Ocean and Shoreline Management最新文献

The UK is a major producer of offshore oil and gas, exceeding the total UK demand for oil and almost satisfying the demand for gas. This position has been reached in 25 years and is based on the development of relatively few large discoveries. Future expectations indicate that the North Sea could become host to a further 100–200 oil fields in addition to the 44 fields already in production. The benefits to the economy and employment are substantial and are expected to continue. These achievements have gone hand-in-hand with the understanding and careful management of the environmental implications. The use of oil-based drilling muds is being reduced, and the voluntary notification scheme for chemicals used offshore is being applied more rigorously. The impact of offshore operations on the fishing industry is kept under close review, and a UKOOA Fund compensates fishermen for damage caused by non-attributable oil related debris.

By the next century, global warming due to an intensifying greenhouse effect could cause profound climate changes and accelerate sea level rise. These may have significant effects on the coastal areas of South-east Asia. These areas are densely populated and support a broad range of diversified economic activities. The physical environment of the region is briefly reviewed as well as the various socio-economic activities in the coastal areas. The physical impact of sea level rise include coastal erosion and inundation of low-lying areas, salt intrusion, flooding due to storm surges and high tides as well as habitat loss. Possible economic impact of sea level rise include the destruction of properties along the coast, changes in land use patterns, water management systems, navigation and waste management. In addition, climate changes will alter precipitation and evaporation patterns, increase cyclone frequency and drought stress which could compound the impact of sea level rise on the coastal zone.

Some strategies for the mitigation of sea level rise impact such as zoning and land use management, erosion and flood control, water management, reinforcement of existing coastal structures and waste management are discussed. It is advisable to include climate risk factors in coastal management strategies in order to cushion climate changes and sea level rise impact attributed to a greenhouse effect.

The maritime boundary issues and problems of South Asia, which are outlined here, are not as complex as would be found elsewhere in regions like the south-west Pacific, where the south-east Asian islandic states have essential claims on the sea for their existence, and as a source of development, affected by the dynamics of population change, adverse man-resource equations and the nature of economic development. Consequent conflicting claims there may cause serious problems.

In the case of South Asia, states are mostly Indo-Centric and the consequences of maritime claims may be more serious. However, the cases of the Maldives and Sri Lanka, which are islandic, or even Bangladesh, cannot be overlooked. Up to now, the issues have been more or less settled, but the case of Bangladesh and India awaits final solution. There is optimism within the framework of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) for mutual adjustment and cooperation, and considerations for further offshore development of mineral and fisheries resources place pressure to achieve a careful and mutually agreeable solution to the problems.

The isolated atolls of the Pacific have been an inviting target during this century for the hazardous activities of the developed world. Bikini, Enewetak, Christmas, Johnston, Moruroa, and Fangataufa have all been used for nuclear tests, and these tests are continuing at Moruroa and Fangataufa. Johnston now contains thousands of canisters of nerve gas, and a large chemical disposal facility has been built to incinerate these substances and other chemical weapons now stored elsewhere. The small islands of Palau have been looked at as the possible site for an oil superport and may be used for a US military base in the future. Most recently, the government of the Marshall Islands has suggested that Bikini, Enewetak, and Erikub Atolls might be used as storage sites for nuclear wastes.

These missions are hazardous to the marine environment and are incompatible with the protection of the unique ecosystems found at these atolls.

A low-lying atoll cannot be distinguished from its surrounding marine environment and must be thought of as an inherent part of the ocean ecosystem. An atoll is inevitably subject to typhoons and tsunamis (tidal waves), and any hazardous substances on its narrow land area can be swept into the surrounding ocean system. Particularly when one is dealing with long-lived radioactive nuclides, or highly toxic chemical weapons, it is unrealistic to imagine that these materials can be separated from the ocean environment during the entire period that they present dangers.

The 1982 Law of the Sea Convention and all the ‘regional seas’ treaties drafted with the assistance of the United Nations Environment Program, including the Convention for the Protection of the Natural Resources and Environment of the South Pacific Region (Article 14), require member nations to ‘take all appropriate measures to protect and preserve rare or fragile ecosystems…’ Substantial efforts are now being made at the global, regional, and national level to identify appropriate ‘specially protected areas’ and to define the types of protection that should be provided for these areas. An isolated low-lying atoll is, almost by definition, a ‘rare or fragile ecosystem’ and all these atolls should be designated as ‘specially protected areas’ deserving of careful planning, management, and protection.

The occasion of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea provides a starting point for dicussion of the regional scales of ocean management, including global, ocean sectors, seas and coasts. The principal elements in global patterns of regional development are considered, followed by the scales of management organisations, including national, international and supranational dimensions. The nature and degree of management integration, objectives, technical and general management approaches and the regional structure of management are discussed.

This paper describes the conflict surrounding the US Minerals Management Service's regulatory thrust to govern ocean mining in the US Exclusive Economic Zone. It explains the differences of view over the source of authority to pursue ocean mining and describes how the Service attempted to reduce conflict through joint federal-state task forces. It details the content of the first stage of its regulatory regime, that of prospecting, and summarizes the state responses to it. The paper concludes that while some conflict is inevitable each level of government should work together to ensure a balanced system of governance.

In order to ensure the maintenance of natural processes, ecosystems and wildlife, nature conservation initiatives in the North Sea must attempt to resolve the conflicts between the numerous human uses of coastal and estuarine zones. The Nature Conservancy Council's reviews of geology, maritime, marine and estuarine sites, habitats and communities provide the data bases required for the development of coastal nature conservation strategies. Nature conservation in the terrestrial environment has traditionally focused on the protection of designated sites. Conservation in the marine environment requires a more integrated approach towards the planning and management of coastal and estuarine areas.

‘Every rock fisherman must have tried cunjevoi for bait, and surely every onlooker must have wondered at the stuff he cuts off the rock…its familiarity is accompanied by an almost complete ignorance of its nature.’ (From Dakin, W. J., Australian Seashores, Angus & Robertson, Sydney, 1952.)

Procedural aspects of management-related research on coastal ecosystems are addressed in a case study of a popular bait animal, particularly with regard to using information about the population dynamics of the species, availability, scales of resource usage, and the appropriateness of techniques of harvesting. For example, people fishing from rocks in New South Wales, Australia, commonly use ‘cunjevoi’ as bait. The cunjevoi (Pyura stolonifera) is a largely unstudied ascidian that occupies much of the space on the lower foreshore. Preliminary data are presented relating to a study of the impacts of bait collection on the population dynamics of cunjevoi. Such basic ecological information is lacking for the lower shore, and may indicate hitherto unforeseen consequences of overharvesting by fishermen. This project contributes to the understanding of the influence of recreational fishing on the marine environment. The information yielded by this sampling strategy and a pilot experiment simulating bait harvesting are related to the management questions pertinent to this type of resource system.