A guide for planners and managers - IUCN

250 MARINE AND COASTAL
PROTECTED AREAS
equilibrium had already been developed in the park between dive areas and fishing
areas, so that there were relatively few conflicts between the two groups. However
some conflicting use claims were made by different communities, and inter-community
meetings were held to resolve these. During the participatory process, management
issues such as defining acceptable and unacceptable practices were discussed and
consensus achieved. This initial process provided the basis for the development of
the participatory zoning plan.
Box III-2. The History of Dive Operator Participation in Park Management
When the management planning process began in 1991, there were 4 established local
dive operators operating in the park. Attempts to involve the dive operators in the planning
process met with mixed success. Individually operators demonstrated a commitment to
conserve the park’s resources, but rivalries between them thwarted attempts at developing
an association to represent the industry and develop standardized good environmental
practices. A mooring buoy programme begun in 1993 ultimately failed because of these rivalries.
However, since 1996 a number of new 4-star hotels with professional dive operations have
opened. These hotels and diving companies operating in and around Bunaken rely on a healthy
national park to ensure their financial success, and are now working together to support
conservation management of the park. Bunaken National Park management and the dive
operators are developing a partnership to support a wide range of conservation activities.
Starting slowly but quickly gaining strength, this partnership is based on the design and
implementation of mutually beneficial activities such as development and dissemination
of park information materials as well as a new mooring buoys programme. A formal userfee
system is being designed. In the meantime, the dive operators have started to collect monthly
membership fees, which are then donated to the national park to cover specific operating
costs necessary for regular patrolling by National Park ranger and marine police, and
outreach.
The plan identified four types of marine zones: 1) core (or sanctuary) zones,
2) dive zones, 3) traditional use zones for limited use by local communities, and
4) use zones for small and medium scale industrial fishing enterprises. The latter covers
open sea areas within the park at 200 meters distant from the reef crest. The majority
of the reef flat areas were designated as traditional use zones for local communities
only. Designation of core zones was done in conjunction with users, and there was
strong pressure from communities to place these relatively close to villages, in
contradiction of accepted practice. The reasoning behind this was that local
communities could more effectively monitor and prevent violations of zone regulations.
Partnerships between park management and local communities developed
during the planning process are based on sharing the rights and responsibilities for
sustainable management of the park’s resources through Community Conservation
Agreements (CCAs). CCAs are used in buffer zone development activities to ensure