Strategic Environmental Assessment Practice in Integrated Coastal Zone
Management
Kogi Govender
CSIR Environmentek
P O Box 17001
Congella
4013
Tel: +27 31 2422359
Fax: +27 31 2612509
e-mail: kgovender@csir.co.za
Ivica Trumbic
United Nations Environment Programme
Mediterranean Action Plan
Priority Actions Programme Regional Activity Centre
Kraj Sv. Ivana 11
21000 Split
Croatia
Tel: +385 21 340 470
Fax: + 385 21 340 490
e-mail: ivica.trumbic@ppa.htnet.hr
PURPOSE OF PAPER
Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) is an environmental assessment process
that facilitates decision-making above the project level, i.e. to policies, plans and
programmes (PPPs). To date, SEA initiatives have been largely focussed in the
planning domain. Limited information is available on SEA and its use in integrated
coastal zone management (ICZM). Strategic Environmental Assessment has the
potential to enhance ICZM by identifying environmental opportunities and constraints
to development in the coastal zone and thereby providing a strategic framework within
which sustainable coastal development can occur. This paper provides an introduction
to ICZM and the potential that SEA could hold for ICZM. The paper is best received as
an invitation to practitioners to present their experiences and share the knowledge that
they have on the use of SEA, towards optimising the application of SEA to ICZM.
CURRENT SITUATION AND TRENDS
The coastal zone is defined as “all intertidal and supratidal areas of the water’s edge;
specifically all the coastal floodplains, mangroves, marshes and tideflats as well as
beaches and dunes and fringing coral reefs” (Clark, 1992). This definition is expanded
by Chua (1993) who views the coastal zone/area in its entirety as “a special
geographical area wherein its productive and natural defence functions are intimately
linked with the physical and socio-economic conditions far beyond its physical
boundary”. The latter definition encompasses the sustainable development philosophy
that the biophysical environment cannot be separated from the socio-economic
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environment and recognises that the coastal zone contains diverse and productive
habitats that are important for human settlements, development and subsistence.
Population increase, inappropriately planned development, the pressures from
emerging economic development, i.e. the growing numbers of job-seekers and coastal
dwellers are increasingly threatening the functional integrity of the natural coastal
systems. The coast is also home to more than half of the world’s population, with
two-thirds of the world’s largest cities located on the coast (Reports of the Conference
Working Groups, 2001).
Furthermore, the degradation and loss of natural coastal
resources is increasingly becoming an issue of concern in many countries around the
world (Crooks & Ledoux, 1999). Haag (2002) makes the convincing argument that
sound coastal management is fundamental to humanity.
The management of coastal zones and exclusive economic zones is dealt with
specifically in Chapter 17(A) of Agenda 21 (UN, 1992) on Protection of the Oceans, all
kinds of Seas, including Enclosed and Semi-enclosed Seas and Coastal Areas and the
Protection, Rational Use and Development of their Living Resources. Agenda 21
concludes that the “Marine Environment – including the oceans and all seas and
adjacent coastal areas forms an integrated whole that is an essential component of
global life-support systems and a positive asset that presents opportunities for
sustainable development”. In view of the interrelationships between coastal resources
and their users, coastal states at the Rio Summit committed themselves to the
integrated management and sustainable development of coastal areas and the marine
environment under their national jurisdiction (UN, 1992).
Integrated Coastal Zone Management
The idea of sustainable development is encapsulated in the ICZM concept. Integrated
Coastal Zone Management can be defined as “a continuous and dynamic process by
which decisions are taken for the sustainable use, development and protection of
coastal and marine areas and resources” (Cicin-Sain & Knecht, 1998). Fundamental to
ICZM is the understanding of the relationships between coastal resources, their uses
and the mutual impacts of development on the economy and the environment. As
coastal resources are used simultaneously by the different economic and social sectors,
ICZM can only be accomplished when all these uses, users and relationships are clearly
known (UNEP, 1995). In recent years, ICZM has become the umbrella term for the
various names including: coastal zone management; integrated coastal zone planning;
integrated coastal management; coastal area planning and/or management; and
integrated coastal resources planning and/or management (Hildebrand, 2002).
The main principles of ICZM include (UNEP, 1995):
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The coastal area is a unique resource system which requires special management
and planning approaches;
The land-water interface is an integrating force in coastal resource systems;
Land and sea uses, and their particular characteristics and requirements, should be
planned and managed in combination;
Coastal management and planning boundaries should be issue-based and adaptive;
Institutional responsibilities for coastal planning and management should involve all
levels of government;
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Economic and social benefit evaluation, and public participation form important
components of coastal area management;
Conservation is an important goal in sustainable coastal development; and
Multi-sectoral approaches are essential to the sustainable use of resources as they
involve multi-sectoral interactions.
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Although the ICZM process needs to be adaptive in order to be capable of responding
to local conditions and needs, there is widespread agreement that the process
generally consists of the four main steps, which are presented in the figure below:
1. Identification and
assessment of issues
2. Development of policies,
plans (including monitoring and
implementation plans) or
programmes
4. Monitoring and
evaluation
3. Implementation
The steps of the ICZM process (Olsen et al., 1998 & Gerges, 2002)
1.
Identification and assessment of issues
This step involves a collection of baseline data and understanding the current state of
resources. It is essentially a process of compiling, integrating, analysing and
prioritising information (Gerges, 2002).
2.
Development of policies, plans and programmes
The purpose of planning step is to produce a framework to guide decision-makers in
the current and future allocation of scarce or threatened resources (e.g. land, fish and
water) to support human needs within the coastal zone (ICZM Basics, 2003).
3.
Implementation
Implementation defines the vehicle through which the plan is applied. It represents the
operational stage of ICZM where stakeholders are responsible for the practical
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realization of programmes, projects and strategies developed in the planning phase
(Audouin et al., 2003).
4.
Monitoring and Evaluation
Monitoring and evaluation functions to test whether ICZM is achieving its objective,
and to recommend improvements where needed (Audouin et al., 2003).
One of the key factors for successful ICZM is to have the necessary strategic tools in
place to include extensive stakeholder participation, to identify and understand the
range of issues affecting the marine and coastal environment, and to know what
management issues should be put in place (Audouin et al., 2003). The "classical"
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), which has been in use for a long time, could
not fully respond to the above needs. Even EIA with a strategic dimension could not
uncover, for example, the cumulative impacts of a string of strategic projects. Strategic
Environmental Assessment is more appropriate to respond to the above needs. It could
be considered as an EIA for programmes, plans and policies, but could also be
considered as a planning tool of its own (Kay & Alder, 1999).
SEA for ICZM
There is no coast specific SEA. However, the specific legislation, which is increasingly
regulating the issue of SEA at international and national levels, is generic enough that
it could be applied to ICZM. When applied as an integrated part of the ICZM process it
could, for example, raise the importance of coastal concerns as well as facilitate
consultation process among coastal stakeholders. In an ideal situation the SEA
principles and tools could be integrated into the ICZM process (as presented in figure
on page 3), i.e. the planning and the management of the coastal area is viewed in a
holistic manner and the environmental implication of the various activities are
considered within the context of sustainable coastal development. Various SEA tools
and the information they provide can be used throughout the ICZM planning process,
to integrate the concept of sustainability into the process and increase the validity of
its outputs. These tools therefore work within the existing ICZM planning process to
provide appropriate information at the appropriate stage. For example, within Step
one of the ICZM process, the identification and assessment of issues, the following
tools can be used to strengthen as well as provide information for this phase:
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Situational analysis;
State of the Environment Reporting;
Inputs from stakeholder interaction;
Analysis of existing PPPs;
GIS - based Suitability Analysis; and
Sensitivity mapping.
A key strength in SEA lies in its flexibility and its robustness to be adapted to different
circumstances (Kjörven & Lindhjem, 2002). Strategic Environmental Assessment can
therefore be used to integrate economic, biophysical and social issues in the planning
of coastal areas in order to facilitate sustainable development in the coastal zone.
There are various approaches to SEA. Perhaps the most suitable is the “objectives-led”
or “sustainability-led” model, which can be adapted to suit the context, needs and
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issues of an individual country.
This model involves the development of a
sustainability framework to facilitate decision-making with regards to specific ICZM
issues. The environmental parameters that are set by this framework can make the
ICZM process more efficient and effective. This also provides the basis against which
existing ICZM policies, plans or programmes can be assessed. In setting the
environmental parameters for ICZM, the sustainability framework performs the
proactive function of integrating the principles of sustainability into decision making for
example, future coastal developments, exploitation of coastal resources, and the
management of certain coastal issues.
Key Issues of Concern
Strategic Environmental Assessment seems to be dominating the international
environmental assessment arena. Recent discussions on SEA has drifted to the
potential achievements of SEA rather than capitalizing on present successes of SEA,
and has resulted in unnecessary pressure on this tool to respond an increasingly
diverse array of requirements.
However, what is more concerning is that there is a pronounced lack of experience in
implementing SEA in general. It is particularly clear when we compare SEA practice
with that in the implementation of EIA, which has become a standard tool in many
countries. The discrepancy between expectations of SEA and practical application is
one of the key issues of concern that the conference papers should respond to. The
lack of practical application is particularly evident in the use of SEA for the coastrelated issues.
Another issue of concern is a lack of standard methodology as well as typology of SEA.
While general principles and basic steps of SEA preparation are known to many, there
is much less agreement on what tools should be used and what are the final outputs of
SEA. Very often there is certain confusion whether some action should be considered
as EIA or SEA. The recent EIA made for an oil pipeline that might have profound effect
on the Adriatic Sea is the case in point, because that undertaking could easily be
considered as an SEA.
Key Issues for Consideration at IAEA SEA
Strategic Environmental Assessment does have merits in its use in ICZM. However,
case studies will be able to provide a better understanding of how SEA can be used in
the coastal zone and this learning can be used to formulate a more efficient and
effective means of using SEA.
We therefore call on SEA practitioners to:
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Share experiences related to SEA in the coastal zone (not only restricted to
ICZM initiatives);
Discuss various SEA approaches that can be used for effective and efficient
coastal area management;
Show how SEA was integrated in the ICZM process;
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Present tools and techniques that are being used in SEA preparation;
Show how stakeholder participation techniques have been used in SEA;
Present SEA prepared in different coastal geographic (regional, urban,
protected areas) and thematic (tourism, recreation, industry, infrastructure, fish
farming, etc.) contexts;
Present SEA where specific coastal issues have been integrated (coastal
erosion, sea level rise, protection of coastal land, etc.);
Present cases where specific international or national legislation for SEA has
been adopted, or where SEA has been integrated in specific coastal legislation
(coastal laws, regulatory documents such as decrees, international protocols,
etc.); and
Present where follow up to SEA has been carried out (monitoring, indicators,
evaluation, etc.).
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2003.
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