Capacity Development for Integrated Coastal Zone Management in Egypt

Since 1990 there has been a considerable increase in the number of developing countries undertaking Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) schemes at both the local and national levels. Unfortunately many of these ICZM schemes have failed to be implementated due to difficulties such as information and communication gaps and restricted technical and financial capacity. Common problems experienced across all developing countries. As a case in point, it is argued that developing countries suffer from capabilities at the local institutional level. Similarly, it is advocated that Mediterranean developing countries have not fully implemented ICZM as a result of lack of stakeholder capacity. Egypt provides a case study of this argument. Since the mid-1990s several attempts have been made to promote ICZM in Egypt, however none have achieved their goal of having an ICZM plan become operational. This paper reviews ICZM processes in Egypt focussing on the capacity of all instituions and key stakeholders to plan and implement ICZM based on interviews with key ICZM key stakeholders as well as documentary analysis and participant observation in ICZM meetings. It seeks through a critical evaluation to provide practical recommendations that serve to enhance the implementation of ICZM in Egypt and other developing countries.     

The Role of Spatial Data Management Strategies in ICZM in Ireland

This article explores how a fresh approach to integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) in Ireland might be forged through the identification of a number of key innovative cross-sectoral professional initiatives and interdisciplinary academic thinking in this sector. It includes three interlinked research themes that assess existing cross-sectoral data management issues (to include an assessment of readiness for the INSPIRE and compliance with the Re-use of Public Sector Information European Union Directives), the degree of cross-pollination between the various sectors involved in managing the Irish Coastal Zone (to identify the need (or otherwise) for capacity- building to encourage cross-fertilization of ideas, skills, and knowledge exchange), and cross-professional competencies (to assess the desire/need (if any) for those working in coastal zone management to add to their existing competencies through continuous professional development or lifelong learning opportunities). Indeed, the specific competencies for coastal practitioners are identified here and these further illustrate the need for professional recognition of the role, responsibilities, and therefore the requirement for an appropriately qualified “Coastal Manager” professional, one that is seen not merely as a nicety but rather a necessity—a core enabler in any future innovative and integrative management approach.     

Public Stakeholders' Perception of ICZM and Coastal Erosion in the Mediterranean

The Mediterranean area plays a pivotal role within the definition and implementation of regional strategies for integrated coastal zone management (ICZM). Under the umbrella of the Regional Framework Operation BeachMed-e, a research project was carried out in five Mediterranean EU regions (East Macedonia and Thrace in Greece, Lazio, Liguria, and Emilia Romagna in Italy and Languedoc-Roussillon in France), in order to study the different approaches to ICZM that have been applied and also to test new approaches to these regions. The aim of this article is to present and discuss the results of the common surveys conducted in order to investigate the institutional stakeholders’ perception on ICZM in the five Mediterranean regions considered. The results are presented region by region, while comparisons are carried out among regions. Summarizing the results it can be stated that some differences and common problems affecting the coastal decision-makers of the five Mediterranean regions considered were identified. Particularly, stakeholders involved in coastal management generally perceived a lack of collaboration and a poor information exchange in all the regions, resulting sometimes in a lack of awareness on coastal erosion issues.     

Application of the Principles of ICZM for Restoring the Goro Lagoon

The Goro lagoon has been adversely affected by intense anthropogenic impacts, which have resulted in deterioration of the lagoon's environmental health. An intervention at the lagoon's secondary mouth was done in order to improve the water exchange between the lagoon and the sea and to reclaim the lagoon's floor. This intervention comprised reprofiling the submerged sandspit platform and the tidal channel and nourishing the barrier island. After completion of the intervention, clam production increased by 28% and the lagoon's ecological quality substantially improved. The project utilized some of the eight principles of integrated coastal zone management to reach the best compromise between the socioeconomic needs and preservation of the lagoon. The realization of the successful intervention was first secured in a memorandum of agreement that was drafted by negotiations between the Emilia-Romagna Region Council, the Province of Ferrara, Goro Municipality, and the local fishermen's association. Two committees managed the intervention and ensured that all stakeholders participated in the decisionmaking process. The collaboration between public and private sectors enabled the forging of a cost-effective intersectoral intervention with a long-term perspective, which fulfilled the specific ecological needs of the lagoon and guaranteed sustainable development for the lagoon's adjacent human communities.     

A Tool for Coastal Setbacks Demarcation over Rough,Impermeable Shores: The Test Case of Kavala Coastline (Northern Greece)

Although setback zones and lines are considered as a powerful coastal zone management tool ensuring public access, protecting the coastal ecosystem and minimizing natural hazards over developments, the lack of a solid and objective Mediterranean methodological framework for coastal setbacks demarcation appears profound. Especially for countries like Greece, this deficiency leads to long legal disputes encouraging illegal construction on the coastline. In this article a methodology on coastal setbacks demarcation over rocky, impermeable shores is proposed, followed, and implemented along a Greek shoreline, serving as a pilot case study. The methodology is consistent with the requirements of the integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) Protocol and the Greek legislation (L. 2971/2001), aiming to determine the “highest winter waterline,” accounting for the tidal and storm surge effects, the sea-level rise due to climate change impact, the extreme offshore wind and wave analysis, and the maximum potential wave run-up. Such a tool may bridge the gap between legislative provisions and actual ICZM Protocol implementation improving regional coastal management and planning.     

The Strategy for Coastal Sustainability: A Spanish Initiative for ICZM

The Spanish Strategy for Coastal Sustainability (SCS) was an initiative aimed at implementing coastal interventions under the principles of Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) and improving the state of the coast at the Spanish national level. The SCS, promoted by the Spanish Ministry of the Environment, started as a broad national strategy in 2005 and was finally delivered as a coastal planning instrument at the regional level in late 2007, designed to address coastal policies within the Spanish maritime–terrestrial public domain (MTPD). The initiative was triggered by the increasing pressure on the coastal zone and its preparation was supported by different European initiatives, first of all the European Recommendation on ICZM (413/2002/EC), while taking into consideration the future requirements of the Mediterranean Protocol on ICZM of the Barcelona Convention, signed in February 2008. Technically, the preparation of the SCS included four steps: (i) a Stakeholder Identification and Engagement process, including a stocktaking of the laws and regulations, (ii) the design of a broad Strategic Framework for the Spanish coastal zone, including a set of specific objectives and the instruments for its implementation, (iii) the signature of cooperation agreements for ICZM between the central government and the regions, and (iv) a detailed Technical Diagnosis at the local scale, designed to address future coastal interventions in the maritime–terrestrial public domain and its areas of influence. This article aims to: (i) illustrate the triggering factors of the SCS, including the Spanish coastal issues, the administrative framework at the national level, and the European and international policies addressing coastal management and (ii) illustrate the approaches and methodologies used for the preparation of the SCS, reporting the most relevant quantitative results. The article concludes that the SCS gave a strong contribution in the construction of a base of knowledge for the coastal zone and to improve coastal management practices. Despite this, complex distributions of competences still undermine the implementation of strategic interventions. In this context, the future ratification of the ICZM Protocol of the Barcelona Convention represents an opportunity to use the SCS process results and improve coastal management practices and the state of the coast.     

Facts,Fictions, and Failures of Integrated Coastal Zone Management in Europe

Nearly 40 years on since its first tentative steps in North America, this article considers whether Integrated Zone Coastal Management (ICZM) in Europe has grown to maturity as a form of governance. The article summarizes the findings of recent research concerning the levels of implementation of coastal management in Europe, with particular reference to the UK experience. A research framework is used to identify the different motivations behind the social actor groups involved in coastal management. The application of this framework reveals four major findings about gaps in implementation: (1) the complexity of responsibilities at the coast continues to prevent agencies from taking a “joined-up” approach; (2) a policy vacuum is constraining implementation from national to local scales; (3) informational obstacles are significant in preventing co-ordination between science and policymakers, and between different sectors; (4) a democratic deficit is preventing implementation in the working practices of coastal stakeholders, with little opportunity in decision making for public comment or local accountability, especially offshore. The article also explores different conceptualizations of the role of coastal management and planning held across Europe, providing an analysis using the Strategic Management literature and the experience of the EU Demonstration Programme on Integrated Coastal Zone Management (1996–1999). Recent arrangements, with the availability of priming funds from the European Commission and emphasis on “pilot” and “demonstration” methods, have tended to encourage a project-based approach to ICZM that may fail to realize long-term objectives. The article seeks to present an analysis of the behaviors of scientists, academics, policymakers, and practitioners, and will be of interest to all those seeking to establish ICZM within the wider system of governance, as supported by the Commission of the European Community (2000) Communication on ICZM (COM 547). Some technical solutions are also offered from the UK experience that will be of use to coastal project officers working at national and regional levels.