Part 2: Protected areas and development
4.5.1 Prepare an action plan for rehabilitation and maintenance of
The ability of PAs to safeguard the natural hydrological processes that protect the Mekong water resource system is being severely compromised. Greater levels of protection are needed to ensure that these processes can continue to support current economic activity and proposed development. Achieving this gaol will involve the development of a regional action plan for the rehabilitation and maintenance of the water resource system as part of the Basin Development Plan and the development strategies for the Greater Mekong Region.
The plan would set out overarching policies and operating principles, priority actions, institutional arrangements, implementation mechanisms and monitoring procedures.
Operating principles would seek to ensure sustainability and integrity of the natural systems, and consistency, equity and efficiency in their uses.
There are three basic ingredients necessary for the success of such an action plan to protect water resources and hydrological functions:
1. a systems approach 2. a regional perspective
3. a PA network approach defined according to bioregions with a primary goal of protecting the water resource system services.
4.5.1.1 A systems approach to protection and management
A natural systems perspective in defining and implementing management strategies is essential to provide a comprehensive view of human-ecosystem interactions and in determining the responses which are sensitive to local conditions (Badenoch 2002).
An example of a systems approach to water resource management is given in Table 4.1, which shows water resources management in the context of the water cycle.
Viewed from such a perspective, the links between upstream and downstream processes can be clearly seen. For example, water resource managers have traditionally responded to predicted increases in demand for water supply by construction of dams and water storages. A systems approach shows that increasing supply capacity through more infrastructure will have upstream impacts on catchments, and downstream impacts in generating increased levels of polluted wastewater which will need treatment, or pollute downstream water bodies and receiving waters.
In this case, planners are adopting a supply-side approach. However, other management approaches are possible. Governments may seek to use demand side
measures such as introducing tradeable water use permits, user charges, water auctions and other economic instruments to influence (reduce) water demand and thus avoid the upstream and downstream implications of supply side approaches.
In the case of the Mekong river system, a systems perspective can be used to highlight the relationship between the role of protected areas in the provision of water services, demand for such services, and threats to the continuous provision of this supply (Table 4.2).
Managers can then look to supply side or demand side measures, to manage water resources better.
Supply side management involves managing
development impacts. Some supply side measures are being attempted in the region, for example, Vietnam’s logging ban and replanting of catchments, Thailand’s logging ban and reafforestation and Cambodia’s proposed water resource management legislation (ICEM 2003a, c and d).
Demand side management of the nature and extent of use of the water resource system involves a range of mechanisms such as water pricing, water conservation and reduced consumption, and pollution control measures.
Table 4.1: A systems view of water resource management
4.5.1.2 A regional perspective on protection
The maintenance of basic watershed services in the Mekong region cannot be assured by any single nation because most major watersheds cross national borders. In addition, the impacts of national policies and economic activities in sectors such as trade, energy production, forestry and agriculture also cross national boundaries.
Most national natural resource policies and actions have regional implications whether they concern exploitation or protection. Countries need to adopt a regional perspective to their national protected area systems in managing shared water resources if services to local subsistence, and sectoral and national economic activity are to be conserved and enhanced.
Most clusters of protected areas have local, national and international development benefits. Those natural products and services need to be understood, promoted and effectively managed on a
collaborative basis so that a community’s contribution in conserving development benefits are rewarded.
Table 4.2 also shows the upstream and downstream impacts of particular actions of linked countries; and the fundamental intra-regional relationships within the system. Protecting and managing that system on a regional basis is essential to achieving national development goals.
4.5.1.3 A PA network approach to emphasise water resources protection
For much of the last 100 years, the protection of biological diversity has been the principal means of maintaining biophysical processes such as the water cycle, cycling of nutrients, and climate control.
These are critical secondary functions of PAs with high biodiversity values. Given the development pressures and needs in the region, protected areas are also required which have the primary purpose of managing hydrological functions. This might involve the reclassification of some existing PAs or the definition of special zones within them, in addition to establishing new special purpose PAs.
In the four countries of the region, the classification of protected areas is narrowly drawn. A broader range of categories is needed which allow for a variety of primary management objectives. In this case the IUCN category VI (Box 4.3), which covers areas protected for sustainable use provides a more accurate
description of most protected areas in the region which do not acknowledge the use of services and products as a management objective.
Box 4.3 Definition of IUCN Category VI
IUCN Category VI Managed Resource Protected Area: Protected Areas Managed Mainly for the Sustainable Use of Natural Ecosystems.
Areas containing predominantly unmodified natural systems managed to ensure long-term protection and maintenance of biological diversity, while providing at the same time a sustainable flow of natural products and services to meet community needs
Source: IUCN 1994
Agencies and sectors involved in economic development and water resource management should view PAs as a means of protecting hydrological functions for continued provision of water quality and quantity in meeting their development objectives.
Table 4.2: The Mekong water resource system
From a policy and institutional point of view, the water sector will need to adopt protected areas as a key development strategy by emphasising and promoting their water system management functions. The water sector needs to work with protected area authorities in defining a PA network throughout the region aimed specifically at the rehabilitation and maintenance of water resource systems. This would involve greater investment in existing protected areas and the establishment of new ones where water systems are not adequately protected. A useful demonstration of this approach is being pursued in the water
catchment areas surrounding Sydney, Australia (Box 4.4). Thailand, with almost 200 watershed
management units of its Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment throughout the country and the system of PAs covering key watersheds already has a sound institutional basis for such a national network.
Box 4.4: Special protected areas in Sydney’s water catchments
Special protected areas comprise about 370,000 hectares of land surrounding the water storages and lands containing the Sydney Catchment Authority’s canals and pipelines. The Special Areas protect water supply by acting as a buffer zone, helping to stop nutrients and other substances that could affect the quality of water entering the storages. The Sydney Catchment Authority and the National Parks and Wildlife Service jointly manage the Special Areas, in accordance with a Special Areas Strategic Plan of Management. Public access to parts of the Special Areas is restricted to protect safe, clean water, large areas of bushland and plant and animal habitats, and threatened plants and animal species, and preserve evidence of Aboriginal occupation dating back many thousands of years and evidence of early European exploration and settlement.
The Sydney Catchment Authority and the National Parks and Wildlife Service have the following goals for managing these special areas.
High quality raw water in the water storages:
High quality raw water in the water storages:High quality raw water in the water storages:
High quality raw water in the water storages:High quality raw water in the water storages: A fundamental strategy is the maintenance of high quality raw water in the catchment streams and storages. The supply of high quality raw water to downstream users requires less treatment in the treatment plants thus reducing both costs and potential health risks from increased chemical usage.
Ecosystem integrity and health throughout the Special Areas:
Ecosystem integrity and health throughout the Special Areas:Ecosystem integrity and health throughout the Special Areas:
Ecosystem integrity and health throughout the Special Areas:Ecosystem integrity and health throughout the Special Areas: The ecological systems of the Special Areas provide a range of functions crucial to the maintenance of high water quality. These ecosystems are complex, dynamic and self-sustaining networks which have existed for millions of years with minimal human interference. A range of threats to the ecosystems of the Special Areas now exist requiring active management intervention and controls.
Environmental quality in the Outer Catchment Areas is improved and adverse impacts on the water Environmental quality in the Outer Catchment Areas is improved and adverse impacts on the waterEnvironmental quality in the Outer Catchment Areas is improved and adverse impacts on the water Environmental quality in the Outer Catchment Areas is improved and adverse impacts on the waterEnvironmental quality in the Outer Catchment Areas is improved and adverse impacts on the water storages of the Special Areas minimised:
storages of the Special Areas minimised:storages of the Special Areas minimised:
storages of the Special Areas minimised:storages of the Special Areas minimised: The ecosystems in the Special Areas are closely linked to the ecology and environmental quality of the surrounding catchment areas. Some of the catchment lands outside the Special Areas are subject to intensive land use, and are severely degraded with deleterious impacts on the water entering the Special Areas and on ecosystem health. Hazardous inputs to the Special Areas are of special concern as they represent unacceptable health risks to the community.
Access to the Special Areas is consistent with the primary requirement to protect water quality and Access to the Special Areas is consistent with the primary requirement to protect water quality andAccess to the Special Areas is consistent with the primary requirement to protect water quality and Access to the Special Areas is consistent with the primary requirement to protect water quality andAccess to the Special Areas is consistent with the primary requirement to protect water quality and ecological integrity:
ecological integrity:ecological integrity:
ecological integrity:ecological integrity: The public will be able to have confidence that the form and extent of any access, including recreational access, to the Special Areas is governed by the need to protect water quality and ecological integrity as overriding considerations.
The natural, spiritual, and cultural values of the Special Areas are conserved and protected:
The natural, spiritual, and cultural values of the Special Areas are conserved and protected:The natural, spiritual, and cultural values of the Special Areas are conserved and protected:
The natural, spiritual, and cultural values of the Special Areas are conserved and protected:The natural, spiritual, and cultural values of the Special Areas are conserved and protected: The Special Areas contain archaeological sites; geological heritage; links with indigenous identity;
cultural sites; landscapes and vistas; and their protection as part of the unspoilt natural ecosystems is essential.
The community is well informed and supports the principles by which the natural resource is The community is well informed and supports the principles by which the natural resource isThe community is well informed and supports the principles by which the natural resource is The community is well informed and supports the principles by which the natural resource isThe community is well informed and supports the principles by which the natural resource is managed:
managed:managed:
managed:managed: The managing authorities must make decisions in the context of long-term safeguards and for the community as a whole, rather than for short-term benefits or for the interests of some members of the community but not others. A variety of measures are used to ensure that the community will know how competing considerations have been weighed and will have the opportunity to contribute to these decisions.
The management system for the Special Areas is rigorous, accountable and open to regular public The management system for the Special Areas is rigorous, accountable and open to regular publicThe management system for the Special Areas is rigorous, accountable and open to regular public The management system for the Special Areas is rigorous, accountable and open to regular publicThe management system for the Special Areas is rigorous, accountable and open to regular public scrutiny:
scrutiny:scrutiny:
scrutiny:scrutiny: A split in responsibilities and accountabilities between agencies is a potential risk in the management of water supply. Systems and safeguards are required to ensure the effectiveness of each of the responsible agencies in a joint arrangement in securing high quality water and ecological integrity for the long term in the Special Areas.
Source: Adapted from Sydney Catchment Authority 2002
4.5.1.4 The action plan coverage
An action plan for integrating PAs with water resource development in the Lower Mekong region should identify:
1. The specific products and services provided by individual and groups of protected areas in safeguarding water resource systems.
2. The sectors and other users benefiting from those services and products.
3. The development and economic value of those services.
4. Priorities for action in terms of rehabilitation and maintenance of existing protected areas to maintain their water management functions.
5. The critical parts of the water resource system not effectively covered by regimes of protection and where new PAs are needed.
6. An initial regional network of protected areas, and the aspects of the local, national and regional water resource system each cluster of PAs within the network is seeking to protect.
7. The regimes of protection needed outside and linking protected areas to better safeguard hydrological functions and the priority locations where actions are needed.
8. The legal and economic instruments to be applied in implementing the action plan.
9. The monitoring procedures and institutional responsibilities associated with the action plan.
10. A program of activity over a 3-5 year period and its budgetary requirements.
A plan for protection of water resources would need to be implemented through actions at the regional, sub-regional, national and local levels. Some priority actions are discussed below, and shown in Table 4.3.
4.5.2 Identify priority bioregions and define a