The impact of artisanal fishing on coral reef fish health in Hat Thai Mueang,Phang-nga Province,Southern Thailand

This study investigates whether there has been a decline in fish stocks of a coral reef in Thailand, and if so, whether that decline is due to small-scale fishing. The research methods used included fish sampling by UVC, interviews and questionnaires with key informants and artisanal fishers. The results confirmed that there has been a decline in piscivores and carnivores (though not herbivores), and the main perceived threat came not from artisanal but from commercial fishing. Recommendations are to replace the largely unrestricted fishery with a more regulated regime backed by effective enforcement.     

Challenges in developing China's marine protected area system

Since the 1980s, there have been continuous increases in the coverage of marine protected areas (MPAs) in China, and a total of 158 MPAs have been declared. The MPA system in China is characterized by (1) decentralised designation and management with reduced control from the central government; (2) a dominance of de jure fully protected MPAs that are often implemented as de facto multiple-use areas; and (3) a lack of objective evaluation processes. To improve China's MPA system requires an appropriate integration of fully protected and multiple-use MPAs, and an approach that balances the advantages of top-down and bottom-up approaches.     

Small-scale marine fisheries policy in Vietnam

Vietnam's marine fisheries are considered to be small scale and are concentrated in coastal near-shore waters. This has resulted in heavy pressure on near-shore fisheries resources. Near-shore fisheries are considered by fishers and the government to be over-exploited, causing hardship for many coastal communities. This paper reviews and analyzes changes in policy towards small-scale fisheries in Vietnam over the last two decades. The primary issues facing the small-scale fisheries in Vietnam are to restructure the near-shore fisheries and to address over-capacity. Recommended actions include improved fisheries statistics, resources for provincial fisheries staff, and a coordinated and integrated approach involving a mixed strategy of resource management; resource restoration; economic and community development; and new governance arrangements.     

Fixing problems in fisheries—integrating ITQs,CBM and MPAs in management

We aim to show how some of the important interdisciplinary fixes or solutions to diverse problems observed in fisheries can complement each other. This can be achieved through methodical allocation of the rights pertaining to fisheries and simultaneous implementation of policy instruments to correct for market failures and equity concerns. We emphasize via a roadmap that there are some general principles that should be invoked when choosing between alternative structures of rights. Our examples from Sweden provide evidence of the flexibility of fishing rights and how they can be adapted to integrate fixes from different disciplines into practical fisheries management.     

Performance of community-based coastal resource management (CBCRM) programs in the Philippines: A meta-analysis

Community-based coastal resource management (CBCRM) is a major conservation and fisheries management strategy in the tropics. In this study, the performance of 16 CBCRM programs in the Philippines was assessed using a meta-analysis of eight indicators that represented the perceptions of local resource users. Overall, the CBCRM programs in the Philippines were perceived to have a significant positive impact. However, the performance of each of the indicators was mixed. Although the CBCRM programs were perceived to be effective in empowering the local fishing communities, their perceived impact on improving the state of the local fisheries resources remained limited. This highlights the importance of incorporating ecological and socio-economic considerations in setting fisheries management regimes.     

Quantifying the storm erosion hazard for coastal planning

The quantity of coastline retreat resulting from storm erosion is one of the most important phenomena that needs to be accurately quantified to facilitate effective coastal management strategies. Historically, the volume of storm erosion (and coastline retreat) accommodated for coastal planning decisions has been directly linked to the storm (usually defined by considering wave height and duration only) with a certain pre-defined return period, known as a Synthetic Design Storm (SDS) (e.g. 1 in 100 year storm). The SDS method of estimating storm erosion volumes for coastal planning thus assumes that, for example, the 1 in 100 year storm event also results in a 1 in 100 year erosion event. This communication discusses the physical reality of this assumption and demonstrates the improved performance of a new method, based on Joint Probability Distributions (JPD) for estimating storm erosion volumes proposed by Callaghan et al. [Callaghan, D.P., Nielsen, P., Short, A.D. and Ranasinghe, R., 2008. Statistical simulation of wave climate and extreme beach erosion. Coastal Engineering, 55(5): 375–390] using one of the world's longest beach profile surveys from Sydney, Australia.     

Predicting tsunami arrivals: Estimates and policy implications

Tsunami is one of a few kinds of natural disasters that leave people some time for escape. This escape time, which is essentially the time for the giant wave to propagate from the epicentre to a coast, has to be estimated without delay upon the occurrence of the incident. With the advancement of water wave theories, much work has been done to model the propagation of tsunamis from deep oceans to shallow water. The authors argue that while much emphasis has been put on the expansion of the high-tech early warning system and the development of complicated tsunami models, a simple-to-use yet accurate predictive model is still wanting. This paper presents a handy linear wave model, which is capable of estimating the arrival time of a tsunami with very good accuracy, as has been verified by comparison with past incidents. With the availability of such a simple model, even local communities without access to a high-tech warning system can readily estimate the time left for emergency evacuation.     

浙江省入海河流概况和河海区域管理及河海划界相关问题的建议

简要介绍了浙江省钱塘江(含曹娥江)、甬江等5条主要入海河流的基本情况与河口整治和开发利用的情况以及河口区域管理的主要相关法规和机构.由于海洋管理客体的特殊性,河口区域海洋管理中的涉海主体矛盾不断增多,指出并分析了河口管理中存在的3个方面的具体问题以及解决河口区域管理中存在问题的若干思考.当前河口区域管理的不甚协调局面是由于历史短暂的海洋专门管理与传统大陆型管理存在脱节造成的.目前,政府对河口区域的管理正处于由传统向现代的转型期,要解决这个问题,一是理顺依据不一问题,二是做好各部门管理工作的衔接.各行政主管部门应依据有关法律法规的要求,既不能缺位,也不能越位,建立以协调为核心的科学化管理机制已成为当今迫切需要解决的问题.在河口区域中相对有效地解决河海划界的问题,本质上就是解决该区域的陆海分界问题,选择海岸线作为标准较为恰当.当前在河海划界问题上存在诸多误区,科学认识河海划界,正确把握海陆分界的实质,才能把河海划界的研究及其成果最大限度地应用到维护国家权益上,同时从法制型政府建设的角度,站在当地经济社会谋求更大发展空间的全局高度,在法律的框架内更为理性地分析和处理河海划界中出现的各种矛盾和问题,在这一过程中,建立健全陆地与海洋管理的协调机制是十分必要的.     

中国资源环境科学数据的发展规划

本文描述了中科院资源环境科学数据中心的建设情况,有助于读者对中国资源环境科学数据的发展增加认识和了解。     

自然资源大数据应用技术框架与学科前沿进展

自然资源大数据及其处理技术应用能够为自然资源研究与管理,特别是揭示自然资源系统要素、结构与关联研究提供基础支撑,为资源科学发展提供新思路、新方法和新技术。本文试图厘清自然资源大数据的概念、主要特征和发展趋势,分析自然资源大数据对于国民经济与社会发展的重要现实意义。自然资源大数据建设既是自然资源信息化的重要组成部分,也是提高自然资源产业及整个社会经济效率、完善自然资源治理结构和提升自然资源治理能力现代化的新手段。本文在地球系统科学体系下,构建了自然资源大数据应用研究的知识框架,基于“一图一网一平台”结构,提出建立空天地一体化自然资源大数据库和“生产-生活-生态”应用框架,探讨建立基于自然资源数据收集、处理与应用的结构体系,并以此技术框架分析了自然资源大数据应用研究的学科前沿进展和发展趋势。