Governance for Sustainable Coastal Futures

The mobile nature of soft coasts means that coastal communities face uncertainty in their property values and peace of mind when the existing coastal defense is lowered or removed. The acceptance by the U.K. government that coastal realignment in areas of low population density and limited ecological value is unavoidable means that the current state of affairs, where coastal residents have broadly come to assume that they will be defended if they make enough fuss, cannot continue. The government is currently unwilling to confront this consternation and continues to refuse to pay compensation for lost property value. This is creating an outcry over loss of fairness of treatment. This dispute raises important questions of governance for coastal change. This participatory research project worked closely with English Nature, North Norfolk District Council, local residents associations, the Environment Agency, and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. What emerged in the analysis were unresolved tensions between national strategic frameworks, emerging planning arrangements, changing economic assessments, and the desirability of delivering, through a number of public and voluntary agencies, local flexibility in participation and in coastal design. This article reports on the research process, the challenges for coastal governance, and the scope for creative partnerships between science, planning, policy delivery, and public acceptance.     

Viewpoint: The Social Dimension in Icelandic Fisheries Governance

Fisheries are a complex mixture of social, political, economic, and biological aspects, and often biological or economic end goals are given priority in fisheries governance. However, there is a growing trend around the world to include non-economic social objectives in fisheries management schemes, e.g., supporting rural communities, increasing opportunities for newcomers or part-time fishermen, or providing equitable access for culturally and historically important fisheries. In Iceland, fisheries management has given biological and economic goals' precedence over social goals, and there is no formal inclusion of a social science advisory body or formalized direct input from all relevant stakeholders in the fisheries governance process. Non-economic social sciences such as geography, anthropology, sociology, and political science can add important information and considerations that in turn make fisheries more sustainable in the long run. In this paper, we explain the role of social science in fisheries governance, explore how social aspects are addressed in other fisheries governance schemes, and review highlights from fisheries social science research in Iceland. We hope to generate a meaningful conversation regarding the possibilities of a modern, pioneering fisheries' governance process in Iceland where social, economic, and biological goals and research are all given equal attention.     

Challenges in Collaborative Governance for Coastal Restoration: Lessons from the Caernarvon River Diversion in Louisiana

In an effort to restore deteriorating coastal wetlands in Breton Sound, Louisiana, a diversion of Mississippi River water into the estuarine ecosystem has been operated at Caernarvon, Louisiana, since 1991. The diversion was implemented after a relatively long collaborative planning process beginning in the 1950s. The Caernarvon Interagency Advisory Committee, an official panel of stakeholders, considers scientific aspects of the freshwater inflow and stakeholder inputs in developing an operational plan, which internalizes stakeholder conflicts, while accomplishing goals of restoring the coastal ecosystem. Even though fishery representatives are committee members, local oyster fishers filed lawsuits in federal and state courts from 1994 through 2005, claiming damages to their oyster beds. These lawsuits were initially successful in state courts but were reversed by the Louisiana Supreme Court. The federal suits were unsuccessful. Following these lawsuits, voters in Louisiana in 2000 amended the State Constitution to protect coastal restoration projects against lawsuits reflecting increase in overall statewide support. Increasing scientific knowledge has contributed significantly to diversion operation. For better collaborative governance, efforts to increase common understanding among stakeholders will be needed, and a process to compensate interests of stakeholders suffering from impacts of restoration projects at an earlier stage should be institutionalized.     

Factors Controlling the Development of the Aquaculture Industry in New Zealand: Legislative Reform and Social Carrying Capacity

The New Zealand aquaculture sector, consisting of mainly mussel, oyster, and salmon farmers, has been expanding over the last two decades. The increasing demand for water space for marine farming has prompted a process of community consultation and legislative reform resulting in the Aquaculture Reform Act 2004. Despite efforts to develop more effective legislation and improve the application process, marine farmers have often been relatively unsuccessful at gaining the water space that they desire for the expansion of the industry. However, social factors such as landscape and amenity values, recreational and navigational use, and alienation of public space are the most frequently cited reasons for the refusal of marine farm consent applications. An analysis of resource consent decision records from the past decade demonstrates this conclusion that the main factor limiting the further expansion of the aquaculture industry in New Zealand is the social carrying capacity, in the context of a period of legislative transition.     

Integrated Environmental Modeling and Assessment of Coastal Ecosystems: Application for Aquaculture Management

This article presents an approach that couples coastal ecosystem modeling with integrated environmental assessment methodologies to support coastal management. The focus is to support the development of an ecosystem approach to aquaculture management including interactions with watershed substance loading. A Chinese bay, with intense aquaculture and multiple catchment uses, and where significant modeling efforts were undertaken is used as a case study. The ecosystem model developed for this bay is used to run scenarios that test the local management strategy for nutrient reduction. The corresponding ecological and economic impacts of the managers’ scenarios are analyzed by means of the Differential Drivers-Pressure-State-Impact-Response (ΔDPSIR) analysis. Emphasis is given to the analysis of the eutrophication process in the bay including present eutrophic condition and the expected changes due to the simulated scenarios. For this purpose, the Assessment of Estuarine Trophic Status (ASSETS) screening model is a valuable tool to interpret and classify the data and model outputs regarding eutrophication condition and to evaluate the manageable level of the nutrient loading entering in the bay.     

Digging Deep: Managing Social and Policy Dimensions of Geoduck Aquaculture Conflict in Puget Sound,Washington

Shellfish aquaculture can result in conflicts among stakeholders who perceive impacts and tradeoffs regarding sense of place, aesthetic, recreational, economic, and ecological values. Pacific geoduck clams (Panopea generosa Gould 1850) are grown in intertidal plots using gear- and labor-intensive techniques that result in a high value export product. A confluence of issues has resulted in on-going social and legal tensions surrounding geoduck aquaculture in southern Puget Sound, Washington (WA), USA. Using interviews and document analysis, we explored stakeholder perspectives and policy issues related to geoduck aquaculture in southern Puget Sound. Twenty-three stakeholders were interviewed, including state agency employees, representatives of the aquaculture industry, nongovernmental organizations, landowners, a tribal member, and an academic. Nine state hearings board decisions on challenges to aquaculture permits were also analyzed. Stakeholders articulated a variety of perspectives regarding aesthetic, recreational, land-use, ecological, political, regulatory, and economic aspects of geoduck aquaculture activities. Hearings board cases addressed similar issues (aesthetic, ecological, and recreational), as well as challenges to restrictions on aquaculture. Potential strategies for managing this conflict include emphasizing best management practices, identifying and incorporating best available science, joint fact-finding approaches, and initiating and improving communication among all stakeholders.     

An Assessment of Integrated Coastal Management Governance and Implementation Using the DPSIR Framework: KwaZulu-Natal,South Africa

Coastal areas are under increasing pressure driven by demands for coastal space, primarily though population growth, in migration and the need for space for socioeconomic activities. The pressures and associated changes to the coastal environment need to be managed to ensure long-term sustainability. South Africa has enacted an Integrated Coastal Management Act (ICM Act) to facilitate dedicated management of its coastal environment. The implementation has been met with a number of challenges, primarily relating to financial and human capacity constraints, particularly at the local government level. Given that the ICM Act devolves powers to local government, it is imperative that implementation challenges be addressed. This paper focuses on KwaZulu-Natal, one of four South African coastal regions, which is a renowned tourist destination and home to 11.1 million people (Statistics South Africa 2015 Statistics South Africa. 2015. Mid-Year Population Estimates. Statistical release P0302. Pretoria, South Africa: Statistics South Africa. [Google Scholar]). This paper considers the state of coastal management, as well as implementation challenges being experienced at a local governance level, and highlights ways to address these. Data were acquired through questionnaire surveys and semistructured interviews. The Drivers-Pressures-State-Impact-Response (DPSIR) framework was used to identify relevant ICM issues and concerns and develop potential actions for improving the implementation of coastal management activities and the ICM Act. In the assessment of the ICM governance and implementation to date, a key concern identified was a general lack of coastal management knowledge among officials. It was specifically identified that knowledgeable management and capacity-building required championing from the provincial government in order to more efficiently and effectively implement the objectives of the ICM Act through an improved understanding of the coastal environment, its functioning and management.     

Aquaculture Parks in the Coastal Zone: A Review of Legal and Policy Issues in the Gulf of Mexico State Waters

The goal of this study is to apply industrial park concepts to the development of aquaculture parks in public waters. The objectives are to identify the permitting process, relevant agencies, and legislation needed to facilitate development. Gulf of Mexico states are surveyed: private parks exist in Florida, but no public parks have developed yet; plans for parks exist in Mississippi, but lack of funding prevents development; no regulations prohibit parks in Alabama, although none currently exist; Texas regulations hinder development of parks; and an experimental park has been proposed in Louisiana, but regulatory gaps have delayed permit issuance.     

Regional Ocean Governance in China: An Appraisal of the Clean Bohai Sea Program

In 2001 China embarked on an ambitious program to improve water quality through creation of the Clean Bohai Sea Program (CBSP). It is the first regional ocean governance program in China. The joint conference of central and local government units directed CBSP under the leadership of the State Environment Protection Administration. To meet the environmental objectives established by the joint conference local governments must pay for the program and operate it, but to date they have not been able to fully fund the effort. Although data indicate a decline of polluted discharges to the Bohai, one tabulation shows that the area of the sea that is polluted has increased each year from 2001 to 2005. Future enhancement of CBSP depends on revising incentives to better link local environmental programs and development, establishing funding mechanisms to equitably spread costs throughout watersheds, and creating comprehensive monitoring programs to better appraise program results.     

A Race for Marine Space: Science,Values, and Aquaculture Planning in New Zealand

New Zealand (NZ) has developed a coastal management framework that includes large watersheds and territorial waters (out to 12 nautical miles). The article describes the developing conflicts associated with the biophysical and epistemological dimensions of expanding coastal marine space for aquaculture. We first review aquaculture policy in NZ, and recent evidence of the biophysical impacts from increasing terrestrial inputs on marine ecosystems. We provide a case study of conflict over a recent proposal to expand salmon aquaculture in the Marlborough Sounds, which covers some 4,000 km² of sounds, islands, and peninsulas. Based on information and data from interviews of stakeholders involved in the aquaculture planning, we describe three diverse epistemologies of science—client-based science, civic science, and Māori traditional ecological knowledge. We conclude the article with a critical review of how to better resolve spatial conflicts that often emerge in coastal management and planning.     

Fisheries Governance Affecting Conservation Outcomes in the United States and European Union

Abstract

Fisheries management in the USA, as governed by the Magnuson–Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA), has been decidedly more successful at meeting its conservation goals than has fisheries management in the EU, as governed by the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). In an effort to explain the different outcomes in these two systems that share many management attributes, we evaluated them against a list of effective governance attributes gleaned from the literature. We also examined the distribution of rights and responsibilities within each system, and the resulting stewardship incentives. Five effective governance attributes are fully realized under the MSA but have historically been absent from the CFP system: adequate regulatory authority, effective enforcement mechanisms, science-based decision-making, conservation-oriented goals and clear objectives, and directives. These governance system gaps, along with uneven distributions of rights, responsibilities, and incentives, may be responsible for the observed difference in conservation outcomes.     

改革开放中一航局船厂的可持续发展之路

针对国有企业体制转型、实现市场经济模式的发展,论述了一航局所属三个船厂依据市场预测和发展战略的需要,着力开拓经营和产业结构调整,充分利用公司技术和装备的整体优势,改革、创新,切实提升自主科技创新能力。在短短的5年间,使生产规模和经济效益翻两番以上。     

The U.S. national marine sanctuary program: An analysis of the program's implementation and current issues

Abstract

The U.S. National Marine Sanctuary Program was established in 1972 by Title III of the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act (16 U.S.C. §1431 et seq.). In this article, we discuss the development of the sanctuary concept, and the original intent of Congress, and analyze how it was applied by the sanctuary program. Differences in interpretation of the program's purpose are examined, including discussion of the multiple‐use management concept, an important but controversial management technique used in the sanctuaries. The continuing efforts by Congress and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to clarify the program's purpose are investigated. The program's administrative history is explained and the current sanctuaries and active candidates are briefly described. In light of the 1988 reauthorization of the Marine Sanctuary Act, the current issues facing the program are analyzed. Finally, we draw conclusions and make recommendations for the program's future.     

岸边集装箱起重机自行式小车牵引式改造设计及应用

岸边集装箱起重机自行式驱动小车存在小车易走偏缺陷,直接影响到桥机的装卸效率。用牵引式小车替代自行式小车是个可行的办法。分析了牵引式小车的价值和可行性。从5个重要环节介绍了小车牵引式改造的机械设计。介绍了小车牵引式改造的电气设计。进行了桥机自行式小车牵引式改造的,改造后小车运行平稳,提高了作业效率。     

4500m^3耙吸挖泥船推进系统改造设计及应用

分析了4500m^3耙吸挖泥船的推进系统,通过对主机进行实测,了解使用多年后主机的工作状态。在不改变轴系和调距机构的前提下,设计新的导管可调桨取代原有可调桨,通过理论计算以及改造前后实船测试数据的对比,显示本次改造提高了该船挖泥施工的推力,经济效益显著,达到了节能增效的目的。     

In Political Seas: Engaging with Political Ecology in the Ocean and Coastal Environment

The world’s oceans and coasts are awash in a sea of politics. The marine environment is increasingly busy, changing, and a site of degradation, marginalization, injustice, contestation and conflict over declining resources and occupied spaces at local to global scales. Themes of political ecology, such as power and politics, narratives and knowledge, scale and history, environmental justice and equity, are thus salient issues to understand in ocean and coastal governance and management. This subject review examines research on these themes of political ecology in the ocean and coastal environment and reflects on how the insights gained might be applied to governance and management. Political ecology provides important insights into: the influence of power in ocean management and governance processes; the manner in which narratives, knowledge, and scale are used to legitimize and shape policies and management efforts; the effects of historical trajectories on present circumstances, options, and practices; and the nature of inequities and environmental injustices that can occur in the marine environment. Moreover, ocean and coastal researchers, practitioners, and decision makers ought to engage with the political processes and injustices occurring in the ocean. Moving from critical insights to constructive engagements will ensure that political ecology helps to plant seeds of hope in the Anthropocene ocean.     

Environmental reform of West and Central Africa ports: the influence of colonial legacies

West and Central Africa ports have historically not paid much attention to environmental issues. In the past decade, however, environmental concerns are beginning to emerge with pockets of innovative responses to environmental risks as the ports undergo institutional and infrastructural reform – most notably, with concessions to multinational terminal operators. In this article, environmental management processes in the ports of Abidjan (Ivory Coast), Douala (Cameroon), Lagos (Nigeria) and Tema (Ghana) are compared. Three aspects of ecological modernization theory: changing role of the state, growing involvement of economic actors and economic incentives, and shifting roles for civil society organizations are focused on to analyse the dynamics of their environmental reform. Findings suggest that globalization processes are a common major trigger in enhancing a gradual but still fragmented and limited process of environmental reform in West and Central Africa ports, but paces and pathways of the reform are influenced by national politico-administrative arrangements rooted in colonial legacies. Consequently, understanding and advancing environmental reform processes of West and Central Africa ports requires following trends and significant developments but also taking into account national historical trajectories.     

Coastal and Ocean Science-Based Decision-Making in the Gulf of California: Lessons and Opportunities for Improvement

The Gulf of California hosts astounding biodiversity that supports numerous economic activities in the region. These activities, and emerging threats, are placing pressure on the region's ecosystems. Government and civil society are working to address threats through several conservation and management mechanisms. Nevertheless, the use and incorporation of scientific information—a key component for creating effective and durable management—is still deficient. This article presents the concept of science integration and discusses the findings of a study that assesses the regional landscape, existing institutional arrangements, and capacity for using science to inform policy and management decisions. It also explores the current use of science within fisheries policy and management and the capacity of the National Network of Information and Research of Fisheries and Aquaculture (RENIIPA) and the State Fisheries and Aquaculture Councils, two mechanisms in the region. Finally, it shares lessons learned and offers recommendations on how the region can strengthen science-based decision-making. Results indicate that while there are some actors in the Gulf of California producing relevant science, there is varying capacity of intermediary groups connecting producers with users of science, or mechanisms in place to ensure that science is being utilized in decision-making processes. Moreover, despite having a well-developed landscape of producers and intermediaries and mechanisms in place for fisheries management in the region, effective science integration is not occurring.