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A specific approach for coral reef conservation and development in SIDS (small island developing states) - the CRISP 1 programme
Abstract
SYNOPSIS A major proportion of coral reefs around the world occur in developing countries. The status of these resources is declining, while these countries simultaneously face major challenges in sustainable development for their people. Reef conservation in SIDS cannot be approached in the same way as conservation in more developed countries, such as Australia or French territories, even though the tools such as Marine Protected Areas (MPA) may be effective for both situations. One of the main differences relies on the widespread inability of government services within SIDS to ensure adherence to legal frameworks aimed at protecting the reef resources from irreversible depletion. The Government of France has invited a wide range of other agencies (South Pacific Regional Environment Programme, Conservation International, WWF, United Nations Foundation and several scientific agencies) to join in developing a programme to address the root causes of coral reef degradation in South Pacific countries. This US$ 10 million project over 3 years will address a series of issues indicated by Pacific countries, with an emphasis on MPA implementation, integrated coastal management, development of coral reef resources (aquarium trade, ecotourism, marine active substances), rehabilitation of coral reef ecosystems and setting up of a regional reef database. A particular focus will be put on the integration of human factors (anthropology, socio-economics) for insuring the success of the actions developed on the ground, but also in the wide dissemination of the project outputs at a regional level. The integrated approach will rely on the dual involvement of land and marine issues, protection and development issues, community based and highest institutional level issues, existing tools (such as MPAs) and innovative ones (such as environmental information systems EIS, including human and cultural factors). The project will be focussed in Fiji, Vanuatu, Samoa, Cook Islands, Kiribati, French Polynesia, Wallis and Futuna and New Caledonia with the active involvement of other Pacific countries (Papua New Guinea, Niue, Tuvalu). The concepts behind CRISP draw on the recommendations of the International Coral Reef Initiative and partners, ICRAN (International Coral Reef Action Network) and GCRMN (Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network) and specifically seek to find Pacific solutions to regional problems.
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Coastal fisheries in the South Pacific are reviewed, including descriptions of fisheries, catch composition, catch rates and fisheries biology studies conducted on target stocks. The most widely targeted coastal fish stocks are reef fishes and coastal pelagic fishes. The total coastal fisheries production from the region amounts to just over 100 000 tyr-1. About 80% of this production is from subsistence fishing.
The diversity of reef ecosystems, the multiplicity of reef resource uses and the breadth of the range of the island socio-cultural contexts concerned make coral reef fisheries (CRF) management in the South Pacific a complex task. The health and state of the targeted resources depend both on ecosystem characteristics (as determined by ecological and biological factors) and on fishing pressure, whose effects are only partly known. Increasing harvests from commercial and recreational fishing increasingly overlap with traditional Subsistence activity, creating an important CRF management challenge. This paper presents a new approach to CRF assessment and monitoring by providing a set of multidisciplinary indicators. The fisheries system is assessed from three different viewpoints: ecology of targeted populations, exploitation and the broader socio-econornic fishery context. The use of complementary indicators chosen from each of these fields could balance the chronic lack of human and financial resources for the management of these fisheries. We suggest the use of these indicators through an assessment grid or an indicator dashboard specifically adapted to given situations and management objectives determined through a participatory approach. The operational efficiency of this dashboard depends on i) dialogue between users, ii) the objectivity of the proposed monitoring, iii) the Visual transcription of divergent/convergent interests amongst stakeholders, and iv) stakeholder involvement in the decision-making process. The use and constraints of such a tool are described with reference to Ouvea atoll (New-Caledonia, South Pacific) for which an analysis of available indicators for assessing fisheries status is presented.
The potential yields of demersal reefal and lagoonal finfish, which are valuable for trade or consumption in the Northern Province of New Caledonia, are unknown. Fishing pressure was estimated from tally-sheets of professional fishermen to assess trade fishing and a household consumption survey to assess subsistence fishing. Total yield was estimated to be 1 326 tonnes in 1995, 94 % of which correspond to subsistence fishing. Most of the catches were taken from the east and west coasts; in the north zone (Belep Archipelago) catches were very low. From this fishing pressure and the total stock values, the maximum sustainable yield (MSY) was estimated to be 12 600 t, which was about 10 % of the total stocks assessed in the Northern Province (138 300 t). This MSY was dominated by five families, namely Lethrinidae, Acanthuridae, Scaridae, Serranidae and Lutjanidae. The results suggest that fishing effort in the Northern Province of New Caledonia could increase without endangering the stock. However, on a smaller geographical scale, some locations (Kone and Nepoui on the west coast), reef habitats (near-reef areas) or species groups (fish caught by line) were already being intensively fished. Fishing techniques should be diversified so that part of the fishing effort be redirected toward the least heavily exploited groups of species and biotopes. (C) 2000 Ifremer/Cnrs/Inra/Ird/Cemagref/Editions scientifiques et medicales Elsevier SAS.
Proceedings of the South Pacific Commission and Forum Fisheries Agency Workshop on the Management of South Pacific Inshore Fisheries
- P Dalzell
- T J H Adams
Dalzell, P. and T. J. H. Adams (1995). "Coastal fisheries of the South Pacific Islands." Proceedings of the South
Pacific Commission and Forum Fisheries Agency Workshop on the Management of South Pacific Inshore
Fisheries. South Pacific Commission, Noumea, New Caledonia 12: 19-21.