Land and coastal planning have traditionally been managed as separate sectors from both institutional and disciplinary perspectives. Important issues to address in integrative planning include
- centralized decision-making and planning
- low-level priority traditionally given to environmental issues
- weak lead institutions
- subsidies to some economic activities
- development models
- lack of information
- lack of legal and institutional authority.
The understanding of the impact of upstream human activities (eg, changes in water courses, agriculture, sewage) to the downstream areas and coastal zones and their effect on ecosystems and human health is vital to effective decision making, physical and policy planning, and community support to national or regional-scale initiatives. Integrated watershed and coastal management has a transboundary nature (nationally and internationally) that requires
- cross-sectoral and cross-jurisdictional arrangements and support (including harmonized policies, financing, and information gathering/sharing)
- integrated management instruments
- an ecosystem-based management approach (which should consider water and/or ecosystems as key elements for planning).
There are several planning instruments that can provide upstream and downstream integration. For instance, spatial planning systems allow for management of large ecosystems with long, medium, and short-term perspectives and can incorporate other decision-making elements such as ownership or user fee systems. Today’s spatial planning systems need to address shortcomings in the areas of biodiversity, climate change adaptation, water resources management, and marine ecosystems.
Integrating watershed and coastal resources management into spatial planning can improve the latter’s involvement of stakeholders and increase its focus on water resource management. Spatial planning also must incorporate biodiversity management, particularly when the area in question includes or influences protected zones (both terrestrial and marine).
Another important component of the upstream-downstream integrated vision is outreach, education, and participation mechanisms addressed to the involved stakeholders. This component ensures that the different actors (eg, fresh and marine-water users, local and national authorities, donors) are involved in decision-making processes, and helps them to understand the needs of the other sectors and the impacts of their activities on the entire system and on other actors’ activities. As the traditional planning system has managed freshwater and marine systems separately, the involvement of stakeholders into decision making, if any, has been sectoral and/or has differed according to the management and planning level in which they may be involved.
The sectoral approach to management (decision making and investment) has probably been the cause for the lack of involvement (or knowledge) and participation of a wider range of stakeholder into decision making, and lack of knowledge of other actors’ current and potential impact of their activities in the entire system. The idea of “whatever you do to the river basin will affect the ocean” is not very well understood in many sectors of the society. Even decision makers may have misconceptions about the dimension of the problem and the effects on the national economy.
Addressing the planning approach and stakeholder participation and education should be a priority for national governments, and especially for regional and international organizations. This is particularly important in developing nations and when the planning involves historically excluded groups such as indigenous or poor communities, which can greatly contribute to the integrated planning system.
Source: 4th Global Conference on Oceans, Coasts and Islands, Hanoi, Vietnam, 7-11 April, 2008
Policy Brief on Freshwater to Oceans, Pgs 2-3 http://www.thew2o.net/goc2008/freshwater.htm
