Women's group discussing monitoring report on mangrove deforestation in the Philippines. Courtesy: R.Hermes, PCAMRD, the Philippines.

Integrated coastal management provides a mechanism for negotiating acceptable levels of use among often conflicting demands on limited space, and natural, institutional and financial resources. It facilitates change from resource-use maximisation in one dimension (e.g. tourism taking all beach space useful for small-scale fisheries) to resource-use optimisation and balancing between several dimensions (e.g. user zoning and improvement of beach landing facilities for smal-scale fishermen to improve cleanliness of beaches and market access). Often failure to integrate social and economic factors with environmental concerns has frustrated progress. The greatest benefits come from good alignment between coastal environmental/fishery management plans and economic/development plans, an approach strongly promoted by the EC.

What is sustainability?

The term 'sustainabililty' is widespread, and has many dimensions. It often relates to persistence of a resource, or a process - such as socio-economic development - over time. However, the time-scale over which sustainability is measured is seldom defined or agreed. It also has a space component since natural resources do not exist in just one location, but may be linked to other natural features. Other important concepts include 'carrying capacity': to what extent will the physical, biological, economic and human resources accommodate new development? This reflects the economic, environment and social/institutional dimensions of sustainability, and takes into account that natural, as well as human-induced, change occurs all the time. The question is, what change can be supported by natural, economic and social systems? Which trade-offs are acceptable between the different components? For this reason, the Commission is supporting efforts to improve understanding and to translate knowledge into action.

Guiding principles for sustainable coastal development

Wherever possible, the EC promotes guiding principles to help ensure that the concept of sustainability becomes firmly fixed in all decision-making processes linked to development (see below).

In common with decision?making generally, coastal zone management involves several steps including (a) identifying the problem(s) or objective(s); (b) collecting, then analysing relevant socio-economic, scientific and other information to (c) determine issues such as locations of coastal conflict, and opportunities like finding new options for sustainable development; (d) deciding on an acceptable or even desirable outcome and (e) implementing appropriate action. Finally, the effectiveness of such action needs to be assessed through monitoring and evaluation.

Selected aspects of management

Zoning of the coast helps to minimise conflicts and prevent a spiralling decline in quality of life. It is a powerful regulatory technique used to delimit specific land and water areas for specific uses and to enforce relevant standards within these parameters. Project support for a 'Marine Habitat and Wildlife Sanctuary for the Gulf Region, Saudi Arabia' is a case in point.

Sustainable tourism. In countries such as the Maldives, continued economic and physical well-being depends on the nation's underlying reef systems. Hotel resorts and other infrastructures must be constructed so as not to undermine the reefs' physical or biological integrity. Similarly, waste disposal, diving and other visitor activities should cause only minimal impact on aquatic systems. Finally, substantial benefits from wealth creation and sustainability must reach local people.

Application of risk assessment and management. Good techniques are available and should be applied to assess environmental and other risks associated with the siting of new developments in hazardous areas, such as unstable islands. Assessment should include physical safety and security and ecological sensitivity of aquatic systems, as well as investment and financial risks. A recently concluded research collaboration among two SE Asian and four European partners entitled 'Prediction of the resilience and recovery of disturbed coastal communities in the tropics' studied sensitivity to and recovery from disturbance of coastal plant communities in Vietnam and the Philippines.

Information management systems. Data is a key input for coastal planning, so effective information systems are particularly important. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and capacity to store and analyse remotely sensed data is often readily available, but without the capacity to analyse and interpret information, its usefulness is limited. Selected sources, approaches and applications in developing countries were documented in an INCO workshop in 2000 (see further reading). Appropriation by local actors is recognised as a critical bridge between knowledge and action.

Awareness of environment-development interdependence. Limited understanding about resource benefits can lead to degradation and loss of development opportunities. In Egypt, important resources (mangroves) have been lost to hotel developments, which happened despite legal protection, since mangrove distribution had not been mapped and shown to developers or planners and their value was not fully appreciated.

Capacity building and institutional support. Capacity building is a cornerstone of enabling policies for sustainability and social empowerment. Support and greater awareness are important at all levels. Often management difficulties rather than insufficient technical (or other) information impede coastal governance. Natural resources, institutions and human management capacities all need to be resilient and endure over time. Several projects with EDF and other funding focused on capacity building of public, NGO and private organisations e.g. in the Indian Ocean, Thailand and the Caribbean.

Good practice examples

SimCoast is an integrated information system to facilitate decision-making and improve coastal zone management. It allows planners to take into account conditions and interactions between natural, social and economic elements prior to initiating actions to achieve environmental protection and sustainable multiple use of resources. Special features of SimCoast include its ability to use low-resolution, qualitative information, and its user-friendly PC based interface and applicability to both general and specific contexts. The system was initially developed at the University of Warwick (UK) through an international collaboration with other European and Asian partners, with the Commission supporting its early development and several applications. Workshops and collaboration facilitate information exchange between resource users, managers and scientists from ASEAN and EU countries.

Indian Ocean integrated coastal zone management programme
Coastal areas on the Indian Ocean are a mosaic of different ecosystems, resources and cultures. The region is subjected to numerous development pressures. Such factors shaping the environmental and socio-economic systems are highly complex but need to be understood and dealt with in a single integrated framework. In recognition of this, the EC co-financed a Regional Environment Programme (REP) for the Indian Ocean to help Member States define problems and implement both policies and actions which work towards sustainable development. It is based on four principles: (1) knowing in order to understand and prevent; (2) informing and making people participate; (3) negotiating to co-ordinate and avoid conflict; and (4) educating and training to promote an 'environment-based culture'.

The CHARM project in Thailand
This five-year project aims to design and establish a coastal habitats co-management framework and procedures in two Southern Thailand locations to serve as models to be replicated elsewhere in the country. It will focus on three main areas: (a) specialised coastal ecosystems/habitats; (b) shoreline areas with existing or potential aquaculture development; and (c) areas affected by misuse/over-exploitation both at a macro and micro level. The project is in two phases: first, data collection and strategy definition allowing mobilisation of stakeholders, and agreement on targets and participatory implementation modalities; secondly, implementation of the co-management concept, institutional support and capacity building, support measures and consolidation.

Guiding principles to ensure sustainable coastal development 1. Understand that management of renewable coastal and marine resources is of strategic importance for social and economic development and is cost effective in the long term. 2. Recognise that sustainability requires the need to maintain the integrity of coastal systems and that this implies limits to the use of resources generated by these systems. Dams, river basins and other water management projects, including management of wetlands connected to the sea, must also be taken into consideration to ensure sustainable benefits. 3. Understand that the carrying capacity of coastal systems to support tourism, recreation and other human use is variable but not infinite, and strongly influences the degree of sustainability of coastal systems and the benefits people can obtain from them. 4. Develop integrated management actions that allow multiple use of natural resources, in which complementary activities are integrated and conflicting activities are avoided, segregated (i.e. undertaken in different areas). 5.Balance broad-scale management (e.g. coastal zoning) with targeted management (e.g. establishment of protected areas, minimising reef recreational damage). 6.Ensure good co-ordination in coastal management activities and involve local people, to ensure effective management, compliance and equitable socio-economic development. 7. Recognise that inadequate or lack of implementation and enforcement are often more of an obstacle to effective management than deficiencies in environmental legislation or scientific information. Appropriation of the rules by the people concerned can be lengthy but is indispensable to achieve compliance. 8. Accept that coastal planning and management is not a fixed but an ongoing process with modifications made in the light of updated information and changing human needs. 9. Build on and apply management successes from one area to another, where appropriate, to avoid 'reinventing the wheel' and to promote positive role models for multiplying success.