Coastal Zone Management Policy - Case Study Example

Coastal Zone Management “The coastal zone is the interface between the two macro ecosystems of the land and sea. It is a dynamic and interconnected system, continuously modified by wind and wave action. It contains a diversity of habitats including coastal heath lands and forests, dunes, beaches, salt marshes, estuaries, wetlands, embayment, islands and intertidal zones.” (Coastal zone management policy ). Coastal zone management is the program designed to improve and secure the coastal zone. The coastal zone management is designed to meet the vital goals of improvement and development of coastal zone, for protection and re-establishment of the coastal zone wealth. “The national CZM Program is based on the federal Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, which is implemented by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) through the Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management. The Coastal Services Center is a program within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration devoted to serving the nation's state and local coastal resource management programs by linking people, information, and technology.” (Coastal Zone Management) Coastal zone management is very essential because there have been a lot of changes in the global environment in the recent decades. There must also be development of these resources for better utilization and bringing awareness to people. There must be wise use of these resources which build the wealth of the nations. Hence the coastal zone management is very important for every nation. Importance of coastal zone management: In today’s world, with the changing climatic conditions globally and with the green house effect it is very important to maintain the coastal waters. The earth is made up of 75 percent of water. The coastal region is less than fifteen percent in the world but it holds more than fifty percent of the world population in it. It is also one of the major natural resources which add to the wealth of the nations. Management measures must be taken for control against erosion, sedimentation, to retain the nutrients etc. It is also important to understand the behavior of the coasts and prevent them from being destroyed either by natural sources or physical sources. Flooding and erosion are the major problems faced by the coast due to natural reasons. Polluting the coast would be physical reasons of destroying the efficiency of the coast. All this will cause decrease in the number of tourists visiting the coastal areas. And also affect the fifty percent of the world population who live with in 200 kilometers of the coastal area. These areas have wealthy resources which produce goods and services. “The fishing, shipping and tourism industries all compete for vital space along Europe’s estimated 89 000 kilometers of coastline, and coastal zones contain some of Europe’s most fragile and valuable natural habitats. Shore protection consists up to the 50's of interposing a static structure between the sea and the land to prevent erosion and or flooding, and it has a long history.”(Wikipedia). They help in conserving the flora and fauna The other reasons to maintain the coastal areas are to protect the scare resources in the coastal areas. It also has rich natural resources which form several industries that provide employment opportunity and create wealth for nations. Fishing industry and wild life also majorly depend on the coastal regions. All these regions have high historical importance which attracts a lot of tourists to the regions. Tourism is one of the major revenues that bring good revenue to nations. Many other industries are also dependent on the coastal regions for their operations like tourism and travel industry, shipping, mining etc. It is also very important to understand the behavior of the coast, to examine them and study their behavior to prevent the misshapenness caused to the world population due to the natural calamities. Integrated Coastal zone management “Integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) is a process for the management of the coast using an integrated approach, regarding all aspects of the coastal zone, including geographical and political boundaries, in an attempt to achieve sustainability.” (Wikipedia). This idea evolved after the conference with in Agenda 21. Integration itself means combination, which signifies the combined act of various methods and practices by all states, countries and the world to sustain the coastal area. Integrated coastal zone management is a process attained to strike a balance between natural and physical activity to maintain the wealth of the coasts. The system plans, studies, analyzes and decides on the steps for maintaining the coastal areas and for wise usage. They have long term societal goals to be met and strike a balance between atmosphere, society, community and different sectors. The Integrated Coastal Zone Management emerges to be a vital element for maintaining the developments of these areas. The difference between the Coastal zone management and the integrated coastal zone management is the development in their approach methods. The integrated coastal zone management is the incorporation of all the methods followed properly with an organization to over view them. They perform the whole life cycle of the process starting by studying the problem, planning the process and by applying them in a selected method to sustain and develop the coastal regions. The significance of the Integrated Coastal zone management is the joint effort of all the governments, sectors, land water boundary, regulations and the nations. When two nations share the same water boundary, it is important for those nations to act with good understanding on the same idea for improving and retaining the coastal regions. Example: Integrated Coastal zone management in Australia “Australia's coastal and marine environments (hereafter referred to as the coastal zone) are under increasing pressure from urban development, tourism, recreational activities and resource exploitation. In 1991, 86% of Australia's population resided in the coastal zone and, over the last twenty years, non-metropolitan coastal areas have experienced a striking 95% increase in population. This trend is forecasted to continue.” (Coastal zone management policy). The Integrated coastal zone management in Australia is one of its greatest strength. It maintains and improves the excellence of the coastal regions. They deal with both growth and protection disputes that are of national level and capacity for coastal Australia. There are ongoing economic, social and environmental well being in the coastal zone which has to be supported by the government for attaining greater wealth through these natural resources and also improving the quality of people’s life by up gradation of the society through nature. Their main area of concentration would be to preserve fauna and flora, to prevent from the negative effects of climate changes, planning for the increase in population of the continent, construction of competence, prevention of pollution on the coastal regions and integration across the coast ocean range. “The implementation of the Framework for a National Cooperative Approach to Integrated Coastal Zone Management is managed through the Intergovernmental Coastal Advisory Group (ICAG), comprised of representatives from the Australian Government, each state government, the Northern Territory Government and the Australian Local Government Association (ALGA). ICAG members meet several times a year to share experiences and to work on Framework implementation.” (Integrated Coastal Zone Management, 2008) Coastal zone management vary between three different Australian states/territories There are various coastal management zone policies designed according to the states and territories of Australia. There is a National Coastal Zone Policy and Regional Management Plans. The National coastal zone policy is a extensive national goals or National intentional goals to preserve the coastal resource and their usage. The regional management plans are plans and improvements specific to regions which are sub divided according to the water catchment, pollution etc. The National Coastal policy The national coastal policy concentrates on the wide view of the problems pertaining to the nation. It must have a broader view of the problems and plan to handle them and finally concentrating on maintaining the quality of the national coast. It must concentrate on the pollution of the marine and coasts, water quality, pollution of the coastal regions through various discharges, fisheries, flora and fauna, urban community and tourism. Regional Management Plan The work is further sub divided according to the ecological zones. There are representatives from states and the local bodies which work together for protecting the respective ecological zones. They plan for local coastal preservation plans , prepare plan for executions, to avoid loss of values for achievement on land. Works Cited Coastal Zone Management. Department of Ecology, State of Washington. Retrieved on 10.08.2009 from http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/sea/czm/ Coastal management. Wikipedia. Retrieved on 10.08.2009 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coastal_management Integrated coastal zone management, Wikipedia. Retrieved on 10.08.2009 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Integrated_coastal_zone_management Coastal zone management policy, policy statement no 56. Australian conservation foundation. Retrieved on 10.08.2009 from http://www.acfonline.org.au/articles/news.asp?news_id=406 Integrated Coastal Zone Management, Australian government .Department of environment, water, heritage and arts, 2008. Retrieved on 10.09.2009 from http://www.environment.gov.au/coasts/iczm/index.html •Why is coastal zone management relevant in today’s society. •What is the difference between coastal zone management and integrated coastal zone management ? (Give examples) •How does coastal zone management vary between three different Australian states/territories? Read More