Technical Reports

TDAs, SAPs ...

South China Sea Knowledge Document on the Economic Valuation of the Goods and Services of Coastal Habitats

The project entitled “Reversing Environmental Degradation Trends in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand” is funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and implemented by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in partnership with seven states bordering the South China Sea2. A brief history of the development of the project and the Management Framework can be found in South China Sea Knowledge Document UNEP/GEF/SCS/Inf.1. Planning commenced in 1996 and the project became fully operational in February 2002.

SAP for the South China Sea. 1999. (1.8 MB)

This draft Strategic Action Programme is based on the findings of the regional Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA) that represents a regional synthesis of issues identified from the national reports. The TDA identifies the priorities among water-related problems and concerns, their socio-economic root causes, the sectoral implications of actions needed to mitigate them and the extent to which the problems are transboundary in either origin or effect. (p. 4)

Project Knowledge Document on Nutrient Carrying Capacity in the South China Sea

The UNEP/GEF South China Sea Project Document specifies that the Land-based Pollution Component should evaluate carrying/assimilation capacity of sub-regions and sensitive ecosystems and transboundary movements of contaminants within the South China Sea. Evaluation of the carrying capacity of an open ecosystem with respect to contaminants can be done in a variety of ways, perhaps the simplest of which is to estimate the ‘assimilative capacity, that is the capacity of the ecosystem to internally absorb or convert some or all of the contaminant through some process, natural or manmade, into forms that have negligible impact on the biological processes of that system and are not exported into neighbouring ecosystems. The ecosystem is said to have a high assimilative capacity if all, or a large fraction, of the contaminant input is removed and the net export to the neighbouring ecosystems is either zero or only a small fraction of the input.

TDA for the South China Sea. 2000. (420 KB)

The national transboundary diagnostic analysis reports of seven countries participating in the Global Environment Facility South China Sea Project were analysed and summarised to prepare this report. The countries concerned are Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam. For only two of these, Viet Nam and Cambodia, are the entire coastlines used in the report. For the others, only the coast that borders the South China Sea is included. Ideally, the country reports from which this report was compiled were prepared under the same guidelines, for some countries this was not so easily done nor rigidly adhered to, the result being lack of data or inconsistent data. The national TDAs are available from UNEP EAS/RCU. (p. 4)

South China Sea Knowledge Document on the Procedures for the Selection of Habitat Demonstration Sites

The recommendation of the PCU to the RSTC to use cluster analysis was based on the fact that each RWG had prepared site haracterisation sheets for in excess of forty sites and to select three sites without some form of preliminary screening would have been a difficult, if not impossible task. The argument presented was that clustering resulted in sites being grouped on the basis of their similarity; and that, identifying at least three major clusters and then selecting one priority site from each cluster, would ensure maximum coverage of the range of biological diversity exemplified by sites bordering the South China Sea12. The rationale, in simple terms, was that three contrasting sites would be preferable as demonstration sites, rather than three similar ones if global and regional biological diversity objectives were to be addressed. This approach maximises the range of different environmental and biological conditions encompassed by the three sites selected as demonstration sites within each habitat type.

South China Sea Project Knowledge Document on Fisheries Refugia

The South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand is a global centre of shallow water marine biological diversity, supporting a significant world fishery that is important to the food security of, and as a source of export income for, Southeast Asian countries. Landings from this area contribute approximately 10 percent of reported global fisheries production per annum and make significant contributions to the economies, of countries bordering the Gulf of Thailand and the South China Sea. The majority of fisheries are small-scale in nature, and fish are landed in a large number of decentralised locations for distribution through complex marketing networks at the community level. As a consequence estimates of fisheries production are considered to be gross underestimates and do not adequately reflect the importance of the artisanal or subsistence production to the fisheries sector as a whole.

UNEP/GEF Review of Coral Reefs in the South China Sea

Coral reefs thrive best in warm tropical waters but extend beyond the tropics in situations where warm currents push through the tropical belt into the higher latitudes. Southeast Asia is recognized as the global centre of coral reefs, both in terms of extent and species diversity. An estimated 34% of the earth’s coral reefs are located in the seas of Southeast Asia (Burke et al., 2002) which occupies only 2.5% of the total sea surface.

UNEP/GEF Review of Mangroves Bordering the South China Sea

The characteristic vegetation of tropical shorelines is mangrove, a habitat, which has been undervalued in the past and consequently has been subject to extensive removal and degradation in the Southeast Asian Region. The extensive conversion of mangrove in the countries bordering the South China Sea during the sixties and seventies often reflected short term economic opportunities that benefited a few individuals and neglected the longer term and more widely felt, but poorly understood benefits derived from mangrove services such as coastal protection.

South China Sea Training Programme Developed by the RSTC

Training needs and opportunities at the demonstration sites were commented upon only in a few of the demonstration site proposal documents. This limited information was deemed insufficient for use in the development of an actual training programme for the project, and in this connection, the Sixth Meetings of the Regional Working Groups discussed training needs and opportunities specific to the demonstration sites. In addition questionnaires were completed in each of the meetings, designed to assess the extent to which capacity had already been built in the Specialised Executing Agencies, the extent of networking achieved in the preparatory phase and the requirements for further capacity building during the operational phase of the project.

UNEP/GEF Review of Seagrasses in the South China Sea

The centres of seagrass diversity have a clear focus in the seas of East Asia, reaching up to southern Japan, and a second focus of diversity in the Red Sea and East Africa. This pattern is similar to the global distribution of corals and mangroves. The uses of seagrass systems are well known. Hence, they support a rich diversity of species from adjacent systems and provide primary refugia for both economically and ecologically important organisms. Most of the major commercial fisheries in the region occur immediately adjacent to seagrass beds. As an ecotone between coral reefs and mangrove forests in tropical coasts, they mediate the structural and dynamic components of the neighbouring ecosystems. Ironically, seagrass beds in this region are the least studied among the coastal ecosystems. Only in the last 15 years have they been a focus of scientific inquiry and, only in the last 5 years, have they been subjected to any natural resource management. Globally, seagrass systems occupy an area of about 600,000 km2, contributing 12% of the total carbon storage in the ocean. The contribution of seagrass beds of the East Asian seas to these figures is not known.

UNEP/GEF Review of Wetlands Bordering the South China Sea

The South China Sea region has experienced high rates of economic growth and rapid coastal development in recent decades. Each country bordering the South China Sea has actively and in certain respects very successfully engaged in its economic development. This is a region where economic development has imposed, and will continue to place increasing stress on the ecological systems. In 1981, under the sponsorship of UNEP, the East Asian Seas Action Plan was adopted by five Southeast Asian countries: Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand. At that time, obstacles to engaging all the South China Sea border countries in a single programme were seemingly insurmountable. Two decades after the adoption of East Asian Seas Action Plan, the region has witnessed a trend of deepening interdependence, integration, cooperation and prosperity. Despite the 1997-1998 financial crisis, the region remains the fastest industrializing area. However, economic development was not achieved without negative impacts. Fast economic development was accompanied by urbanization, population growth and deterioration of environment.

Coral reef management and restoration in Mu Koh Chang National Park - Thailand

Mu Koh Chang is located in the eastern part of the Gulf of Thailand or the west coast of the South China Sea, near the border between Thailand and Cambodia. There are over 50 Islands in the area which harbor approximately 16 km2 of coral reefs. The Thai Government has paid much attention to Mu Koh Chang and declared it as a special administrative zone for sustainable tourism development in 2002. An estimated 30% of the coral reefs are within the area of jurisdiction of Mu Koh Chang National Park which was established in 1982. Mu Koh Chang was selected as one of the demonstration sites for the coral reef subcomponent under the UNEP/GEF Project on Reversing Environmental Degradation Trends in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand.

Integrating Fisheries and Habitat Management in Asia: the regional fisheries refugia

Emerging need to manage fisheries and aquaculture in the context of ecosystems and broader initiatives for marine management. Several global initiatives have been promoted as mechanisms forintegrating fisheries and aquaculture into broader marine management. A wide gulf continues to exist between fisheries and environment sectors in Asia. Environment initiatives have been promoted in terms of achieving the state of fisheries, but have often not involved mechanisms to ensure the effective integration of fisheries considerations. Fisheries ministries and departments are focused on improving the fishery situation in face of high community dependence and participationin small-scale fisheries. Need for the development of regional experience in building partnerships and enhancing communication between fisheries and environment sectors.

Batu Ampur Mangrove Demonstration Site Document

The Batu Ampar District mangrove forest area forms part of the Kapuas river estuary with a low slope and a few some small hills covering about 15 – 40% of the total area. Slopes range from 0 to 40%; less than 15% in the South, and between 15-40% in the northern portion of the area. Soil types in the mangrove forest area comprise grey alluvial hydromorf; grey alluvial association; and grey brown. Mangrove vegetation consists of an Avicennia sp. zone; Sonneratia sp. zone; mixed Rhizophora apiculata & Bruguiera sp. zone; mixed Rhizophora & Nypa fruticans zone; and Nypa fruticans monospecific stands. There are 21 true mangrove species and 17 associate mangrove species, including the endemic species (Kandelia candel). Rhizophora spp., Bruguiera spp. and Nypa fruticans are the dominant tree species over most of the mangrove forest area extending further inland along the watercourses.

Managing Fisheries and Habitat Linkages in Thailand: the Prachuap Khiri Khan - Chumphon Fisheries Refugia

Identification of importance of the site to other species. 1983 notification extended closures to multiple species –led to large protests by fishers. Negotiations between Department of Fisheries and fishermen led to the area of the site being reduced (50,000 sq. km) and duration of spawning and nursery closures were reduced –areas managed for multiple species

Quantificational research on eco-environmental water requirements for coastal wetlands in the Shantou demonstration site

Coastal wetland is the ecological sensitive region, and water is the most important factor either in the forming or in the growth of coastal wetland. Therefore, the study on eco-environmental water requirement of coastal wetlands is very important and imperative for wetland restoration. In this paper, the estimate methods and the amount of eco-environmental water requirement are studied in Shantou demonstration site. Based on the assessment indexes of the coastal wetland ecosystem health, the composition and the hierarchical division of eco-environmental water requirement are presented. In Shantou coastal wetland, the composition of eco-environmental water requirement can be divided into seven parts, which are the vegetation water requirement, soil water requirement, habitat water requirement, inland river water requirement, sediment transporting water requirement, salinity balance water requirement and contamination purification water requirement.

Science for the Conservation of Coastal Ecosystems: case study on the development of seagrass management demonstration site at the East Bintan coastal area

This article shows the process in developing a proposal of seagrass management at East Bintan. The East Bintan seagrass bed covers large area and surrounded by several villages, hamlets and resort sites. Therefore, the priority seagrass sites should be selected in order to be able to manage effectively. A set of criteria which include ecological and socio-economic variables were developed as a tool for selecting the seagrass priority sites. A survey of seagrass inventory and its associated organism as well as mapping was conducted in 2004. A socio-economic survey on the community profile of the surrounding villages including threats on the seagrass was also conducted.. The data collected during the survey were used as input in developing the selection criteria. The ecological and socio-economic criteria were divided into several sub-criteria, and each sub-criteria was divided into several indicators. Each sub-criteria and indicators were then weighted and scored. The maximum total amount of weigh and score are 100.

Some Good Practices in the Establishment of Refugia Sanctuaries and Fisheries Management Systems in the Philippines

Collapse of management regime will lead to overall decline of the harvestable biomass. Partial management will lead to the biggest overall increase in the harvestable biomass but drastic decline of important commodity like the “blue crab”, Sound management will lead to a moderate increase in the harvestable biomass but increase in the desirable species especially the carnivores

Development of the UNEP/GEF South China Sea Project Website

The preparatory phase of the project has enabled the development of a large and expanding partner network. There are currently in excess of one hundred institutions directly involved in the project, and more than four hundred institutions indirectly involved through individual participation on National Committees and Sub-committees and Regional Working Groups. It is anticipated that this network will continue to grow as the demonstration sites and pilot activities become fully operational.

Procedure for Selection of Demonstration Sites in the context of the UNEP/GEF Project Entitled: “Reversing Environmental Degradation Trends in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand”. (UNEP 2007)

The GEF allocation for demonstration sites was stated in the Project Brief that was approved by the Project Steering Committee during its first meeting (UNEP, 2000a, Appendix) as being 3 demonstration sites in each of the habitat sub-components of Mangroves, Coral Reefs and Seagrass.

Managing Multi-Lateral, Intergovernmental Projects and Programmes, the case of the UNEP/GEF Project Entitled: “Reversing Environmental Degradation Trends in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand”. (UNEP 2005)

The management of comprehensive and extensive, multi-lateral and multi-national programmes and projects in the field of coastal and ocean management poses numerous organisational problems encompassing co-ordination between the actions of individual participating countries and interventions that are designed to address issues as diverse as: biological diversity conservation and sustainable use; fisheries management; maritime transport; and the control of land based pollution. Whilst the substantive issues and problems that are to be addressed during project implementation are generally well analysed and the potential solutions are generally identified based on sound scientific knowledge and information, less attention is all too frequently paid to the management structure that will ensure coherence and co-ordination of the interventions once the programme or project is under implementation.

Reversing Environmental Degradation Trends in the South China Sea and the Gulf of Thailand - GEF Specially Managed Project Review (SMPR). 2004. (59 KB)

Summary Report on the Review of the GEF/UNEP Project: Reversing Environmental Degradation Trends in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand. Date of the Review: December 2004. What are SMPRs? Specially Managed Project Reviews (SMPRs) are project reviews by panels composed of members from the GEF Office of Monitoring and Evaluation, the GEF Secretariat focal area teams, external consultants and implementing agencies. SMPRs aim to (a) assess whether projects are implemented in compliance with project objectives and GEF policies and standards and (b) identify systemic lessons in project design and implementation that are of relevance to the overall GEF portfolio. (p. 1)

Cape Times News - Scientists crack economic value of China's mangroves

NATURAL scientists and economists, trying to work out the economic value of ecosystems, have come up with an astonishing figure of US$5.1 billion a year for the mangrove swamps in the South China Sea. This was one of the projects discussed yesterday at the fourth Biennial International Waters Conference of the Global Environment Facility (GEF) in the city. [Article from Cape Times Newspaper, 2nd August 2007] URL: http://www.capetimes.co.za/index.php?fArticleId=3963790

Collaboration for Coral Reef Management in the South China Sea

The South China Sea is the largest sea in Southeast Asia bordered by nine countries, i.e., Cambodia, the People’s Republic of China, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. Thus it forms a semi-enclosed large marine ecosystem. Southeast Asia is the global centre of coral reefs, both in terms of extent and species diversity. An estimated 34% of the earth’s coral reefs are located in the Southeast Asian seas which occupies only 2.5% of the total sea surface. The ecological and economic importance of the coral reefs in the South China Sea has long been recognized. The location of the South China Sea at the junction between the Pacific and Indian Ocean basins has resulted in it becoming a centre of aggregation of marine species from both Oceans. More than half of Southeast Asia’s scleractinian coral species is found in the South China Sea. A wide variation in coral species diversity at different sites in the South China Sea reflects the influence of physical parameters and anthropogenic disturbances.

Community and government involvement for seagrass conservation at the Hepu

With the aim of maintaining the existing biodiversity and environmental condition and utilize the seagrass resources rationally and sustainably, a seagrass demonstration site has been established in Hepu under the funds from UNEP/GEF as well as central and local government of China since July 2005. This is to be accomplished through maintaining the balance between utilization and conservation, based on community and government involvement. For this purpose, the actions being taken in the demonstration site mainly include: (1) Establishing cross sectoral management framework for the sustainable use of the Hepu seagrass site; (2) Sustainability of site management; (3) Conservation of seagrass bed ecosystem as major habitat in the site; (4) Education and training for increased involvement of all stakeholders in preserving the seagrass habitat.

Procedure for Determination of National and Regional Economic Values for Ecotone Goods and Services, and Total Economic Values of Coastal Habitats in the context of the UNEP/GEF South China Sea Project. (UNEP 2007)

During the initial project development phase from 1996 to 1999, a framework Strategic Action Programme (SAP) was developed that not only formed the basis for the GEF approval of the project but was also somewhat innovative in including a cost benefit analysis of the benefits of action compared with non-action (UNEP, 1999). The challenge facing the SCS project in 1999 was that the only "ecosystem values" readily available were those of Costanza et al. (1997) that were based on global data and have subsequently been challenged on both economic and scientific grounds. The Project Steering Committee, composed solely of participating government representatives, in approving the draft SAP and the SCS GEF Project, insisted not only that the project activities include the revision of the SAP but also the determination of regionally applicable economic values for environmental goods and services.

Demo_Site_Mangrove_China_Fangchenggang.pdf

In the Fangchenggang Mangrove Demonstration Site, there are 15 species of mangrove, 10 true mangrove and 5 associate mangrove species. The mangrove forest covers an area of 1414.5 ha with the species Bruguiera gymnorrhiza, Kandelia candel, Aegiceras corniculatum, and Avicennia marina being dominant. Nine formations and 17 communities of mangrove are found in the area, which supports 240 species of macrobenthos in 175 genera of 10 phyla. These include 37 species of polychaete in 32 genera; 104 species of mollusc in 41 genera; 19 species of benthic fishes in 17 genera; and 13 species of other marine creatures in 11 genera. The average density of these macrobenthos is 346 m-2, and the mean biomass is 225.68 gm-2. One hundred and forty five species of benthic algae have been recorded in the demonstration site, including varieties and new records. Ninety-four species of phytoplankton in 30 genera of 3 phyla were found during surveys in the preparatory phase; 68 species of zooplankton in 43 genera; and 71 species of fishes in 52 genera were also recorded. In addition, 187 species of birds in 42 families of 14 orders are also known from the area, suggesting that this site is an important habitat for birds. Vascular plants found in coastal area of the number 634 species whilst a Seagrass (Zostera japonica) bed occupies an area of 3 km2 in the vicinity of the mangroves.

Evaluation and analysis for economic valuation of the impacts of land-based

Shantou wetland is the first wetland demo-site set up by UNEP/GEF in China. Its environmental protection is important to the wetland protection and economic development of Shantou City, South China even the whole South China Sea area. Accompanied by the rapid economic development and extensive urbanization, the problem of pollution at Shantou demo-site is getting more and more severe. For the protection purpose, the evaluation and the analysis of economic value loss in Shantou coastal wetland caused by land-based pollution are taken out. Through the study of land-base pollution situation from 1997-2003, it is found that the correlation between pollution and economic value on Shantou wetland is negative. The land-based pollution mainly affects the economic value of Shantou wetland on the aspects of wetland productivity and state of humanity health, but the impact of the environmental amenity degree is not so obvious.