Towards integrated coastal zone management, with a special emphasis on the Mediterranean Sea : introduction

In this Special Feature, resulting from a MEDCOAST conference held in Hammamet, Tunisia, some papers are presented on ecological and biological research related to integrated coastal zone management. All over Europe coastal environments are threatened by human activities such as urbanization, industrial development, fisheries, aquaculture, recreation and tourism. Research has to be developed that can be applied to similar case studies in different countries. Methods of monitoring are necessary and baseline data have to be available in order to judge the significance of changes in the abiotic and biotic environment. Examples of studies included in this Special Feature are mainly from southern banks of the Mediterranean Sea but there is also an example from Estonia and one from the Canary Islands.peer-reviewe

Application of the Coastal Hazard Wheel to assess erosion on the Maltese coast

This study provides an assessment of erosion hazard on the Maltese coast via application of the Coastal Hazard Wheel, a tool that also facilitated analysis of a number of other inherent coastal hazards including ecosystem disruption, gradual inundation, salt water intrusion, and flooding. The CHW characterises the coastal environment by considering geological layout, wave exposure, tidal range, flora and fauna, sediment balance and storm climate. Application of the CHW identified coastal erosion to present a high to very high influence on the Maltese coastline, with 45.7% of the coast exhibiting a low level of erosion hazard, 12.1% a moderate level, 12.6% a high level and 18.4%, a very high level of erosion hazard. Application of the CHW suggested somewhat higher erosion hazard levels than prior studies using different methodologies; it also confirmed the ease of application of this climate change sensitive coastal hazard identification tool. Management considerations identified a wide range of options the applicability of which is highly dependent on specific coastal configuration and that characterisation of the latter is crucial to allow appropriate management. The study generated management-useful maps describing coastal susceptibility to various hazards and hazard levels. It further provided a description of the entire Maltese coast in terms of ten different coastal configurations that infer management considerations of six coastal characteristics and five hazards. The study outputs are presented as a contribution to more effective management and decision-making by civil protection and planning agencies and as a key first step in the risk analysis process.peer-reviewe

High resolution agriculture land cover using aerial digital photography and GIS : a case study for small island states

Chapter 7With the advent of site-specific crop management, sustainability and profitability, land farming now requires information and technology-based management system to identify, analyse and manage spatial and temporal resource variability. Th is approach is being made increasingly possible by recent innovation in information technologies such as mobile devices, geographic information systems, positioning technologies (such as Geographical Position system), and Earth Observations. Such innovation now off ers a holistic approach to micro-manage agricultural resources. (Robert et al., 1994). Basic mapping and farm-level record keeping is one of the first precision agriculture practices that must be implemented in a typical productive agriculture operation (Stombaugh et al., 2001). Typical tasks include mapping of variations that occur in largescale field features such as vegetation stress, crop rotation, inventorying, irrigation, soil drainage and erosion, pest control, etc. Th e search for a low cost methodology that takes into account the growth of information technology in data capture and surveying, data processing, database creation and geographic information systems becomes mandatory in order to respond to such needs. Th e study constitutes, for the first time in Malta, the collection of high precision farming statistics that makes use of an inexpensive system for aerial mapping that requires minimal ground truthing. Th e effectiveness of such a method for small areas was later demonstrated by Galdies and Borg (2006) related to coastal and beach management in the Maltese islands. In the current case, digital aerial remote sensing enabled the accurate mapping of agricultural variables, and coupled with ground survey data, resulted in the production of precise, high resolution agricultural crop-cover maps. Additional information can be further derived from this data that can be used for the optimisation of micro agriculture practices.peer-reviewe

Shore platform denudation measurements along the Maltese coastline

Using an original rock profiling technique especially adapted to locally common smooth and irregular / deeply weathered (karstic) rocky shores, 38 base-line profiles were established at 19 rocky-shore sites to investigate surface-denudation characteristics exhibited by natural rock surfaces found on the Maltese coast. The latter were identified as being representative of actual or potential bathing platforms, thus offering a valuable alternative to otherwise scarce beach environments on the tourist rich Islands of Malta. Observations on shore surface denudation over a 3 – 5 year period were subsequently related to degree of exposure, erosion and weathering processes considered active at each site. Identification of distinct surface-denudation characteristics for sub-divisions within the Globigerina Limestone and similar surface-lowering rates for Lower Coralline Limestone and the Lower Globigerina Limestone sub-division were considered to qualify otherwise subjective interpretation of local bedrock resistance to marine erosion and weathering. The design of an innovative 'Rock Profiler', was identified as an improvement to traditional profiling techniques, allowing surface elevation measurements over both smooth and indented rock surfaces, achievements of more representative rock surface profiling over extended sample areas (with a 95 consecutive point line-transect), accurate assessments of rock surface micro-relief and of carrying out profiling independent of rock surface plane. This study provided for the first time, accurate and distinct surface-denudation rates for the main geological formations exposed on the Maltese coast, these being 1.38mm/yr for Upper Coralline Limestone, 9.16mm/yr for Middle Globigerina Limestone, 0.74mm/yr for Lower Globigerina Limestone and 0.77mm/yr for Lower Coralline Limestone.peer-reviewe

Application of function analysis to bathing areas in the Maltese Islands

On a small island such as Malta where many developers and policy makers place a large emphasis on social use and development values, which encourages recreational/industrial development, it is often hard to promote the monetary value of coastal conservation due to strong competition with the large tourism industry. An assessment of the ecological (conservation) and economic (use/development) values of four popular Maltese bathing areas (Mellieha, St. George's, Ramla and Ghajn Tuffieha Bay) was carried out by evaluating their ability to provide a number of functions. This is dependent on the environments' inherent characteristics within the context of locally applicable time and space functions. Function Analysis is an innovative technique able to provide a means for assessing changes in environmental quality of an area and evaluating the sustainability of applied management regimes. This paper is a first example of an application of the Functional Analysis approach in Malta. Local application of this technique indicates a need for additional refinement in application to coastal areas. Analysis showed that St. George's, had the lowest conservation value, Ramla and Ghajn Tuffieha bay had the highest conservation values, Mellieha Bay had high conservation value and use/development potential. In this context, conservation value is understood to reflect values of biodiversity, information / knowledge and environmental quality.peer-reviewe

Designing a bathing area management plan - a template for Ramla Bay, Gozo

This document represents a recommended design for a bathing area management plan for Ramla Bay, Gozo. The work was commissioned by the GAIA Foundation as a component of an overall management strategy being developed for Ramla Bay within the context of the EU-LIFE funded project ‘’Integrated Management of Specially Protected Coastal Areas in Malta’’ (EU – LIFE TCY 99/M/095). Since this report considers Ramla Bay from the management perspective concerning its use as a bathing area, readers should, for a broader management viewpoint, also refer to the ‘’Management Plan for Ramla Bay, Gozo’’ document, also developed within the same EU-LIFE TCY/99/M/095 project. In this document, management of the Ramla Bay bathing area is addressed through: • Development of a bathing area management strategy. • Application of a number of novel management tools for data gathering, environmental and problem scope evaluation and bathing area quality assessment. • Recommendation of a management plan model. • Identification of bathing area management guidelines and recommendations. It should be noted that while some of the bathing area management recommendations presented in section 4.0 of this report may be in part or to a larger degree already implemented within existing on-site management efforts at Ramla Bay, they have been retained in this document in order to preserve the integrated nature of such management proposals.peer-reviewe

The international protection of human rights and freedoms : recent efforts in Malta

On 10th September 1990 the Government of Malta deposited instruments of ratification with the United Nations Secretary General for four multilateral treaties concerned with the international protection of human rights. These are: The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (hereafter referred to as Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Covenant); The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (hereafter referred to as International Covenant); The Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (hereafter referred to as Optional Protocol), all three adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1966, and the Convention Against Torture. and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degra ding Treatment or Punishment (hereafter ref erred to as the UN Convention on Torture) adopted by the General Assembly in 1984. All four treaties serve one common purpose: the protection of fundamental human rights and liberties through international legal regulation. But each instrument engenders a separate series of obligations for States in international law and the effect of the implementation of these undertakings by Malta, as a State Party, on our laws will be varied and revolutionary. The present outline is offered as a succinct record of the principal features incorporated in these instruments and of the contribution made by these texts to the formation of an ever developing com prehensive regime concerning international human rights protection that will become operative under our law.peer-reviewe

Coastal scenic assessment : unlocking the potential for coastal tourism in rural Pakistan via Mediterranean developed techniques

Originally developed within the Mediterranean, a tested coastal management and planning tool was applied outside the region to evaluate its international scope, with particular reference to a less developed country. Seven coastal sites in Pakistan were investigated for their scenic values through a 26 item checklist grouped as physical and human parameters analysed though weighted parameters and fuzzy logic matrices. With respect to a five-class evaluation system, results indicated: Jiwani, Miani Hor and Pasni-Astola Island as extremely attractive natural sites with very high landscape value (classified as Class 1 sites); Mubarak village as an attractive natural site with high landscape value (classified as a Class 2 site); Kaka pir village, Harjana village and Keti Bandar as having little outstanding landscape features or with urban environment and classified as Class 3 sites. Rural and/or urban environmental influences were observed to be critical factors which influenced major human parameters that ultimately affect sites’ scenic classification. However, notwithstanding natural attraction, unless political and social development barriers are tackled in conjunction with recognising areas that possess inherent tourism potential, economic potential is unlikely to be realised.peer-reviewe

Investigating the use of UAV systems for photogrammetric applications : a case study of Ramla Bay (Gozo, Malta)

In this study, we present the 3D digital model of Ramla Bay (Gozo) obtained by using photograms taken from drones. The high-resolution 3D model of Ramla Bay allowed the construction of a detailed Digital Elevation Model (DEM). Comparison of an earlier LIDAR data derived DEM (ERDF 156 Data, 2013) and the photogrammetric DEM developed in this study allowed to make preliminary observations regarding the potential evolution of the coastal area over the last 5 years. This study serves as a proof of concept to demonstrate that coastal evolution can be quantitatively analysed in terms of changes of the sand dune systems. Furthermore, the technique used in this paper represents a good compromise in terms of cost effectiveness and a valid substitute for laser scanner survey. It is also useful for monitoring the dynamics of the beach-dune system and the characterization of the coast for the mitigation of coastal erosion.peer-reviewe