Management Of Marine Protected Areas Research Articles

Conservation Strategies Through the Lens of Small-Scale Fishers in the Galapagos Islands, Ecuador: Perceptions Underlying Local Resistance to Marine Planning

Spatial management tools are increasingly used in marine protected areas (MPAs). In the Galapagos Archipelago two zoning plans have been designed to advance resource management and protection: one in 2000, implemented through participatory processes under a co-management regime; the other in 2016, designed within a new regulatory framework and with strong input from international conservation advocates. The new zoning plan has been actively resisted by small-scale fishers. We analyze qualitative data from 149 questionnaire surveys and 16 key informant interviews to assess fishers’ perceptions of the re-zoning process. The perceptions that underpin fishers’ resistance to the new zoning plan converge in five principal themes that raise questions about the legitimacy, fairness, transparency, and viability of this management tool. This study provides further evidence of the strategic importance of incorporating human dimensions in MPA management and, more particularly, of understanding social concerns that may critically impede the progress of marine resource conservation.

PENGARUH KAWASAN KONSERVASI PERAIRAN TERHADAP POPULASI IKAN KARANG DI PULAU AY DAN RHUN, KEPULAUAN BANDA, PROVINSI MALUKU

Kawasan konservasi perairan (KKP) berfungsi untuk mengelola sumber daya perikanan dan keanekaragaman hayati laut agar dapat dimanfaatkan secara berkelanjutan. Kondisi ikan karang merupakan salah satu bioindikator untuk mengukur dampak pengelolaan KKP. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk melihat dampak pembentukan KKP Daerah (KKPD) Pulau Ay dan Pulau Rhun terhadap sumber daya perikanan karang di Kepulauan Banda, Maluku, Indonesia. Metode yang digunakan untuk pengumpulan data yaitu Underwater Visual Census (UVC) dan Fish Length Estimation dengan bantuan peralatan SCUBA. Analisis data dilakukan dengan membandingkan data sekunder dan data primer yang meliputi kelimpahan, biomassa, status tropik dan komposisi ukuran ikan besar dan ikan kecil dari 10 famili ikan target dan ekonomis penting sebelum dan sesudah Pulau Ay dan Pulau Rhun dicadangkan sebagai KKP. Hasil penelitian menunjukan bahwa kelimpahan dan biomassa ikan karang secara temporal berfluktuasi sebelum dan sesudah Pulau Ay dan Pulau Rhun dicadangkan sebagai KKP, namun masih dalam kondisi melimpah dan tinggi. Status tropik dan komposisi ukuran ikan karang berubah-ubah sebelum dan sesudah pencadangan KKP, namun masih dalam kondisi seimbang antar kelompok tropik, ikan besar dan ikan kecil. Kesimpulan penelitian ini adalah pencadangan KKPD memberikan dampak positif terhadap sumber daya ikan karang di Pulau Ay dan Pulau Rhun.

Low-quality management of Marine Protected Areas in the North-East Atlantic

The effectiveness of a marine protected area (MPA) requires adequate management plans (MgPs), good management performance and effective governance. This study diagnosed management quality on 126 MPAs and 57 MgPs in four countries in the NE Atlantic Ocean (France, England, Spain and Portugal) by adapting the MPA Management Effectiveness Assessment Tool to assess management quality, and management effort, strengths and weaknesses. Despite the fact that these MPAs were, in 2013, on average 14-year old, fewer than 30% showed sufficient management capacity, 18% showed operational management, and only 3% showed effective management. Therefore, 70% could be considered unmanaged or “paper” reserves. Among their strengths, MPAs were in general well legislated in the four countries and had operational management bodies in France and England. However three key factors need to be improved in all countries: (i) periodic MgP updated; (ii) periodic MPA monitoring and assessment; and (iii) education and communication activities. Enforcement should be improved in England, France and Portugal; Portugal and Spain also need to improve the management body and England and Portugal the community participation.

Exploring gaps in mapping marine ecosystem services: A benchmark analysis

We assessed the gaps between current and “model mapping routines”, which represent a benchmark for mapping marine ecosystem services (ESs). Model mapping routines comprised 17 selected variables and their best-rated alternatives depending on the mapping purpose, namely, marine spatial planning, environmental impact assessment, vulnerability and risk analysis, marine protected areas management, payments for ecosystem services, and natural resources management. We conducted a systematic search of articles (n = 64) from which information on the 17 variables and their alternatives was retrieved. We assessed gaps using similarity matrices, according to the co-occurrence index. The largest gaps (as measured by average distances >0.5 between actual and best options) occurred in articles reporting natural resources management as purpose, whereas the smallest were related to marine protected areas management and payments for ecosystem services. The gaps were due to departures in different individual variables. For example, in the case of marine spatial planning the omission of tradeoffs, scenario analysis, multiple scales, and threshold analyses explained the gap, whereas in vulnerability and risk assessment the omission of thresholds, the lack of consistency of the indicators used, and the absence of a definition of ESs explained the gap. We trust that this study will help to recognize that ESs mapping studies should be guided by the purpose of a given intervention rather than by the technical capacities and disciplines of the researchers, if the ESs approach expects to reach a real impact into public policies.

Incorporating climate change adaptation into marine protected area planning.

Climate change is increasingly impacting marine protected areas (MPAs) and MPA networks, yet adaptation strategies are rarely incorporated into MPA design and management plans according to the primary scientific literature. Here we review the state of knowledge for adapting existing and future MPAs to climate change and synthesize case studies (n=27) of how marine conservation planning can respond to shifting environmental conditions. First, we derive a generalized conservation planning framework based on five published frameworks that incorporate climate change adaptation to inform MPA design. We then summarize examples from the scientific literature to assess how conservation goals were defined, vulnerability assessments performed and adaptation strategies incorporated into the design and management of existing or new MPAs. Our analysis revealed that 82% of real-world examples of climate change adaptation in MPA planning derive from tropical reefs, highlighting the need for research in other ecosystems and habitat types. We found contrasting recommendations for adaptation strategies at the planning stage, either focusing only on climate refugia, or aiming for representative protection of areas encompassing the full range of expected climate change impacts. Recommendations for MPA management were more unified and focused on adaptative management approaches. Lastly, we evaluate common barriers to adopting climate change adaptation strategies based on reviewing studies which conducted interviews with MPA managers and other conservation practitioners. This highlights a lack of scientific studies evaluating different adaptation strategies and shortcomings in current governance structures as two major barriers, and we discuss how these could be overcome. Our review provides a comprehensive synthesis of planning frameworks, case studies, adaptation strategies and management actions which can inform a more coordinated global effort to adapt existing and future MPA networks to continued climate change.

Underprotected Marine Protected Areas in a Global Biodiversity Hotspot

Summary Ocean health is critical for human well-being but is threatened by multiple stressors. Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity agreed to protect 10% of their waters by 2020. The scientific evidence supporting the use of marine protected areas (MPAs) to conserve biodiversity stems primarily from knowledge on fully protected areas, but most of what is being established is partially protected. Here, we assess the protection levels of the 1,062 Mediterranean MPAs. While 6.01% of the Mediterranean is covered by protection, 95% of this area shows no difference between the regulations imposed inside the MPAs compared with those outside. Full and high levels of protection, the most effective for biodiversity conservation, represent only 0.23% of the basin and are unevenly distributed across political boundaries and eco-regions. Our current efforts are insufficient at managing human uses of nature at sea, and protection levels should be increased to deliver tangible benefits for biodiversity conservation.

Changes of Coral Reefs Condition in the Core Zones of Kapoposang Island MPA, Makassar Straits

Coral reefs in Kapoposang Islands have been degraded for years due to environmental pressures and human activities. After designated as marine protected area (MPA), coral reefs conditions (e.g. living coral coverage - both hard and soft corals) were monitored regularly since 2015 by several agencies. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of MPA management in Kapoposang by analyzing changes of coral reef coverage in its two core zones. The survey was conducted in July 2019 using Line Intercept Transect (LIT), video transect, and satellite imagery analysis, then compared to data from the previous assessment. Results of recent survey, i.e.: living coral reefs coverage ranged from 46.73% - 73.08%; 21 genera found with 10 dominant genera, which Porites sp., is a resistant coral genus and the most dominant genus in Kapoposang MPA; the highest coral recruitment was found in Suranti island at a depth of 10 meters, while the lowest is in Papandangan island; several genera in the form of recruitment (e.g. Acropora sp., Goniopora sp., Fungia sp., Favona sp., and Porites sp.); percentage of macroalgae is 2.95% of total coral reef substrate cover; the most densely macroalgae coverage is found in Suranti, while the lowest is in Kapoposang island.

Perception of threats and related management measures: The case of 32 marine protected areas in West Africa

This paper presents the results of surveys conducted with managers of West African Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and focuses on the threats and the extent to which they are taken into account in the management process. The data and information derived from the surveys are used to provide a reference situation and to develop a complete inventory of threats faced by MPAs in the region. MPA managers identified unmanaged fisheries, coastal erosion, overexploitation of natural resources and pollution as the main threats to the sustainability of MPAs in the region. Climate change, although considered to be diffuse, is also a concern for managers. However, management measures are aimed (predominantly) at preventing overfishing and the overexploitation of terrestrial natural resources. Therefore, coastal erosion, pollution and climate change are only indirectly (and marginally) targeted by these management measures. Moreover, the management measures implemented i.e. monitoring, awareness raising and surveillance are insufficient and mainly aligned with the capacity of the local institutions. However, what is actually needed is more far reaching and adaptive actions to mitigate the current threats. The low financial, technical and human resources largely explain the limited scope of management actions taken. Coupled with the information and data deficit, which increases the inertia regarding threats that have been recurrent for more than a decade, management measures have not been sufficient in managing MPAs in the region. This paper recommends that the links between pressures on MPAs, technical recommendations and resulting management actions must be reinforced.

The no-take zone network of the Mexican Caribbean: assessing design and management for the protection of coral reef fish communities

Understanding the effects and benefits provided by the design and management of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) is crucial for developing cost‐effective management actions. We characterized the management and design of no-take zone (NTZ) networks of eight Mexican Caribbean MPAs. To determine protection effectiveness, we followed a two-step approach. First, we evaluated the effect of the level of protection (NTZ, partial and unprotected areas), habitat structure and local human threats on four fish community metrics: total biomass, commercial fish biomass, mean trophic level and commercial fish mean size. If the protection afforded by the NTZ was significant, a second model was developed to evaluate design and management effectiveness. Total biomass, commercial fish biomass and mean trophic level were correlated significantly and positively with no-take protection; and, partially protected areas showed a significant and positive correlation with commercial fish biomass and mean trophic level. MPA age was the only significant and positive design and management characteristic that explained the variation in commercial fish biomass. This might be in part due to the suboptimal design of the MPA network that has mostly resulted from economic and social opportunities with little consideration for ecological guidelines and management capacities. Our findings suggest that to increase reef fish protection it would be necessary to include reef habitats with high coral cover and structural complexity inside NTZs. However, the effectiveness of an MPA network not only requires ecological considerations but also factors that include compliance, enforcement and true community participation to achieve greater benefits. Policymakers must ensure adequate design and management of MPAs in order to improve the effectiveness of marine resource protection, promoting both sustainable use and long-term biodiversity conservation.

The role of local institutions in governance of MPAs

In recent years, marine protected areas (MPAs) have been perceived as a major tool to enhance marine conservation. The range of institutional approaches as well as the range of goals in defining and managing MPAs generates a diversity of ecological, social and economic outcomes. Using Tanzania as a case study, this paper examines the role of village liaison committees (VLCs) as an institutional approach to MPA management in addressing socio-ecological objectives. The main research question is how VLCs affect the success of biodiversity conservation and resource management objectives. Six VLCs from one of the three marine parks in Tanzania were randomly selected for this study. Data was collected through household interviews, key informants interviews, and focus group discussions with selected members of each of the VLCs chosen, and from MPA managers, village leaders, marine resource users, members of NGOs and researchers. The data collected was triangulated with secondary sources from published materials and with information generated during participant observation. The findings show that during the beginning of establishment of the park VLCs mobilised much greater participation and were viewed as effective conduits to MPA activities. However, the active participation of individual members within VLCs decreased with time due to unforeseen outcomes of marine conservation. Over 70% of survey respondents reported that the active role of VLCs to support the park activities has decreased significantly. This study demonstrates how institutional approaches in MPA governance are often poorly translated and adapted to fit the local context they are introduced to.

Tourism in marine protected areas: Can it be considered as an alternative livelihood for local communities?

The promotion of tourism has been considered to be a key strategy in reducing people's dependence on marine resources and for creating alternative livelihoods for the communities living in Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). This paper studies the determinants for the decision of participation in tourism-related activities and examines whether tourism could be regarded as an alternative livelihood for the local people living in the MPAs. The propensity score matching approach is employed and a case study of Nha Trang Bay MPA is used for analysis with data from 140 locals. The results show that the tourism industry in the MPAs does not secure a better income for the local people if they stop their traditional livelihoods and enter the tourism industry. In other words, tourism should not be viewed in isolation with other existing income generating activities. Furthermore, low education, long distances between home and tourism destinations, and the pressure of supporting the whole family are the primary rationales preventing local people living in MPAs from participating in tourism industry. This paper discusses implications for the management of MPAs in developing countries, where tourism is used as the main strategy to diversify the local people out of traditional fishing or aquaculture.

The Contribution of Ecosystem Services in Developing Effective and Sustainable Management Practices in Marine Protected Areas. The Case Study of “Isola dell’Asinara”

Ecosystem Services (ESs) are assuming a constantly increasing importance in management practices due to their key role in ensuring a sustainable future to fauna and flora on Earth. In addition, ES degradation and quality loss jeopardize current human activities. For this reason, it is essential to develop methodologies and practices able to efficiently assess environmental and socio-economic impacts in terms of ES deterioration, especially within protected areas. Norms and regulations have to be able to identify habitat and species categories to be preserved, and to determine the cost of their destruction and decline, according to a holistic vision, which includes social and economic impacts, besides the environmental ones. The paper illustrates the case study of the “Isola dell’Asinara” Marine Protected Area (MPA) in Sardinia, where an experimental methodology was developed with the aim to draw new regulations that integrate conservation measures of Natura 2000 sites included in its territory, provisions determined by the integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) protocol and the Standardized Actions for Effective Management of MPAs (ISEA) project. Subsequently, in order to assess the status of ESs and impacts on ESs located within the MPA territory, an ecosystem-based approach was implemented and applied to the actions defined for the new regulation proposal. Results show that regulations are in this way valuably enriched by environmental aspects of the MPA that would otherwise be overlooked.

Influence of protogynous sex change on recovery of fish populations within marine protected areas.

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are increasingly implemented as a conservation tool worldwide. In many cases, they are managed adaptively: the abundance of target species is monitored, and observations are compared to some model-based expectation for the trajectory of population recovery to ensure that the MPA is achieving its goals. Most previous analyses of the transient (short-term) response of populations to the cessation of fishing inside MPAs have dealt only with gonochore (fixed-sex) species. However, many important fishery species are protogynous hermaphrodites (female-to-male sex-changing). Because size-selective harvest will predominantly target males in these species, harvesting not only reduces abundance but also skews the sex ratio toward females. Thus the response to MPA implementation will involve changes in both survival and sex ratio, and ultimately reproductive output. We used an age-structured model of a generic sex-changing fish population to compare transient population dynamics after MPA implementation to those of an otherwise similar gonochore population and examine how different features of sex-changing life history affect those dynamics. We examined both demographically open (most larval recruitment comes from outside the MPA) and demographically closed (most larval recruitment is locally produced) dynamics. Under both scenarios, population recovery of protogynous species takes longer when fishing was more intense pre-MPA (as in gonochores), but also depends heavily on the mating function, the degree to which the sex ratio affects reproduction. If few males are needed and reproduction is not affected by a highly female-biased sex ratio, then population recovery is much faster; if males are a limiting resource, then increases in abundance after MPA implementation are much slower than for gonochores. Unfortunately, the mating function is largely unknown for fishes. In general, we expect that most protogynous species with haremic mating systems will be in the first category (few males needed), though there is at least one example of a fish species (though not a sex-changing species) for which males are limiting. Thus a better understanding of the importance of male fish to population dynamics is needed for the adaptive management of MPAs.

Multiple conservation designations: what impact on the effectiveness of marine protected areas in the Irish Sea?

ABSTRACT Marine protected areas (MPAs) are a conservation tool designed to adequately manage and protect marine resources threatened by human activity by addressing both biological and socioeconomic needs. The Irish Sea is a busy waterway under the jurisdiction of six entities (Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, the Isle of Man, Scotland, England, and Wales). Within this body of water there are almost 200 conservation designations across 111 MPA sites, with many sites having multiple designations (national, EU, and international). Data is lacking on the effectiveness of these protected areas in reaching their conservation objectives due to sites being inadequately monitored. The race to meet the 10% marine protected area target set by the Conservation on Biological Diversity, however, may be compromising effective planning. Do multiple designations ensure better protection of the marine environment, or is the Irish Sea home to paper parks, offering little protection? Metadata compiled from the World Database on Protected Areas and conservation reports from MPA managers were used to investigate this question. The results show a positive correlation between the number of designations of a site and the existence of a publicly available management plan. The presence of a management plan was also linked to whether or not site assessments were conducted by the relevant authorities, and sites having multiple designations was weakly correlated with favourable assessment outcomes. The results of this study highlight the need to better understand the requirements of national, regional and international-level conservation designations and how they interact with each other.

Adapting to a changing ocean: Experiences from marine protected area managers

Marine protected areas (MPAs), like their terrestrial counterparts, face a wide range of climate change stressors that challenge traditional management strategies. Ocean acidification, dynamic boundaries, high connectivity, and other complexities create climate management challenges unique to the ocean system. Further, there is a concerning disconnect between global oceanic climate impacts and the relative lack of experience and action needed to address these stressors at local and regional scales. As climate impacts are increasingly being experienced by marine and coastal managers, they are beginning to focus on climate assessment and adaptation within the protected areas of our ocean. In this article, we share case studies and experiences of MPA managers on the cutting edge of climate adaptation. Lessons learned from the kelp forests of California and the coral reefs and seagrass meadows of the Florida Keys highlight hands-on applications of climate management and mitigation. Yet managing for climate change in a dynamic ocean requires more than direct action. We highlight the successes achieved through capacity building, community engagement, and partnership development that span geographic, institutional, and community boundaries. The dynamic nature of climate change in the ocean environment requires MPA managers to be flexible, adaptive, and inclusive to implement successful and meaningful management actions. Ultimately, the experiences highlighted in this article reflect the need for close collaboration with scientists, communities, and diverse stakeholders in identifying and implementing adaptation actions. In doing so, these case studies provide the beginning of a road map for successful climate management in MPAs.

广西滨海湿地类自然保护区管理成效评估体系构建及应用

PDF HTML阅读 XML下载 导出引用 引用提醒 广西滨海湿地类自然保护区管理成效评估体系构建及应用 DOI: 10.5846/stxb201901070056 作者: 作者单位: 作者简介: 通讯作者: 中图分类号: 基金项目: 国家重点研发计划（2017YFC0506104）；广西自然科学基金项目（2018GXNSFBA281068）；广西自然科学基金项目（2016GXNSFBA380228） Establishment and application of an evaluation system for the effectiveness of coastal wetland nature reserves management in Guangxi Author: Affiliation: Fund Project: National key research and development plan（2017YFC0506104）；Guangxi Natural Science Foundation Project（2018GXNSFBA281068）；Guangxi Natural Science Foundation Project（2016GXNSFBA380228） 摘要 | 图/表 | 访问统计 | 参考文献 | 相似文献 | 引证文献 | 资源附件 | 文章评论 摘要:海洋保护区事业正处于从"重面积、重数量"向"重建设、重成效"转型的重要阶段，海洋保护区，特别是滨海湿地类保护区的管理有效性评估引起了国内外生态学家的广泛关注。根据现有评估体系中存在问题，结合广西滨海湿地类自然保护区建设及发展特点，构建了"管理机制-管理基础-管理行为-管理成效"的评估框架，通过专家咨询法、层次分析法设置形成包含4个评估要素，19个评估指标以及6个附加指标在内的评估体系。本评估体系综合考虑了保护区管理工作的产出效益，包括管控成效、生态成效和社会经济成效，在指标设计时突出了保护区的生境特点，管理人员以及社会公众的保护意愿，采用分级分值制量化指标，根据长期有效数据开展评估，适用于监测业务完善的滨海湿地类型保护区。另外，选择北仑河口国家级自然保护区进行实例验证，评估结果表明：（1）保护区指标评估分值总和78分，附加3分，综合评估分值81分，管理级别Ⅱ级，保护区管理成效良好；（2）各要素得分占比情况为：C管理行为（100%） > A管理机制（90%） > B管理基础（87%） > D管理成效（65%）。评估指标级别占比情况为：Ⅰ级（53%） > Ⅱ级（21%） > Ⅲ级（16%） > Ⅳ级（11%）；（3）3类管理成效得分占比情况为：D2管控成效（97%） > D1生态成效（60%） > D3社会经济成效（35%）。通过分析可知，保护区管理面临主要问题包括技术能力不足、人才队伍建设薄弱、人为干扰多样等。建议保护区应加强能力建设和管控力度，推行社区共管，并关注红树林以外的其他生态系统的保护，促进区域可持续发展。 Abstract:The development of marine protected areas faces an important transformation. It no longer emphasizes area and quantity but greater attention is paid to construction and effectiveness. Thus, marine protected area management is under tremendous pressure. As an important means to evaluate the degree of realization of protected area management objectives, management effectiveness evaluation of marine protected areas, especially coastal wetland protected areas, has recently received attention from ecologists at home and abroad. Relevant theoretical research and research on methods of construction and application practices have been conducted successfully. At present, most of the assessments of marine protected areas in China draw on mature foreign systems, failing to fully consider the special characteristics of the local oceanic environment, and related domestic research that still needs to be implemented. Based on the problems existing in the current evaluation system and the characteristics of construction and development in the Guangxi coastal wetland nature reserve, the evaluation framework of "management mechanism-management foundation-management behavior-management effectiveness" was developed, and an indicator system was designed using consultation methods and an analytic hierarchy process (AHP), including 4 elements, 19 assessment indicators, and 6 additional indicators. The following four are characteristics of this assessment system:(1) Unlike administrative supervision and inspection, the various output benefits of the protected area management system were considered comprehensively and included control, ecological, social, and economic effectiveness. (2) The indicator design takes into account the habitat characteristics of the coastal wetland nature reserve and the willingness of managers and the public to protect it. (3) To minimize the influence of subjective factors, quantitative work, such as weight setting, grading assignment, and percent distribution, was applied to the indicator system. (4) Assessment of indicators, such as changes in ecological environment quality and landscape, in protected areas requires long-term effective statistical data. This evaluation system is applicable to the coastal wetland type protected areas system with effective monitoring. Finally, the national nature reserve of Guangxi Beilun estuary was used as a research area for verification of the evaluation system. The evaluation results showed that (1) the case area evaluation index score was 78 points with an additional 3 points, for a comprehensive evaluation score of 81 points, and its management level was level II, indicating that the protection management achieved good results. (2) The score ratio of each factor was ranked as follows:C Management Behavior (100%) > A Management Mechanism (90%) > B Management Foundation (87%) > D Management Effectiveness (65%), and the proportion of the number of evaluation indicators at all levels was I (53%) > II (21.05%) > III (16%) > IV (11%). (3) The score ratio of the 3 types of management effectiveness was D2 Control effectiveness (97%) > D1 Ecological effectiveness (60%) > D3 Social and economic effectiveness (35%), thus, indicating that the ecological effectiveness of the case area was generally good, although the social and economic effectiveness was poor. Based on this analysis, the main problems faced by case area management were discovered and included insufficient technical capabilities, weak talent team building, and diverse human intervention. We recommend that protected areas should strengthen capacity building and control, strengthen public awareness, promote community co-management, pay attention to the protection of ecosystems other than mangroves, and promote regional sustainable development. 参考文献 相似文献 引证文献

Strengthening of local marine protected area (MPA) in local autonomy era: Case of Bontang City East Kalimantan Province, Indonesia

Marine protected area (MPA) plays important roles to achieve biodiversity conservation and fisheries management goals, and as the main tool for ecosystem approach to fisheries management (EAFM). However, the goals of the local MPA in Indonesia is faced with the legal problems due to the enactment of Law No. 23/2014 on Local Government, regulate that the district or municipality government is no longer has authority to manage shoreline area within four miles as well as local MPA. The new law implies mismanagement of the MPA due to lack of capacity provincial government to manage the additional area of authority. There is no responsible institution focus to manage the MPA yet. This study aims to analyze the deregulation of Bontang City authority to manage the MPA. This research was conducted from January to April 2019 using normative juridical methods on the legal basis of MPA management. The results of this study suggested that based on Law No. 23/2014, actually the Bontang City Government still has opportunity to manage the MPA even though this area within the authority of Provincial Government. The authority of the Bontang City is still imbedded in several local government agencies, such as the Environment Agency, Community and Village Empowerment Service, and Fisheries Service. The institutional strengthening of the local MPA Bontang is proposed in two stages, in the short term through establishment of a Working Group involving the government of East Kalimantan Provinces and the City of Bontang, while in the long term to establish a new institution of the Technical Implementation Unit is under the Provincial Marine and Fisheries Agency.

Exclusionary decision-making processes in marine governance: The rezoning plan for the protected areas of the ‘iconic’ Galapagos Islands, Ecuador

The number of marine protected areas (MPAs) has increased twenty-fold since 1993, and there are ambitious targets for further expansion set by international conservation agencies. This expansion has been accompanied by claims that only No-take MPAs (NTMPAs) can effectively ensure biodiversity conservation, and the international marine conservation community has become increasingly active and influential in promoting them. However, NTMPAs clearly have consequences for resource users whose livelihoods are impacted by restricted access to natural resources. Since these consequences can trigger social conflicts that impeded progress towards conservation goals, there have been concerted efforts to find collaborative and inclusive approaches to MPA planning and management. This paper assesses stakeholder engagement in decision-making processes related to marine conservation planning and management in the Galapagos Marine Reserve, and examines how these have been influenced by shifting narratives of biodiversity conservation in the lead up to, and the execution of, the 2016 rezoning process. A dramatic shift in the rezoning process, a top-down declaration of a no-take MPA, fostered social conflicts that have delayed the full-implementation of the new zoning plan even three years after its official declaration. Through a mixed-methods approach we contrast perceptions, expectations and experiences of key actors in three stakeholder groups: the small-scale fisheries sector, the scientific research community, and the conservation management sector. This study illustrates challenges associated with rushed conservation initiatives, promoted and supported by large external conservation NGOs, and it demonstrates how a “back to the barriers” approach to conservation can undermine acceptance of conservation practices and jeopardize the success of MPAs.

Marine Protected Areas in Peninsular Malaysia: Shifting from Political Process to Co-Management

Since fishing is a primary source of income to the coastal communities, conservation of marine natural resources is crucial to safeguard its sustainable supply. Therefore, intensive measures should be taken by all the stakeholders – from the authorities to the local fishermen. The precious coral reefs should be protected as important breeding habitat of various commercially valued species of marine resources and. Thus, in carrying out the political process of designating marine protected areas (MPAs) as marine parks, the local communities must also be engaged by the government due to their proximity to and dependency on the environment as direct resources users. Co-management or collaborative management by engaging the local communities, or community-based management, is the concept that could be able to remedy ineffective MPAs management in Peninsular Malaysia. Co-management or collaborative management approach between the authorities and the communities must be strategised by factoring in their local knowledge of living within and off the marine environment and resources. This study utilises content analysis method on the primary data, namely the national policies, federal acts, and state enactments. While the secondary data in form of official reports, scholarly articles and others deemed relevant are used to supplement and support the findings. This paper dwells on the possibility of shifting the process of MPAs designation from political process to co-management in Peninsular Malaysia, in order to achieve both environmental stability and the livelihood sustainability of the local communities.

Governing from images: Marine protected areas as case illustrations

Governance starts with certain images about how the system that it aims to govern works. The extent to which stakeholders share these images determines the governability of the system. Investigating what these images are, what they constitute, and how they are expressed in governance interactions are important research questions. We approach these questions through conceptualizing images, how they influence institutional design and perceived governance outcomes, using marine protected areas (MPAs) as illustrations. This study asks how different stakeholders view MPAs and examines the similarities and differences of these images, and what principles and norms should be considered. Surveys were conducted with three stakeholder groups, i.e. small-scale fishers, tourism operators, and managers and scientists associated with MPAs in three locations, namely Galapagos Islands, Ecuador, Xcalac, Yucatan, Mexico, and Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain. The results from the surveys show a high level of agreement among stakeholders across sites. Taken together, all three stakeholder groups are more consistent with the images about the objectives of MPAs than about the principles and norms underlying MPA design and operation. Further, they agree that people whose livelihoods depend on protected areas should have priority access. Finally, the three stakeholder groups differ about who should participate in the decision-making processes about MPAs. Our study suggests that incorporating knowledge about images in the institutional design and the day-to-day management of MPAs can help improve their governability and the overall governance.