Coastal zone management

Mishkat MarziyaM.S. 2010-2011

Dept. of Geography & EnvironmentUniversity of Dhaka

E-mail: [email protected]

COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT: STATUS

OF BANGLADESH

COASTAL ZONECoast is the zone of interaction between

land and sea where both land & oceanic processes works.

It is most dynamic, resourceful and disaster prone zone of any country.

Coastal zone always include floodplains, mangroves, marshes, and fringing coral reefs.

COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENTCoastal zone management involves

managing coastal areas to balance environmental, economic, human health, and human activities.

Coastal Management integrates the biological, physical, and policy sciences to plan and execute sustainable solutions for environmental challenges where land meets water.

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.

It is a dynamic, multidisciplinary and iterative process to promote sustainable management of coastal zones.

It covers the full cycle of information collection, planning (in its broadest sense), decision making, management and monitoring of implementation.

THE COASTAL ZONE OF BANGLADESH

Bangladesh has a difficult coastline with many rivers and distributaries and complex ecology which is affected by natural hazards like cyclones, coastal flooding, tidal surges, salinity and the like phenomenon. The coastline is of 734 km involving coastal and island communities of about 50 million people, nearly about one-third of the total population of Bangladesh.

The coastal areas of Bangladesh has been classified into two broad categories viz. interior coast and exterior coast.

THE COASTAL ZONE OF BANGLADESHDepending on the geomorphological features, coastal zones of Bangladesh can broadly be divided into the following three regions:1. The Eastern Region:

Morphologically the eastern coastline of Bangladesh started from the big Feni river to Badar Mokam (southern tip of the mainland) along Chittagong can be classified as a “Pacific Type" coast running parallel to the young (Tertiary) folded hill ranges.

2.The Central Region: This region begins from the Tebegins from the Tetulia river to the big Feni river estuary including the mouth of the Meghna river upto the confluence of the Padma (Ganges-Brahmaputra) and the Meghna river near Chadpur.


3. The Western Region: The western region covers the coastline westward from the Tetulia River to the international boundary (India) located at the Hariabangha River. The region is mostly covered with dense mangrove forests with deeply scoured tidal channels of the tidal plain overlapping abandoned Ganges delta.


WHY COASTAL ZONE IS NEEDED TO BE MANAGED?

The coast of Bangladesh is prone to natural disasters like cyclone, storm surge and flood. The combination of natural and man-made hazards, such as erosion, high arsenic content in ground water, water logging, earthquake, water and soil salinity, various forms of pollution, risks from climate change, etc, have adversely affected lives and livelihoods in the coastal zone and slowed down the pace of social and economic developments in this region.

Due to lack of appropriate guidelines for natural resource conservation and utilization, land use conflicts occur and the coastal zone turned into areas of major conflicts.

Moreover the local communities have been haphazardly utilizing these resources, resulting in complete destruction of some of them (e.g. Chakaria Sundarban mangrove forest), some being over-utilized (e.g. coastal shrimp farming, natural fish stock) while some other resources remain under-utilized (e.g. molluscs, seaweeds).

Increasing population, competition for limited resources, natural and man-made hazards, lack of economic opportunities, important ecological hot spots, etc, calls for distinctive coastal management.

WHY COASTAL ZONE IS NEEDED TO BE MANAGED?

STATUS OF ICZM IN BANGLADESH

SCOPE ICZM IN BANGLADESH

Management of Coastal People

Management of Coastal Resources

Management of Coastal Economy

Management of Coastal Environment

Sustainable Management of all above

issues

Coastal Management Issues

Population Growth Infrastructure Demand/Supply Analysis Analysis of Opportunity Analysis of Challenges

ICZM — KEY TO COASTAL DEVELOPMENT IN BANGLADESH

The goals of ICZM are:Economic GrowthPoverty Reduction & Social DevelopmentAchieving the targets of the Millennium

Development Goals (MDGs).Reduction of povertyDevelopment of sustainable livelihoods and the

integration of the coastal zone into national processes can take place.

Inter-Sectoral Policy Linkages: For ICZM following policies has been reviewed:

National Environment Policy (1992). National Tourism Policy (1992). National Forest Policy (1994). National Policy for Safe Water Supply and Sanitation (1998). National Fisheries Policy (1998). National Agricultural Policy (1999). Industrial Policy (1999). National Water Policy (1999). Draft National Land Use Policy (1999). Draft National Wetlands Policy (1998).

All of these policies have clear implications for coastal development, but in most cases do not have specific sections on coastal areas and often fail to capture the distinctive combinations of vulnerabilities and opportunities that characterize the coast.


Coastal Planning ToolsAdministrative

Policy and LegislationCoastal Zoning Regulation an Enforcement

SocialCustomary PracticeCommunity Based ManagementCapacity building

Technical EIARisk and Hazard ManagementResource Analysis: Demand/SupplyEconomic Analysis

Engineering Measures of ICZM

Protection from StormProtection from Shoreline ErosionProtection of Coastal Water

(Pollution/Salinity)Protection of Biodiversity

The ICZM process consists of three main components:1. A coastal zone policy;2. A coastal development strategy; and3. A priority investment programme


1. COASTAL ZONE POLICY (CZPo), (2005)The specific objectives of the Coastal Zone Policy are sharply focused on pro-poor growth with due considerations to environmental management and equity, as spelt out below:

Economic growth.Meeting basis needs and creating livelihood opportunities for

coastal communities.Reduction of vulnerabilities and enhancement of coping

capacities.Equitable distribution of resources and economic benefits

across social strata.Empowerment of coastal communities.Women’s advancement and promotion of gender equality.Sustainable management of natural resources.Preservation and enhancement of critical ecosystems.

2. COASTAL DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY (CDS), (2006)

The CDS is the linking pin between the CZPo and concrete interventions. It prepares for coordinated priority actions and arrangements for their implementation through selecting strategic priorities and setting targets.

The CDS is a targeted process and the targeting is identified with respect to:1. Regions (islands and chars, exposed coastal zone or

districts; high tsunami risk area; South-West region);2. Disadvantaged groups (erosion victims, women and

children, fisher and small farmers);3. Issues (shrimp culture, land zoning; groundwater

management, climate change); and4. Opportunities (tourism, renewable energy, marine fisheries)

2. COASTAL DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY (CDS), (2006)

Nine strategic priorities, evolved through a consultation process, guides interventions and investments in the coastal zone:

1. ensuring fresh and safe water availability

2. safety from man-made and natural hazards

3. optimizing use of coastal lands

4. promoting economic growth

5. sustainable management of natural resources

6. improving livelihood conditions of people; especially women

7. environmental conservation

8. empowerment through knowledge management

9. creating an enabling institutional environment

3. PRIORITY INVESTMENT PROGRAM (PIP), (2004)

The priority areas of investment program are:Mitigation of natural disasters, safety and protection.Environment management – protection and regeneration of the

environment.Water resources management.Rural livelihoods and sustainable economic opportunities for

coastal communities.Productive economic activities and focused development of

tourism and fisheries sector.Infrastructure development.Social development including health and nutrition, education, and

water and sanitation.

KEY ACHIEVEMENTS OF COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT

Holistic definition of coastal zone provides guidelines for protection of water bodies and acquisition of land for non-productive use.

Introduction of the concept of zoning as management.Coastal Embankment Rehabilitation Project (CERP) was

launched after the cyclone of April 1991. CERP fostered the concept of polder management involving other stakeholders including the local community. Polders are now a natural feature of the coastal hydro-morphological setting. Now 123 coastal polders have >5000km of embankments.


The Forest Department started coastal afforestation in 1966. Vast areas in newly accreted chars and islands were put under mangrove plantation with the help of the local people. Forest belt along the coast, Coastal Green Belt, has been instrumental in protecting life and property in coastal areas from cyclone and storm surges. People’s participation in planning is ensured by this type of project.

Institutionalization of integrated coastal management has been attempted in recent years through a number of initiatives. The Char Development & Settlement Project (CDSP), on-going since 1994, may be mentioned in this respect. As many as six GoB agencies are partners of CDSP. Together they have been able to demonstrate a culture of working together coordinated by a lead Ministry/agency (MoWR/BWDB). At the field (district) level, the coordination is done through regular PMC meetings. This provides a good example of inter-agency interaction and cooperation.

The Bangladesh Red Crescent Society (BDRCS) initiated Cyclone Preparedness Program (CPP) in the early 1970s that eventually developed into a world model of physical and institutional infrastructure for disaster management in cyclone prone areas. More than 2000 multi-purpose cyclone shelters were built so far to provide security to the people in the vulnerable areas. An extensive network of radio communication contributes in cyclone preparedness of coastal communities.

More than 50,000 ha of new lands were reclaimed along the Noakhali coast through Meghna cross dams. Subsequently, these newly accreted lands were used for new settlements and socio-economic development of the people.


KEY CHALLENGES COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT

Unclear definitions of land to be set aside for conservation.Piecemeal efforts to address coastal management through policy. Implementation of policy and strategy directives remains poor despite

adoption of CZP (2005) and CDS, (2006).Widespread poverty, limited livelihood opportunities (especially outside

agriculture) and poorly developed economic linkages, including poor access to national and international markets that are even more severe than in other parts of rural Bangladesh.

Poor levels of service provision and very poorly developed institutional structure (with both government and non-government institutions weakly represented in many coastal communities) that make the isolation of many coastal areas worse.

Highly unequal social structures, with small powerful elite dominating the mass of people, allied to high levels of conflict and poor law and order.


Active processes of land erosion and accretion in the Meghan Estuary combined with geological and tectonic processes that are causing land to sink.

Changing patterns of land use, both in the coastal zone (including the growth of shrimp and salt production) and over the catchment as a whole that are affecting the coast’s morphology and water resources characteristics.

Declining viability of many distinctive and threatened coastal ecosystems, including the Sundarbans and other mangroves, coastal wetlands and marshes, and offshore marine habitats that are important spawning grounds.

Widespread pollution and resource degradation, including ‘hotspots’ such as the coast north of Chittagong as well as areas affected by more widespread processes.

Poor access to many forms of infrastructure and technologies and many examples of technical interventions that are poorly adapted to the characteristics of coastal areas.

Surface and sub-surface Stalinization, including saline intrusion into freshwater aquifers some distance from the coast.

Poor resource management, including the unsustainable exploitation of fish resources and poor ground and surface water management.

Rapid decline in key common property resources such as marine fisheries, mangroves and freshwater resources.

The long-term effects of climate change, with predicted rises in sea levels, possible increases in the frequency of major storms and changes in rainfall patterns over the whole Ganges-Brahmaputra basins.


KEY INITIATIVES NEEDED FOR THE COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT

• Generation of information and filling knowledge gaps through- Coastal Resources Survey Integrated Coastal Resources Database Modeling Tools Information dissemination Capacity Building


Dissemination of information to assist decision-making: Fragmented management of coastal resources and restricted sharing of information have resulted in poor awareness and knowledge among coastal dwellers (Sekhar, 2005). It is therefore important to disseminate information among all stakeholders and ensure their active participation.

Harmonizing sectoral policies, plans and laws: Lack of coordination between different local agencies and power structures often makes it difficult to implement integrated programmes. If departmental goals are in conflict, effective participation in integrated programmes by the agencies involved may be awkward (Sekhar, 2005). Therefore, harmonizing national policies and mainstreaming the ICZM approach into sectoral policies is of great importance.

Appreciation of ecosystem linkages: Linkages among coastal, marine and freshwater systems (watersheds, river basins) are increasingly becoming recognized as critical to the successful management of coastal systems.

Improved governance: Overall improvement of governance is important to ensure accountability and transparency in coastal zone management. Enactment of coastal legislation might be important in curbing conflicting and environmentally detrimental activities (Olsen and Christie, 2000).

Ensuring sustained political support: Sustained political support is indispensable to the success of the ICZM process. To generate such political and public support, demonstration of integrated regional and local programmes is important.


CONCLUSIONThe coast of Bangladesh is known as a zone of vulnerabilities as well as opportunities. It has a great importance since pre-historic times for its abundance in natural resources. Coastal zone management is very necessary for our country. Through integrated coastal zone management a sustainable development of coastal region take place. For this reason various coastal management program has been taken for sustainable development and conservation of biodiversity and natural resources.

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Coastal zone management