ICM Basics     Introduction What Is the Coast? What Is Management? What Does Integrated Mean? What Is Integrated Coastal Management? What Triggers the Need for ICM? What Are Its Guiding Principles? What Are the Functions of ICM? What Capacity Is Needed for ICM? What Kinds of Institutions Carry Out ICM? References

Management of coastal areas involves multiple problems, multiple desired (and often conflicting) outputs from and uses of coastal resources, differential productive capacities over space and time within any designated coastal area, greater or lesser linkages to upstream areas and beyond, multiple constituencies, and multiple institutions with varying responsibilities for aspects of management. (section drawn from Bowler, Ehler, and Basta, 1994) The coastal system to be managed is comprised of a complex, dynamic web of interrelationships among human activities, societal demands, natural resources, and external natural and human inputs. The system is driven by human activities in terms of societal demands for use of the natural resources of the coastal area to produce desired products and services, e.g., seafood, marine transportation, and recreation. One of the demands of society might be to restore and/or maintain a coastal ecosystem in its "natural" state, i.e., as a protected area. Societal demands for outputs from a coastal area usually exceed the capacity of the area to meet all of the demands simultaneously. Coastal resources, e.g., fish and coral reefs, are often "common property resources" with "open" or "free" access to users. Free access often, if not typically, leads to excessive use of the resource, e.g., over-harvesting of fisheries, and degradation or exhaustion of the resource, e.g., coastal pollution and habitat degradation. Because not all of the outputs from coastal resources can be expressed in monetary terms, free markets cannot perform the allocation tasks. Some process must be used to decide what mix of outputs will be produced. That process is integrated coastal management (ICM). Management is a continuous, interactive, adaptive, participatory process comprised of a set of related tasks, all of which must be carried out to achieve a desired set of goals and objectives, however those goals and objectives are established and specified. Management of coastal areas must deal with at least the following factors: multiple and conflicting demands on the coastal area, stemming from within, and external to, the designated management area; human population increases and associated demand for economic development within the coastal area, including, e.g., the filling of shallow, nearshore waters for use for various purposes; the stochastic (probabilistic) nature of natural events, including the frequency distribution of quantity and quality of freshwater inflows to the ICM area and the frequency distribution of intensity and duration of storm events and other natural phenomena; rate and magnitude of natural processes, e.g., shoreline erosion and accretion, ecological succession, land subsidence or uplift; limited resources for management, because of multiple demands by society for outputs and services (other than those derived from management of coastal resources); uncertainties about all of the variables involved in ICM, e.g., governmental policies and programs, demographic and economic conditions and trends, social tastes and attitudes, external and internal demands on coastal resources, technological changes, and factor prices; and potential climate change and its long-term effects on coastal ecosystems and on human activities in the ICM area. Management of coastal areas takes place in various contexts, where context is defined in terms of multiple dimensions or characteristics. Table 1 indicates some of the factors that are relevant for defining the management context. For example, the economy may be predominantly a market economy, predominantly a non-market economy, or basically a mixed economy. Geographic scale can range from small islands to coastal areas of large continents; level of development from economies dependent on primary activities to so-called "post-industrial" or service economies. The form of government may be highly centralized or highly decentralized, i.e., dominated by the central government or by state/ provincial governments. Planning is an integral part of management. Operationally, it is the process of deciding who gets what, when, and where, how, at what cost, and who receives the benefits. Both the initiation of planning and the ultimate decisions taken as a result of planning are normally a function of a political process. The purpose of planning is to produce a framework (or plan) to guide decision makers in the immediate and future allocation of scarce resources (e.g., space, land, capital investments, fish, water) among competing interests (stakeholders). In the history of ICM, there have been at least three major motivations for the preparation of plans: to escape the tyranny of small decisions (also known as cumulative impact), to reduce the political and administrative costs of permit letting, and to provide a forum and vehicle for community based management (Sorensen, 1997). The concept of planning is important in what practitioners do. In order to adequately manage coastal systems, particularly the control of cumulative impacts, coastal management institutions must have a land use and water use plan to guide their policy making and decision-making processes (Sorensen, 1997). Planning for ICM must recognize that the coastal area typically is affected by activities: (a) upstream from the coastal area but within the drainage area of the coastal area; (b) external to the coastal area and its drainage area; and (c) down-stream from the coastal area, e.g., in the open ocean. Pressures on the resources of the coastal area may be greater from activities outside the coastal area than from activities internal to it. Following from the previous principle, planning for lCM must determine the relative importance of different sources contributing to specific problems in the ICM area. Relative importance is likely to differ with respect to the type of problem, time of year, and from year to year depending on hydrologic and economic conditions. Planning for ICM should consider explicitly plans and actions of other sectors of the economy, in terms of the time pattern of proposed, and in progress, capital investments and operation, maintenance, and replacement (OMR) expenditures. Activities in other sectors may have major implications for the ICM sector, and the reverse. From the preceding follows the principle that there should be a common framework across sectors for making economic and demographic projections, developing scenarios, and using similar analytical techniques for analyzing benefits and costs. Achieving such a common framework is difficult, since there rarely is an institution with overall responsibility for integrated planning and development of sectoral action programs. Table 1. Some Factors Relevant for Defining the Context of ICM Category Description of Effect on Context 1. Management Goals In relation to: (1) level of sophistication i.e., degree of detail of output; (2) scope of planning, i.e., time horizon, number of variables considered; (3) constraints imposed on planning, i.e., number of inter-regional economic effects considered 2. Government and/or Institutional Structure In relation to:(1) institutions responsible for ICM analysis and management over time; (2) institutional capacity, i.e., numbers, types, and experience of professionals in relevant institutions; (3) Implementation "style," i.e.., emphasis on use of different implementation tools; (4) importance of public participation in decision process; (5) sources of financing for implementation management strategies 3. Resources Available for Analysis With respect to: (1) professional personnel available: (2) time available; (3) analysis tools, e.g., models: (4) equipment, e.g., computing services and monitoring tools 4. Data Availability In relation to(1) natural systems, e.g., surface waters, ground water, atmosphere, ecological processes; (2) pollutant generation and discharge, i.e., pollutant generation coefficients, spatial and temporal pattern of activities, technological characteristics of activities; (3) pollutant discharge reduction costs 5. Existing Perceptions in Coastal Area As perceived by individuals and groups in the area in relation to: (1) difference between what is perceived as a severe coastal management problem and reality; (2) what appears to be logical, reasonable, efficient, and effective ICM strategies compared to what is; (3) differences between actual and desired conditions 6. Regional Boundaries With respect to: (1) natural or ecological systems boundaries; (2) political jurisdictions; (3) economic boundaries; (4) service units, e.g., water districts; and (5)scale 7. Physiographic, Hydrographic, and Climatic Characteristics With respect to: (1) physiographic, i.e., mountains, plains, and combinations; (2) hydrographic, i.e., surface waters and groundwater; (3) climatic, i.e., temperature, sunlight, and precipitation 8. Characteristics of Animals and Habitats With respect to abundance, life histories, and biographies Source: Bower, Ehler, and Basta (1994).   (top)

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