protected areas

protected areas

1. the cornerstone of biodiv. conservation

   • what: clearly defined geographical space... official, binding, managed, legislative, long term, T.K, etc
     • six categories of PA's with increasing degrees of restriction. classification focus on management objectives and not conservation outcomes
   • where: ~13% of terrestrial earth surface, ~6% in south africa
   • how has this form of land use changed over time and what are future targets: area has been steadily increasing since yellowstone !st PA in 1872. greatest conservation successses of 20th centuary? - PA's size from UK to S. america!
     • PA's biased toward areas with little human pressure
     • protect >17% "ecologically representative" terr and FW ecosystems, and 10% of coastal and marine by 2020
       • not very successful: terrestrial ecoregions: half have <10% area protected
   • what purposes do PAs serve: maintain functioning natural ecosystems, space for evo&ecol adaptions, protect spp and hab's from ext, ecosys servs, mitigate impacts of CC, protect cultural heritage

2. effectiveness of P.A. approach

   • conservation planning effectivness
     • systematic conservation planning: quantitative interpretations of broad conservation goals based on (1) pattern of biodiv and (2) ecol processes. occurs at multiple spatial scales.
     • scale
       • detailed fine-scale planning, maximises: representivity, connectivity, management effectiveness.
     • GAP analysis: assesses how well the PA network conserves biodiv
       • rodrigues et al: generally >80% threatened spp live inside a PA
       • future targets for representation
         • but based on IUCN criteria, less than half of major animal groups reach their targets! thus the global PA system is far from complete! more systematic cons planning is required but limited by availabilty of exisiting coverage.
     • concl: how well the PA network captures spp within their boundaries now and in the future is an essential activity within cons science and helps predict future ewxticintoin rates. SO nb part of cons. science
   • management effectivness
     • why measure this?
       • to improve mang.
       • debate: PAs still relevant in world of rapid biophysical and social change?
       • assess threats to PAs which directly affect their primary objectives of cons biodiv in mang.
       • obligation
     • protected area management effectiveness (PAME) criteria:
       • context (political/social), planning (design), input (funding, infras, staff), process, outputs, outcome --> data starting to be used to assess correlative influences of one factor on another
     • results 1 (leverington et al): 42% of PAs have MAJOR deficiencies. leaves much to be desired but still contributing positively to biodiv cons and community well-being
     • results 2 (fox et al) MPA: 43 indicators, given a score out of 9. overall the results suggest modest positive trends. smaller MPAs --> better performance.
       • eg indicators: biophysical, socioeconomic, governance
       • effectiveness governance is the preeminent means to achieveing the beneficial social and ecological outcomes for conservation.
       • wary: "paper parks"
   • ecological effectiveness
     • most effective approach to conserving biodiv?
     • case study 1: ranomafana NP (madagascar)

3. social context in which conservation occurs

4. problems with and costs of protected areas conservation

5. alternative approaches to P.A. conservation

   • communal lands
   • private lands