Southern Italy

This paper essentially aims to identify coastal sites of great scenic value not (or barely) affected by human intrusions and propose sound management interventions to improve their landscape quality. Today, management of coastal areas in Italy is a very complex task essentially because of institutional fragmentation and overlapping of laws/regulations at the national, regional and municipal levels. It is estimated that only half of the country’s beaches are freely accessible and usable for bathing, i.e., 43% are occupied by private concessions and in 7.2% bathing is not allowed because of water pollution. Sites’ scenic quality was assessed using the Coastal Scenic Evaluation System (CSES), a robust semi-quantitative methodology based on a set of 26 physical/human parameters, weighting matrices parameters and fuzzy logic mathematics. An evaluation index (D) was afterward obtained for each site and used to classify them into five scenic classes. After a long process of field testing along the coasts of the Tyrrhenian, Ionic and Adriatic seas (25 municipalities, 7 provinces and 4 regions: Campania, Basilicata, Calabria and Apulia), a total of 36 sites were selected for this paper. Twenty-four sites fall within Class I, i.e., were extremely attractive (D ≥ 0.85; CSES) because of their exceptional geomorphological settings that favour a wide variety of coastal sceneries. Most of Class II (8) and Class III (4) sites could be upgraded by implementing clean-up operations or by reducing intrusive beach facilities. Meanwhile “private” beaches are usually cleaned; beach litter at remote/public sites represents a big concern to be challenged. Today, finding a free/aesthetic/clean beach without human intrusions in a fully natural environment is far more complex than it seems. Given this context, emphasis was particularly placed on beach litter and concessions aspects.