Strengthening of Coastal Zone Management Initiatives for the 3-Bays Marine Managed Area, Haiti

FoProBiM
Publicado: 22 Septiembre 2023
Última edición: 22 Septiembre 2023
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Summary

The primary risks to the 3-Bays Protected Area (3BPA) sustainable fisheries and biodiversity protection include poor governance, lack of environmental awareness, and unsustainable fishing practices. Therefore, FoProBiM (Fondation pour la Protection de la Biodiversité Marine) has been working with local communities to find a balance between conservation and the use of the natural resources in the area, by promoting alternative livelihoods coupled with environmental education on good governance and business training. As a result, the project benefits local communities by safeguarding priceless biodiversity, replenishing depleted fish stocks, raising environmental awareness among fishermen, and other stakeholder groups.

Clasificaciones

Region
El Caribe
Scale of implementation
Local
Subnacional
Ecosystem
Ecosistemas marinos y costeros
Manglares
Theme
Actores locales
Adaptación al cambio climático
Comunicación y divulgación
Fragmentación del hábitat y degradación
Gestión y planificación de áreas protegidas y conservadas
Gobernanza de las áreas protegidas y conservadas
Medios de vida sostenibles
Pesca y acuicultura
Servicios ecosistémicos
Challenges
Degradación de tierras y bosques
Pérdida de la biodiversidad
Pérdida de ecosistemas
Cosecha insostenible, incluida la sobrepesca
Falta de acceso a financiación a largo plazo
Falta de oportunidades de ingresos alternativos
Deficiente vigilancia y aplicación de la ley
Deficiente gobernanza y participación
Sustainable development goals
ODS 13 - Acción por el clima
Aichi targets
Meta 1: Aumento de la sensibilization sobre la biodiversidad
Meta 5: Pérdida de hábitat reducida a la mitad o reducida
Meta 11: Áreas protegidas y conservadas
Meta 14: Los servicios ecosistemicos

Ubicación

3-Bays Protected Area, Northeastern Region, Haiti

Challenges

The most significant threats for resource management in the 3-Bays is overfishing and mangrove deforestation for charcoal production and firewood. 

 

The overfishing problem is a microcosm of what is happening throughout Haiti, where high levels of poverty and unemployment have caused many persons to turn to fishing to survive. 

 

Mangrove deforestation is occuring in 3-Bays despite the fact that they are officially protected. It often occurs as a substitute when fishing is poor, which can negatively impact many fish species that utilize mangroves during a portion of their life cycle. 

 

Unless significant changes are made to the current fisheries management regime, especially with regard to the overall fishing effort, the development of alternate income sources and the enforcement of mangrove protection regulations, combined with education and outreach programs; the ongoing biodiversity loss and habitat degradation will continue.

Beneficiaries

·       National Agency for Protected Area (Government)

·       University of Limonade, near 3-Bays. 

·       Local fishermen and female traders

¿ Cómo interactúan los building blocks en la solución?

The strategy of combining environmental education and outreach with the development of sustainable alternative livelihoods directly addresses the two main threats for resource management in the 3-Bays. New ways of income generation will reduce fishing pressure, which will provide an opportunity for the fish stock to increase. Additionally, if stakeholders are environmentally educated and aware, they will understand the importance of sustainable resource use and should be more engaged to participate in the management and governance of the protected area. 

 

 

 

 

Impacts

The goal was to improve the management and conservation of coastal and marine ecosystems within the 3-Bays, by providing educational and training activities and best practices linked to concrete actions in order to increase local environmental and economic resilience and reduce vulnerabilities within local communities.The project’s impacts were:

  • Local communities within the MPA are empowered to contribute to the monitoring/patrolling activities, which will reduce the illegal activities in the MPA. The participants were required to take part in motoring/patrolling activities at least four times a month at first, both on land and at sea. However, due to the illegality of mangrove deforestation and other forms of fishing, participants strengthened their collaboration with the local national police in order to report violations; at this time, there have been no arrests or detentions made by participants.

  • To steer local communities away from the ongoing overexploitation of the mangrove and fishery resources, the development of apiculture, as an environmental friendly and sustainable alternative revenue was considered a viable option. This demonstrated that money can still be made from the mangrove ecosystem without destroying it. Furthermore, this activity has strengthened the two fishing associations illustrating that they can cooperate to conduct activities outside of their "normal" actions.

Contribuido por

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Ronald Cademus Fondation pour la Protection de la Biodiversité Marine (FoProBiM)