Toward regional hazard risk assessment: a method to geospatially inventory critical coastal infrastructure applied to the Caribbean

Hurricanes and sea level rise pose significant threats to infrastructure and critical services (e.g., air and sea travel, water treatment), and can hinder sustainable development of major economic sectors (e.g., tourism, agriculture, and international commerce). Planning for a disaster-resilient future requires high-resolution, standardized data. However, few standardized approaches exist for identifying, inventorying, and quantifying infrastructure lands at risk from natural hazards. This research presents a cost effective, standardized and replicable method to geospatially inventory critical coastal infrastructure land use and components, for use in risk assessments or other regional analyses. While traditional approaches to geospatial inventorying rely on remote sensing or techniques, such as object-based image analysis (OBIA) to estimate land use, the current approach utilizes widely available satellite imagery and a “standard operating procedure” that guides individual mappers through the process, ensuring replicability and confidence. As a pilot study to develop an approach that can be replicated for other regions, this manuscript focuses on the Caribbean. Small islands rely heavily on a small number of critical coastal infrastructure (airports, seaports, power plants, water and wastewater treatment facilities) and climate related hazards threaten sustainable development and economic growth. The Caribbean is a large and diverse area, and gaps exist between countries in the resources required for planning but much of the region lacks a comprehensive inventory of the land, infrastructure, and assets at risk. Identifying and prioritizing infrastructure at risk is the first step towards preserving the region’s economy and planning for a disaster resilient future. This manuscript uses high resolution satellite imagery to identify and geo-spatially classify critical infrastructure land area and assets, such as structures, equipment, and impervious surfaces. We identified 386 critical coastal infrastructure facilities across 28 Caribbean nations/territories, with over 19,000 ha of coastal land dedicated to critical infrastructure. The approach establishes a new standard for the creation of geospatial data to assess land use change, risk, and other research questions suitable for the regional scale, but with sufficient resolution such that individual facilities can utilize the data for local-scale analysis

Tanzanian Coastal and Marine Resources: Some Examples Illustrating Questions of Sustainable Use

This is Chapter 4 of the book Lessons Learned: Case Studies in Sustainable Use. The coast of Tanzania is characterised by a wide diversity of biotopes and species, typical of the tropical Indowest Pacific oceans, and the peoples living there utilise a variety of its natural resources. Because of the extent of the diversity and variety, several different examples are used by this study to elucidate the complexity of issues and multiplicity of management responses related to use of coastal and marine resources. It emerges that coastal management requires an integrated cross-sectoral approach to address the wide array of inter related issues involved.The study describes the status of selected resources from the principal biotopes (coral reefs, mangroves, seagrass beds and beaches) as well as fish stocks, and it examines various forms of their utilisation. Some special cases of endangered species are also examined. The study attempts to analyse questions of sustainable use in relation to ecosystem dynamics, socio-economic processes, institutions and policies. The characteristics for what we consider as approaching a state of sustainable use are proposed, and the requirements considered necessary for ensuring sustainability are outlined. Past experience and the current status of coastal and marine resource uses are summarised through the examples chosen in order to explain the main constraints to the attainment of sustainability. Cross cutting issues related to the breakdown of traditional management systems for common property resources in the face of increasing commercialisation, privatisation, and external interventions appear to pose general problems. The general experiences of community projects, legislation, and mitigation measures are assessed from the examples we have chosen

Solutions for environmental contrasts in coastal areas: Coastal cities and climate change

Copyright @ 2011 Regional Studies Associatio

Report of the FAO/CRFM/MALMR Regional Workshop on the Collection of Demographic Information on Coastal Fishing Communities and its Use in Community-Based Fisheries and Integrated Coastal Zone Management in the Caribbean

One part of the two-part Science-to-Action Guidebook. The other part was intended for scientists, and this part is for decision-makers. Recognizing the importance of informed decisions and the differences between the scientific and decision-making processes, this guidebook provides practical tips on how to best bring these worlds together. In doing so, this guidebook emphasizes the roles of facilitating, synthesizing, translating, and communicating science to inform conservation action. It is geared toward the perspective of decision-makers working in tropical developing nations and focusing on marine resource management issues. However, the concepts are applicable to a broad range of scientists and decision-makers worldwide

The State of Adaptation in the United States: An Overview

Over the past two decades the adaptation landscape has changed dramatically. From its early days as a vague theoretical concept, which was often viewed as a threat to advocating for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, it has developed into a widely, albeit not universally, recognized governmental mandate to reduce societal vulnerability to climate change. While it is important to appreciate the progress that we are making on this issue, it is impossible to ignore the urgent need to do more. Smart investment can be made by reflecting on what is already underway in order to determine where to build on existing efforts and where to innovate new approaches to fill the gaps in the path forward. In this report we provide illustrative examples of the variety of work on climate change adaptation that is underway in the United States. This is by no means an exhaustive survey of the field; however it does provide insight into the dominant focus of work to date, the resultant gaps, and the opportunities available for advancing this essential aspect of sustainability. We focus on four areas of activity -- agriculture, natural resources, human communities, and policy. The general trends relevant to these sectors can be applied more broadly to other sectors and countries. Adaptation can be thought of as a cycle of activities that ultimately -- if successful -- reduces vulnerability to climate change. This process starts with identifying the impacts of climate change to determine the types of problems climate change might pose. This includes all of the research on the causes and the global, regional, and local manifestations of climate change, often referred to as impacts assessments

Um paradigma alternativo para o ordenamento do território e o turismo em paisagens costeiras: as métricas espaciais como indicadores para ordenamento e o turismo em paisagens costeiras

Coastal urbanization dynamics in the Algarve are intimately related with tourism, which dominates the regional economy. We present part of the results of a research project in the coastal landscapes of Algarve, focusing on land use and land change, particularly urban sprawl around Faro, one of the highest concentrations of tourism resorts in the region. We performed a diachronic analysis (1990-2000) based on Corine Land Cover data. We combined contingence tables and landscape metrics. A parsimonious suite of these spatial metrics were selected in order to be easily combined as to derive results with a straightforward interpretation, and moving windows technique facilitated the task in identifying gradients of landscape heterogeneity. Land use planning must pay more attention to tourism, adopting combined spatial approaches, monitor initiatives, and do better plans. Metrics are good indicators for this purpose.As dinâmicas urbanas no litoral do Algarve estão intimamente ligadas ao turismo, que domina a economia regional. Apresentamos uma parte dos resultados de um projecto de investigação sobre as alterações do uso do solo nas paisagens costeiras do Algarve, nomeadamente na dispersão urbana em volta de Faro, uma das zonas com maior concentração de “resorts” na região. Desenvolvemos uma análise diacrónica (1990-2000) baseada no Corine Land Cover combinando tabelas de contingência com métricas da paisagem. Foi seleccionado um conjunto parcimonioso de métricas facilitando o seu uso conjunto e gerando resultados que fossem claramente interpretados; a ténica “janelas móveis” facilitou a identificação de gradientes de heterogeneidade da paisagem. O ordenamento do território deve prestar mais atenção ao turismo, adoptando abordagens espaciais, monitorizando iniciativas, planeando melhor. As métricas constituem bons indicadores para este fiminfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Assessment of Natural Resources Use for Sustainable Development - DPSIR Framework for Case Studies in Portsmouth and Thames Gateway, U.K.

This chapter reports on the uses of the DPSIR framework to assess the sustainability of the intertidal environments within the two UK case study areas, Portsmouth and Thames Gateway. It focuses on statutory conservation areas dominated by intertidal habitats. Two are located in Portsmouth (Portsmouth and Langstone Harbours) and four in the Thames Gateway (Benfleet Marshes, South Thames Estuary, Medway Estuary and the Swale in the Thames Gateway). Based on the reduction of a number of pressures and impacts observed in recent decades and the improvement of overall environmental quality, all six SSSIs are considered to be sustainable in the short and medium term. In the future, it is possible that the impacts of climate change, especially sea-level rise, might result in further reduction in the area and/or quality of intertidal habitats. Further integration between conservation and planning objectives (both for urban development and management of flood risk) at local level is needed to support the long-term sustainability of intertidal habitats

Comparison of Approaches to Management of Large Marine Areas

In order to learn more about the different approaches to managing large-scale marine areas, their comparative merits, and the synergies and overlaps between them, Conservation International (CI) commissioned this independent analysis of several widely applied models. Since 2004, CI, together with a multitude of partners, has been developing the Seascapes model to manage large, multiple-use marine areas in which government authorities, private organizations, and other stakeholders cooperate to conserve the diversity and abundance of marine life and to promote human well-being. The definition of the Seascapes approach and the identification of the essential elements of a functioning Seascape were built from the ground up, informed by the extensive field experience of numerous marine management practitioners. Although the report was commissioned by CI, the views expressed in this report are those of the authors; they were charged with providing a critical examination of all the assessed approaches, including the Seascapes approach. This analysis provides a comprehensive understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of each approach. This will help us -- and, we hope, other readers -- to identify ways to work together to achieve even greater results through synergistic efforts