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Home > GCR > Vol. 14 > Iss. 2 (2003)

 

Alternate Title

The Barbados (Alias Folkestone) Marine Reserve, Barbados: A Late Bloomer?

Document Type

Article

Abstract

The Barbados Marine Reserve (BMR) is a 2.2 km2 no-take marine reserve occupying one of the most intensely used and impacted sections of the coast and comprises four zones: Scientific, Northern Watersports, Recreational, Southern Watersports. Establishment of the BMR in 1981 did little to change the de facto marine resource governance regime for the area. There was minimal consultation of stakeholders in determining the zoning and regulations. Fishers were negatively impacted, and no user group derived significant benefits from the reserve. A mandate to maximise revenues led the National Conservation Commission (NCC), responsible for BMR management, to virtually abandon the reserve. Efforts to spur institutional change were not effective, because of the centralized authority of the NCC and the belief that the BMR could not generate revenue. In 1998, the Government initiated a study to reform marine resource governance within the BMR and adjacent areas. Stakeholder consultation revealed complex patterns of use in the area. Recommendations, adopted by the Government in March, 2001 included establishing a broader Marine Protected Area (MPA) along an expanded coastline (from 2.6 km to 9.5 km) with seven types of management zones, and renaming the area as the Folkestone Marine Managed Area. Also proposed was a Marine Management Area Authority, within the Ministry of the Environment’s Coastal Zone Management Unit, to designate and manage MPA’s.

First Page

171

Last Page

180

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