Reef Fisheries and Biodiversity Demo Project, CLME

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Reef Fisheries and Biodiversity Demo Project,
CLME

• UNEP- Caribbean Environment Programme
• (UNEP-CAR/RCU)

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Rationale

• Reefs systems key components of the CLME
  essential for major economic activities
  (fisheries tourism) but also severely impacted
  from these sectors through over-exploitation,
  pollution, habitat degradation
• Complexity of issues require a multisectoral,
  integrated, participatory approach and thus
  excellent candidate for policy cycle demostration
  project
• Use of MPAs as tool for marine biodiversity
  management is widely recognised and
  scientifically validated
• Strategic selection of replicable and
  measurable demo projects within limited 4-yr
  budget (US 1.45 m)

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Objectives

• Strengthen and improve the governance of
  fisheries and marine biodiversity management at
  the local, national and regional levels through
  the application of policy cycle process in 2
  representative demonstration areas with
  demonstrable linkages between them at both the
  lateral and vertical levels
• Contribute towards the sustainable use of
  fisheries and marine biodiversity through
  improved policy frameworks and enforcement
  undertaken on the basis of the principles and
  values of good governance
• Enhance marine biodiversity conservation through
  the strengthening of MPAs and their management
  effectiveness
• Facilitate the sharing of better practices and
  approaches within the policy cycle process for
  sustainable use of reef fisheries and
  biodiversity through the dissemination of
  lessons learnt

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Criteria

• Transboundary and multi-sectoral issues
• Hotspots for biodiversity and reef fisheries
• Building on existing initiatives and experiences
• Include participatory processes and conflict
  resolution
• Clear links to poverty alleviation (alternative
  livelihoods)
• Replicable and measurable results
• Co-financing and sustainability
• Demonstrable linkages to other areas in the
  region

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Overall Activities

• Review and strengthen management, policy and
  governance frameworks as appropriate for those
  areas
• Identify and address information gaps to
  address weaknesses in frameworks, including the
  biological connectivity of marine populations,
  both large-scale (oceanic, via larvae or adult
  migration) or cross-shelf
• Capacity building, education and awareness
  particularly relating to conflict resolution and
  enforcement issues
• Develop/strengthen implement monitoring and
  management effectiveness programme
• Develop appropriate linkages to other areas and
  dissemination of lessons learnt

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Overall Outputs

• Management, policy and governance frameworks
  strengthened and implemented
• Increase capacity for integrated management of
  marine biodiversity and reef fisheries
• Reduced pressure and degradation on reef system
• Improved enforcement of regulations on marine
  resources use
• Monitoring and management effectiveness
  programme implemented

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Seaflower MPA Large Marine Ecosystem
ManagementReef Fisheries and Biodiversity Demo
Project, CLME

• CORALINA
• San Andres Archipelago, Colombia

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Linkage to CLME Priorities

• Over- exploitation
• Improve enforcement of MPA management regulations
  regarding extraction of coastal and marine
  resources
• Implement collaborative enforcement (institutions
  and community)
• Initiate assessment of MPA effectiveness
• Habitat degradation
• Improve enforcement of MPA management regulations
  regarding use of coastal and marine habitats
  (both marine- and land-based activities)
• Implement sustainable use and conservation of
  coral reefs
• increase habitat information on remote and
  productive archipelago atolls
• Pollution (parallel with CORALINA environmental
  program)
• Coastal and marine water quality
• Technical assistance with solid waste management
• Adjustment of current groundwater monitoring and
  other watershed integrated management actions

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Justification

• Demo responds to five key CLME modules
  productivity, fish and fisheries, pollution,
  ecosystem health, socio-economic and governance
• Demo provides continuity of a successful process
  initiated 7 years ago through GEF and several
  partners support
• Demo supports Jamaica demo project and
  disseminates lessons to other Caribbean sites
• Demo deals with issues of both Central/South
  America and the Insular Caribbean, making it a
  unique example within the region

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Project Proposed Activities

• 1. Consultations and negotiation to ensure
  stakeholder participatory enforcement
• Bring together different actors to agree on
  cooperative enforcement methods
• Implement collaborative enforcement
  (local/national agencies, users, etc)
• Enhance participatory soft enforcement and
  surveillance through capacity building at local,
  national and regional levels
• 2. Policy cycle review, refinement and adoption
• Increase knowledge on legal and policy aspects
  among all stakeholders
• Improve compliance on existing fishery management
  regulations that are poorly enforced
• Carry out national consultations for final
  adoption of enforcement methods
• 3. Strengthening existing management framework
• Develop alternative livelihoods (including
  species recovery programs)
• Refine MPA zoning regulations
• Continue conservation programs aimed to maintain
  coral reef and key species sustainable use
• Update and generate additional habitat mapping at
  remote under-studied marine areas of the
  archipelago to assess connectivity and possible
  future interventions

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Project Proposed Activities

• 4. Revision of existing monitoring programs for
  MPA effectiveness indicators
• Determine initial trends in MPA effectiveness
  indicators (bio-physical and socioeconomic)
• 5. Dissemination of results
• Develop lateral linkages to Pedro Bank, Jamaica,
  through capacity building for implementation of
  management plan and to further engage the fishing
  community and other stakeholders
• Regional workshop with countries with similar
  issues and needs to disseminate lessons learnt
  and approaches (including establishment of MPA
  network) on the policy cycle for the management
  of the large marine ecosystem of the SA
  archipelago (eg, Bahamas, St. Vincent and the
  Grenadines, Jamaica, Belize, Dominican Republic,
  Haiti, etc)

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Project Linkages, Partnerships Collaboration

• Core of project methods and effectiveness
• Creating, building, and strengthening
• lateral and vertical linkages with key players
• Local MPA management structure with advisory
  committees, departmental and municipal
  government, all marine users (artisanal and
  industrial fishers, watersports and tourism,
  traditional users, marinas, etc), local NGOs and
  cooperatives, universities, wider community
• National All environmental, enforcement, and
  fisheries authorities and organizations including
  MinAmb, DIMAR, Coast Guard, CIOH, INVEMAR,
  INCODER (national and local offices)
• International - CLME partners, Pedro
  Bank-Jamaica, UNEP, UNESCO MAB and CSI, Seaflower
  MPA IAB members, and others

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Budget

• Total GEF cost US 500.000
• Cofinancing from Coralina/MinAmbiente US 1.5 m
  (includes past and ongoing investments for the
  development of the Seaflower MPA)

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Pedro Bank Large Marine Ecosystem
ManagementReef Fisheries and Biodiversity Demo
Project, CLMEFisheries DivisionJamaica
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Ecological/Economic Value

• One of largest offshore banks in Caribbean
• Harbors one of best preserved reefs in Jamaica
• Most active turtle nesting beaches in Jamaica
• Partially protected via MPA
• One of main sources of Queen Conch in Caribbean
• Jamaicas most important fishing grounds
  (artisanal and commercial)
• Supplies 90 of Jamaicas conch export and
  majority of domestic fish products

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Background

• Project initiated in 2005 to develop and
  implement management plan
• Partners include
• Fishing Community
• Jamaica Fisheries Division
• Jamaica Defense Force
• TNC
• NEPA
• UWI-Mona

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Proposed Activities

• Implement Management Plan, with emphasis on
  stakeholder involvement and enforcement
• Construct Field Station
• Wildlife monitoring and habitat restoration
• Support fishers to organize themselves to play
  active role in implementation of plan
• Improve fishing practices to reduce fishing
  pressure and improve economic benefit
• Capacity building and environmental education to
  train natural resource stewards (fishing
  community and Defense Force)
• Dissemination of lessons learnt and linkages to
  other areas (Bahamas, DomRep, Haiti, St.Vincent
  Grenadines project etc.)

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Relationship to National Strategy Replication

• Jamaicas fisheries legislation currently under
  review
• will require ecosystem-based and conservation
  approach
• will require management plans for all fisheries
  areas
• Pedro Bank will be first site to implement this
  regulation and will facilitate development of
  others in the country

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Justification

• Project respond to five key modules CLME
  productivity, fish and fisheries, ecosystem
  health, socio-economic and governance
• It will provide continuity of a successful
  process initiated 3 years ago with broad
  stakeholder support
• It will support the San Andreas demo project and
  disseminate lessons to other Caribbean sites

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Budget

• Total GEF cost 500,000
• Co-financing from Fisheries Division, TNC,
  UWI-Mona, NEPA, National Defense Force US 1.5
  m (includes past and ongoing investments for the
  development of the Pedro Bank Management Plan)