#Status of Coral Reefs 2002 - International Coral Reef Action Network

Status of Coral Reefs of the World: 2002
ICRAN
SOUFRIERE MARINE MANAGEMENT AREA, ST. LUCIA
–ICRAN DEMONSTRATION SITE
Soufriere is a picturesque rural town, on the southwest coast of Saint Lucia, in the
Eastern Caribbean. The area has rich landscapes including active volcanoes and
coral reefs. The Soufriere Marine Management Area (SMMA) extends along 12km of
coast, comprising beaches and cliffs, with Soufriere Bay at the centre. The SMMA is
managed by the Soufriere Marine Management Association, a not-for-profit-company
that includes most stakeholders. Their mission is to ‘manage the Soufriere coastal
zone based on principles of sustainable use, cooperation among resource users,
institutional collaboration, active and enlightened participation, and equitable sharing
of benefits and responsibilities among stakeholders’. There has been rapid growth of
coastal tourism with several new hotels, resorts, guesthouses and restaurants,
catering for diving, yachting, day boat charters and water taxis. This has led to
competition for limited space and resources, especially in relation to more traditional
activities, such as fishing. There are about 150 registered fishers, with two-thirds of
these fishing full-time using nets, lines and traps.
Environmental and Social Problems: The main problems before the SMMA were:
degradation of coastal water quality; depletion of near-shore fisheries; loss of the
economic, scientific and recreational potential of the coral reefs, especially dive
tourism; degradation on land, notably on the beaches; pollution by solid waste in
ravines and the sea; and poor resource management with growing conflicts among
resource users. The conflicts were between: commercial dive operators and
fishermen over who was damaging the coral reefs; yachtsmen and fishermen
because of anchoring in fishing areas; the local community and hoteliers over access
to beaches; fishermen and local and national authorities over locating a jetty in a
fishing priority area; and fishermen and hoteliers over the use of beaches for either
commercial fishing or tourism recreation. Thus conflict resolution was implemented
in 1992, which resulted in designated zones that address the needs of users. The
fishermen, hoteliers, divers, yacht operators, government agencies, and community
groups agreed on the formation of the SMMA in 1994.
Zoning Arrangements: There are 5 zones: Marine Reserves for areas of high
ecological value to protect all marine flora and fauna, allow scientific research, and
for divers and snorkellers; Fishing Priority Areas where this takes precedence over
all other activities; Recreational Areas for important public recreation sites; Multiple
Use Areas for fishing, diving, snorkelling provided the general rules of the area are
observed; and Mooring Areas for visiting yachts and recreational boats.
Ecological Monitoring: The SMMA staff collaborate with other organisations to
monitor the coral reefs and fish landings and assess levels of sedimentation, salinity,
turbidity. Sediment measuring is particularly important as recent storms e.g. tropical
storm Debbie in 1994 and Hurricane Lenny in 1999, have resulted in up to 50% death
of corals after being smothered by sediments. The problem was exacerbated
because the river was straightened and retaining walls constructed to prevent
flooding of the town. There are now attempts to manage the catchment areas to
prevent rapid runoff of sediments.
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