A typology of stakeholders and guidelines for engagement in transdisciplinary, participatory processes

© 2016 Newton and Elliott. This paper fulfils a gap in environmental management by producing a typology of stakeholders for effective participatory processes and co-design of solutions to complex social–environmental issues and then uses this typology for a stepwise roadmap methodology for balanced and productive stakeholder engagement. Definitions are given of terminology that is frequently used interchangeably such as “stakeholders,” “social actors,” and “interested parties.” Whilst this analysis comes from a marine perspective, it is relevant to all environments and the means of tackling environmental problems. Eleven research questions about participative processes are addressed, based on more than 30 years of experience in water, estuarine, coastal, and marine management. A stepwise roadmap, supported by illustrative tables based on case-studies, shows how a balanced stakeholder selection and real engagement may be achieved. The paper brings these together in the context of several up-to-date concepts such as complex, nested governance, the 10 tenets for integrated, successful, and sustainable marine management, the System Approach Framework and the evolution of DPSIR into DAPSI(W)R(M) framework. Examples given are based on the implementation of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive, the Water Framework Directive, the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive, the Framework Directive for Maritime Spatial Planning, as well as for Regional Sea Conventions. The paper also shows how tools that have been developed in recent projects can be put to use to implement policy and maximize the effectiveness of stakeholder participation

A systems approach for sustainable development in coastal zones

This Special Feature of Ecology and Society brings together important outcomes of the EU-funded project: Science-Policy Integration for Coastal System Assessment, SPICOSA. The title of the project revealed its innovative nature from the start. The premise was to bind scientific information to policy decisions and to consider the coastal zone as an integrated ecological-social-economic system. As a result, the SPICOSA project was very broad, ambitious, and required multidisciplinary teams of researchers to work together: natural scientists such as oceanographers and ecologists, social scientists, economists, and modelers. In itself, this was a tour de force. In addition, the project required a participatory role from stakeholders or actors, e.g., institutions, NGOs, economic sectors, etc., as well as from coastal managers and decision makers

Impact of coastal engineering on the water quality of the Ria Formosa Lagoon, Portugal

The Ria Formosa is a coastal lagoon in southern Portugal. It is a Ramsar and Natura 2000 site and supports important resources such as fisheries, aquaculture and tourism. Human impacts on the Ria Formosa include urbanization, intensive agriculture, aquaculture, and coastal engineering. In this rare, long-term study of a coastal lagoon, the effects of changes in coastal zone management are documented. Data from studies over 12 years are compared to follow the impact of coastal engineering on the water quality of the lagoon. The studies are: • Prior to the opening of the INDIA inlet • Following the opening of the inlet (prior to the operation of the sewage treatment plant) • After the start of the sewage treatment plant operation Recent modifications to the lagoon appear to have improved the water quality of the western lagoon with respect to dissolved oxygen percentage saturation

Temperature and salinity regimes in a shallow, mesotidal lagoon, the Ria Formosa, Portugal

In a recent study of the mesotidal Ria Formosa, a coastal lagoon in southern Portugal, water temperature in the channels ranged from 12 C in winter to 27 C in summer and salinity from 13 to 36.5, although much higher values were observed in saltpans. Conditions in the Ria Formosa were not homogeneous despite a large tidal exchange of water; the inner channels of the Ria Formosa were brackish in winter but hypersaline in summer. Water in inner areas of lagoon had significantly different temperature and salinity characteristics compared to the inflowing coastal water, both in winter and in summer. Areas with these differences in temperature and salinity were detectable both at low water and at high water neaps. Deterioration of water quality is therefore more probable in these areas. The waters went through a complex heating and cooling cycle in summer with diurnal difference of 6 C and 2 in temperature and salinity, respectively. The lack of freshwater input and high insolation meant the outflowing water of the lagoon was more saline that the inflowing coastal waters. In summer, the temperature controlled density with the least dense waters also being the most saline, whereas in winter salinity was the major density controlling parameter. The effects of these freshwater inputs were localised to the vicinity of the Gila˜o River. No evidence was found of persistent or widespread temperature or salinity stratification in the Ria Formosa and so this shallow lagoon appears to be vertically well mixed. Vertical mixing does not allow a dense, stagnant, bottom layer of water to form that would aggravate a deterioration of water quality. The net effect of these processes is a parcel of water that moves through the lagoon with minimal dilution and potentially receiving waste discharges

Using remote sensing as a support to the implementation of the European Marine Strategy Framework Directive in SW Portugal

The exclusive economic zones (EEZ) of coastal countries are coming under increasing pressure from various economic sectors such as fishing, aquaculture, shipping and energy production. In Europe, there is a policy to expand the maritime economic sector without damaging the environment by ensuring that these activities comply with legally binding Directives, such as the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). However, monitoring an extensive maritime area is a logistical and economic challenge. Remote sensing is considered one of the most cost effective, methods for providing the spatial and temporal environmental data that will be necessary for the effective implementation of the MSFD. However, there is still a concern about the uncertainties associated with remote sensed products. This study has tested how a specific satellite product can contribute to the monitoring of a MSFD Descriptor for "good environmental status" (GES). The results show that the quality of the remote sensing product Algal Pigment Index 1 (API 1) from the MEdium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS) sensor of the European Space Agency for ocean colour products can be effectively validated with in situ data from three stations off the SW Iberian Peninsula. The validation results show good agreement between the MERIS API 1 and the in situ data for the two more offshore stations, with a higher coefficient of determination (R-2) of 0.79, and with lower uncertainties for the average relative percentage difference (RPD) of 24.6% and 27.9% and a root mean square error (RMSE) of 0.40 and 0.38 for Stations B and C, respectively. Near to the coast, Station A has the lowest R-2 of 0.63 and the highest uncertainties with an RPD of 112.9% and a RMSE of 1.00. It is also the station most affected by adjacency effects from the land: when the Improved Contrast between Ocean and Land processor (ICOL) is applied the R-2 increases to 0.77 and there is a 30% reduction in the uncertainties estimated by RPD. The MERIS API 1 product decreases from inshore to offshore, with higher values occurring mainly between early spring and the end of the summer, and with lower values during winter. By using the satellite images for API 1, it is possible to detect and track the development of algal blooms in coastal and marine waters, demonstrating the usefulness of remote sensing for supporting the implementation of the MSFD with respect to Descriptor 5: Eutrophication. It is probable that remote sensing will also prove to be useful for monitoring other Descriptors of the MSFD.EU (European Space Agency) [308392, 21464/08/1-0, 607325]; Portuguese FCT [FRH/BD/78354/2011, SFRH/BD/78356/2011]; Horizon 2020 AquaSpace [633476]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The application of remote sensing for monitoring the Ria Formosa: the sentinel missions

The Ria Formosa (RF) coastal lagoon (Figure 10.1) is composed of a group of two peninsulas, five barrier islands that are separated by 6 inlets, which enable the exchange of water, sediments, nutrients and other chemicals between the lagoon and the ocean. The RF incorporates important habitats, such as salt marshes, dunes, lagoon marshes and intertidal zones. The RF supports a wide range of human activities, including economic sectors such as fisheries and aquaculture, tourism, ecotourism, navigation and port activities, salt and sediment extraction (Newton et al., 2014). Essentially, these economic activities depend on the ecosystem services of the lagoon including food provisioning (mainly shellfish and fish), hydrological balance, climate regulation, flood protection, water purification, oxygen production, primary and secondary production, recreation and ecotourism (Newton et al., 2018). Due to its environmental importance, the RF has been a Natural Park since 1987 and is part of the Natura 2000 network. The wetland area is specifically protected under the Ramsar convention.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Development of an optimal methodology for the extraction of microphytobenthic chlorophyll

Benthic microalgae are important primary producers in intertidal shallow systems. Their biomass can be estimated by the assessment of chlorophyll a concentration. A rapid and reliable method of measuring chlorophyll a is by spectrophotometer. There is however, no standard protocol for the analysis of benthic chlorophyll a. Although the most common solvent generally used is 90% acetone, some authors showed better results with methanol and ethanol. Some pre-treatments, such as the addition of fine inert granules or ultrasound bath, have also been suggested as factors that improve the extraction efficiency. Sediment samples were collected from two sites, muddy and sandy, located within Ria Formosa (Portugal). The aim of this work was to test the effectiveness of different pre-treatments in the extraction and to develop an optimal method for chlorophyll a extraction and analysis. Pre-treating samples did not yield any significant differences in chlorophyll a extracted. Treating sediments with acetone was found to yield higher concentrations of chlorophyll a, both for muddy and sandy sediments. Acetone was therefore found to be the best solvent for both sediment types, with 90% being the best strength for sandy and 80% the best for muddy sediments. These differences may be related to differences in the structure of the algal communities. Six hours of extraction was found to be sufficient, since after a six hour period the extraction efficiency did not improve

Recreation carrying capacity estimations to support beach management at Praia de Faro, Portugal

The purpose of this research paper is to outline the theory and practice of tourism carrying capacity assessment and its relevance as a management tool for coastal management. Based on the Tourism Carrying Capacity Assessment for Protected Areas Framework and the Image Capture Technique associated with the PAOT (people at one time) approach, this paper explores Praia de Faro as the study area and attempts to assess the optimum number of people that should be allowed without jeopardizing the surrounding ecological, social and cultural environments. Results showed that the physico-ecological carrying capacity should be between 1385 and 2628 visitors/day with maximum impact acceptability curves being 305 and 608 tourists (for local people and tourists respectively). Although there was a significant difference between the physico-ecological and socio-cultural carrying capacity, this study suggests that the physico-ecological carrying may be applied for ecosystem management, whilst the socio-cultural carrying capacity may be addressed when management objectives are tourists and beach users

Sediment and water nutrients and microalgae in a coastal shallow lagoon, Ria Formosa (Portugal): Implications for the Water Framework Directive

Coastal shallow lagoons are considered to be highly important systems, which have specific biogeochemical cycles and characteristics. The assessment of sediment–water interfaces is essential to understand nutrient dynamics and to evaluate the vulnerability to eutrophication, especially in regions of restricted water exchange (RRE), such as the Ria Formosa, which have natural conditions for the accumulation of nutrients. Water samples were collected during the years of 2006 and 2007–08 for nutrients, chlorophyll a and dissolved oxygen. Sediment samples were also collected for pore water nutrients and microphytobenthic chlorophyll a. Measurements of temperature, salinity and photosynthetic active radiation were also taken. The lagoon salinity is affected by occasional strong rainfall events. From comparison with previous work, a decrease in the nitrogen concentration in the water column can be observed, which may indicate an improvement of the water quality. Pore water nutrient concentrations were significantly larger than in the water column. Sediment–water exchanges are considered to be the most important processes in nutrient dynamics of the lagoon. Benthic microalgal biomass was also large compared with that of the phytoplankton. It represents about 99% of the total microalgal chlorophyll biomass of the system. The lagoon also contains (discontinuous) meadows of intertidal seagrass, but we did not study these. Due to the importance of sediments, the standard monitoring plans required by the Water Framework Directive may fail to track changes in the nutrient conditions and the microalgal responses to them