Ecosystem-based management for the oceans: The role of zoning

The proposed working group on Ocean Ecosystem Management will explore the role of place-based systems in achieving ecosystem-based ocean management. The U.S. Commission on Ocean Policy (2004) and the Pew Oceans Commission (2003) both recommend ecosystem-based management of the 4.4 million square miles of ocean within the jurisdiction of the United States. The Pew Oceans Commission Report, as well as numerous scientists, managers, and advocacy organizations, has called for development of ocean zoning as a key component of ecosystem-based management. Ocean zoning is the authoritative regulation and allocation of access and use to specific marine geographic areas. Zoning systems aim to separate competing uses, reduce conflict, increase certainty among users, and protect sensitive marine resources. Fisheries management has increasingly used spatial regulation to determine access, protect nursing and spawning areas, reduce gear impacts, etc. More recently, place-based marine management is growing through the establishment of marine protected areas (MPAs), including fully protected no-take reserves and areas offering protection from a limited set of uses. This working group will bring together ecologists and social scientists to explore the concept, practice, and opportunities for ocean zoning in a unique political and social climate primed for change. We will focus particularly on the question of whether or not and how zoning systems can be used to implement ecosystem-based management of oceans within the jurisdiction of the United States. The working group goals are to: (1) compile and synthesize information on existing systems of ocean zoning and their ecological and social impacts, (2) compile and synthesize available ecological and social data necessary to design and develop effective zoning systems, (3) develop the concept of ocean zoning within the context of ecosystem based management, and (4) design a set of principles and policies for creation of sustainable and resilient ecosystem-based ocean zoning systems. We have identified a group of leading thinkers engaged in developing an understanding of the complex ecological and social dynamics of ocean systems. The resources of NCEAS will enable us to bring these experts together to advance our understanding of marine ecosystems and our ability to implement scientifically based and effective ecosystem management.