ICM Basics
ICM Basics
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?
"Where there are threats of serious or irreversible damage, lack of full scientific certainty shall not be used as a reason for postponing cost-effective measures to prevent environmental degradation" Principle 15 of the Rio Declaration "
Integrated Coastal Management involves substantive as well as procedural principles. Thus, two broad categories of principles for guiding ICM can be identified: principles based on agreed international norms for environment and development that have emanated from the Earth Summit and key international agreements and principles specifically related to the special character of coasts and oceans.
I. Principles Related to
Environment and Development
(section drawn from Cicin-Sain and Knecht, 1990)
The Rio Declaration on Environment and Development (Rio Declaration) is a set of twenty-seven principles to guide national and international actions on environment, development, and social issues approved by all nations participating in the Earth Summit conference. Some of these principles are new; others represent the reiteration of principles already established in international law; still others represent changes in established principles of international law (Van Dyke 1996). Overall, they provide a broad set of norms to guide nations in the pursuit of sustainable development.
1. Principle of interrelationship and integration. Although not explicitly stated as a principle in the Rio Declaration, the principle of interrelationship and integration forms the backbone of sustainable development and is the underlying theme of the Rio Declaration and Agenda 21 (UNDPCSD 1996). It means that we must address the interrelationships, or interdependence, among issues and sectors and between environment and development. In contrast to past thinking and past practices, environmental protection and development cannot be considered as separate activities; each one must incorporate the other.2. Inter- and intragenerational equity principles. The principles of inter- and intragenerational. equity relate to justice and fairness vis-a-vis questions of environment and development. The principle of intergenerational equity reflects the view that as members of the present generation, we hold the earth in trust for future generations (UNDPCSD 1996) and therefore we should not preclude the options of future generations (WCED 1987). The principle of intragenerational equity refers to the obligation to take into account the needs of other users (other members of society), especially regarding distribution of the benefits of development.
3. Principle of the right to develop. This principle relates to the basic right to life of every human being as well as the right to develop his or her potential so as to live in dignity. It is the first principle enunciated in the Rio Declaration.
4. Environmental safeguards principle. This principle relates to prevention of environmental harm through anticipatory measures to prevent harm rather than through post hoc efforts to repair it or provide compensation for it. Environmental safeguards go hand in hand with the precautionary principle (see below), and with two other Rio principles--the need for states to enact and implement effective environmental legislation and the principle of prevention of transboundary (across frontiers) environmental harm.
5. Precautionary principle. According to the precautionary principle, lack of scientific certainty is no reason to postpone action to avoid potentially serious or irreversible harm to the environment. Principle 15 of the Rio Declaration reads, in part, "Where there are threats of serious or irreversible damage, lack of full scientific certainty shall not be used as a reason for postponing cost-effective measures to prevent environmental degradation" (U.N. Document A/CONF 151/26 (Vol. 1), 12 Aug 1992).
6. "Polluter pays" principle. This principle holds that it is important that the environmental costs of economic activities, including costs of prevention of potential harm, be internalized rather than imposed on society as a whole. The principle was originally developed by the organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to ensure that firms paid the full costs of controlling pollution and were not subsidized by the state. The Principle is intended to apply within states rather than between states. Principle 16 of the Rio Declaration brings the "polluter pays" approach beyond a strictly developed country context; it calls on national authorities to "endeavor to promote the internalization of environmental costs and the use of economic instruments, taking into account the approach that the polluter should, in principle, bear the cost of pollution'(U.N. Document A/CONF 151/26 (Vol. 1), 12 Aug 1992).
7. Transparency principle and other process-oriented principles. The transparency principle demands that decisions be made in an open, transparent manner, with full public involvement. This principle goes hand in hand with a number of related principles: encouragement of participation by all major groups, including women, children, youth, indigenous peoples and their communities, NGOs, local authorities, and others; the public's right to access to environmental information; and the importance of conducting environmental impact assessments to help ensure informed decision making and to provide for public participation and access to information.
II. Principles Related to the Special Character of Oceans and Coasts
(section drawn from Cicin-Sain and Knecht, 1990)
There is no ready-made analog to the internationally agreed on Rio Declaration that applies to oceans and coasts; nevertheless, a number of important principles addressing the special character of oceans and coasts are contained in various publications. Drawing on the work of J. M. Van Dyke (1992), J. H. Archer and M. C. Jarman (1992), J. R. Clark (1992), B. Cicin-Sain and R. W. Knecht (1985; 1992), and Cicin-Sain, ed. (1992), we have put together a list of eleven major principles that we believe capture the essence of the uniqueness of oceans and coasts and can provide guidance for ocean and coastal management. These eleven principles are grouped into three main categories: (1) principles related to the public nature of the oceans, (2) principles related to the biophysical nature of the coastal zone, and (3) principles related to the use of coastal and ocean resources and space.
1. Principles based on the public nature of the oceans. In most nations, ocean resources have traditionally been thought of as part of the public domain, not to be exclusively owned or benefited from by any one group or person. This principle affirms the traditional public character of the oceans and refers to the public trust doctrine (rooted in Roman law and part of the tradition of a number of countries). It holds:The Public Trust doctrine should, in nations where it applies, govern decisions in order to protect the interests of he whole community and the interests of intergenerational equity. This doctrine requires that conflicts be resolved in favor of keeping the oceans whole and protecting the interests of the public today and in the future. Managing resources as a commons should be preferred over privatizing such resources. If private developments are allowed, the public should receive financial benefits from such developments (Van Dyke 1992).2. Principles related to the biophysical nature of the coastal zone. These principles are derived from the special circumstances found at the land-sea interface. These special circumstances include the following:
* The coastal area is a distinctive resource system that requires special management and planning approaches. The major resource systems of the coast and coastal habitats (such as coral reefs and mangrove forests) are not only distinctive but also extremely productive of renewable resources; marine resources also are highly distinctive. The high mobility and interdependence of marine resources and processes also makes traditional land-based management not altogether suitable for coastal area management.* Water is the major integrating force of coastal resource systems. Because it operates at the land-water interface, ICM relates to water in one way or another, whether making provisions for marine commerce, the ravages of sea storms, resource conservation, or pollution abatement. The water influence not only establishes special conditions but also dictates unusual and complex institutional arrangements (Clark 1992).
* Significant interactions take place across the land-water boundary and require that the whole system-upland, shore land, intertidal area, and near-shore waters-be recognized and managed as an integral unit.
Hence, the following principles are suggested:
a. Since land forms fronting on the water's edge (sand dunes, mangroves, fringing coral reefs) play a key role in combating erosion and sea-level rise and contribute to long-term sustainability, they should be maintained.b. Care should be taken to maintain salt marshes, coastal wetlands, and other coastal habitats in their natural condition.
c. Emphasis should be placed on "designing with nature" for example, using special vegetation rather than physical structures for erosion control.
d. In considering coastal development projects, interruption of the natural longshore drift system should be kept to an absolute minimum.
e. Special protection must be provided for rare and fragile ecosystems and endangered and threatened species in order to ensure that the biodiversity of the ecosystem is not reduced or lost.
3. Principles related to the use of coastal and ocean resources and space. These principles relate to management of conflicts in coastal areas, development of guidelines for use, and public participation:
a. Generally, protection of living resources and their habitats should be given priority over exploitation of nonliving resources; nonexclusive uses should be preferred over exclusive uses; and reversible exclusive uses should be preferred over irreversible exclusive uses. Potential conflicts should be identified early and in an orderly fashion, and equitable solutions should be developed by processes that protect and enhance public order (Van Dyke 1992; Archer and Jarman 1992).b. New developments in the coastal zone that are water dependent should have priority over those that are not. For example, construction of a new port facility should have priority over construction of a new office building.
c. The historically-based claims of indigenous peoples to ocean space and ocean resources should be recognized and their traditional practices of dealing with ocean resources from a perspective of kinship and harmony should be followed whenever possible (Van Dyke 1992).
d. Based on recent assessment studies of climate change, adverse effects in the coastal zone, such as increased erosion, flooding, and saltwater intrusion, should be addressed within the framework of ICM.
e. When considering retreat as an adaptation option in dealing with accelerating sea level, efforts should be made to create or make provisions for new habitats for coastal resources (e.g., wetlands) and species that otherwise would be lost.