General Background
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Guidelines for the Establishment of Environmental Quality Objectives and Targets in the Coastal Zone of the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) Region October 2009 WIO region: Environmental Quality Objectives and Targets October 2009 First published in Kenya in 2009 by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)/Nairobi Convention Secretariat and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research of South Africa (CSIR). Copyright © 2009, UNEP/Nairobi Convention Secretariat and CSIR. UNEP/GEF WIO-LaB Technical Report Series No. 2009/7 CSIR Report Number: CSIR/NRE/CO/ER/2009/0115/A Copyright notice: This publication may be reproduced in whole or in part and in any form for educational or non-profit purposes without special permission from the copyright holder provided that acknowledgement of the source is made. UNEP/Nairobi Convention Secretariat and CSIR would appreciate receiving a copy of any publication that uses this publication as a source. No use of this publication may be made for resale or for any other commercial purpose without prior permission in writing from UNEP/Nairobi Convention Secretariat and CSIR. Disclaimer: The contents of this report do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of UNEP. The designations employed and the presentations do not imply of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the UNEP, or of any cooperating organization concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area, of its authorities, or of the delineation of its territories or boundaries. For additional information please contact: UNEP/Nairobi Convention Secretariat Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) United Nations Environment Programme P O Box 17001, Durban, South Africa United Nations Avenue, Gigiri, Tel: +27 31 2422356 P.O Box 47074, Nairobi, Kenya Fax: +27 31 2612509 Tel: +254 20 7621250/7622025 E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] Principal Authors: Susan Taljaard (CSIR, Stellenbosch), Steven Weerts (CSIR, Durban), Shamilla Pillay (CSIR, Durban) and Anisha Rajkumar (CSIR, Durban) Technical Editors: Dr. Peter Scheren and Dr. Johnson Kitheka (WIO-LaB Project Management Unit, Kenya). For citation purposes this document may be cited as: UNEP/Nairobi Convention Secretariat and CSIR (2009). Guidelines for the Establishment of Environmental Quality Objectives and Targets in the Coastal Zone of the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) Region, UNEP, Nairobi, Kenya, 169p. UNEP/Nairobi Convention Secretariat Page i WIO region: Environmental Quality Objectives and Targets October 2009 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Introduction The Project “Addressing Land-based Activities in the Western Indian Ocean” (WIO-Lab) is a deliberate and conscious effort of the people of the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) region (including Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, South Africa, Madagascar, Seychelles, Comoros and Mauritius) taken in response to a call from the 1st Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Nairobi Convention in March 1997. The project was officially launched in Madagascar in July 2004 during the 4th Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Nairobi Convention. The WIO-Lab Project is aimed at addressing some of the major environmental problems and issues related to the degradation of the marine and coastal environment due to land-based activities in the region and has three main objectives: • Reduce stress to the ecosystem by improving water and sediment quality • Strengthen regional legal basis for preventing land-based sources of pollution • Develop regional capacity and strengthen institutions for sustainable, less polluting development. As part of the strategy of fulfilling the first and second objectives of the WIO-LaB Project, Protocols for the establishment of Environmental Quality Objectives and Targets (EQO/Ts) applicable to the coastal zone had to be developed for the region. Such EQO/Ts aim to protect the biodiversity of marine habitats (or ecotones) in coastal areas of the WIO region, as well as to ensure fitness for use (e.g. recreational use). An Environmental Quality Objective (EQO) is a broad, narrative statement describing the desired quality levels (or goals) for a particular environment, in this case the coastal zone. Environmental Quality Targts (EQTs) are defined as numerical or narrative target values for water and sediment quality parameters in receiving coastal environments that will ensure compliance with EQOs. The WIO-Lab Project Management Unit (PMU) approached the CSIR to assist in the formulation of Guidelines for the establishment of EQO/Ts for the coastal zone of the Western Indian Ocean (WIO), as presented here. Environmental Quality Objectives and Targets in Perspective The ultimate goal in the management of coastal systems is to keep the resource suitable for all designated uses – both existing and future uses (this includes the ‘use’ of designated areas for biodiversity protection and ecosystem functioning). The uses of coastal ecosystems are typically divided into four broad categories namely: • Protection of biodiversity and ecosystem functioning of the natural environment (conservation areas) • Recreational use (including tourism) • Marine aquaculture (including collection of seafood for human consumption) • Industrial uses (e.g. cooling water intake and water for seafood processing). In many instances sustainable use of coastal ecosystems rely on these systems remaining functional. In turn, the integrity of coastal ecosystems depends on a number of factors, including: • Stream flows (referring to river and groundwater inflows) • Physical habitat (referring to water circulation processes, sediment type and climatic conditions) • Water and sediment quality (referring to the biogeochemical status) • Availability of suitable migration or recruitment routes UNEP/Nairobi Convention Secretariat Page i WIO region: Environmental Quality Objectives and Targets October 2009 • Food web integrity. Within the WIO region, as in many other coastal regions, the integrity of coastal ecosystems is increasingly degraded and threatened by an array of natural phenomena (e.g. floods, storms, cyclones, etc.) as well as anthropogenic (human) activities. The latter may include activities occurring at sea (e.g. offshore oil exploration and ship traffic) or land-based activities. Land-based activities that are of particular concern in the WIO include: • Modification of stream flows, e.g. through dams and smaller-scale abstractions for agricultural use • Destruction and modification of ecosystems and ecotones, e.g. through coastal infrastructure development, mining and inappropriate harvesting practices • Over-exploitation of living resources • Inappropriate disposal of waste (pollution). In order to effectively manage coastal systems to remain suitable for designated use, objectives and measurable targets should be set for the different parameters defining the integrity of these systems, taking into account the requirements of designated uses, as well as potential threats. In terms of setting such targets for water and sediment quality, Environmental Quality Objectives (EQOs), defined as broad, narrative statements describing the desired quality levels (or goals) for a particular environment - in this case geographically defined units in the coastal zone - need to be developed. From a management perspective, these goals need to be translated into measurable target values or Environmental Quality Targets (EQTs). The guidelines – as proposed here - aim at providing local managers and governing authorities with the information to set site specific EQOs and EQTs for water and sediment quality in geographically defined units, taking into account specific issues of relevance and potential concerns in their area. In other words countries need not specify and monitor for all the parameters listed here, but should be guided by the designated uses (and their quality requirements) as well as the pollution sources (and associated pollutants) within a specific areas. As part of the guidelines, generic EQO/Ts for application in the WIO region are also recommended. Generic EQTs - usually developed on the regional or national scale - are presented either as numerical target or descriptive statements specifying the quality requirements of a coastal ecosystem (biodiversity) or designated use (e.g. recreation). To accommodate natural variability encountered in coastal ecosystems, but still minimize risk of impact, these EQTs need to be generic, but fairly conservative. Generic EQO/Ts - as recommended here - should be considered as a first phase approach in setting site-specific EQO/Ts, and depending on site- specific conditions (ecological, social and/or economic) these may have to be refined. In other words, countries should be guided by the generic EQO/Ts to prepare more specific national or local EQO/Ts. As a result of the above, generic EQTs generally do not automatically become legally binding, although these could be used to develop legally binding standards (e.g. emission limit values [ELV] for wastewater discharges) (Ragas et al, 2005). Also, once generic EQTs have been verified and refined to accommodate site-specific needs these can become legally binding standards in themselves (e.g. those applying to coastal waters used for marine aquaculture activities). Main Ecotones in the Coastal Zone of the WIO Region The term ecotone as used here is not that of the traditional sense (i.e. a transitional area between two adjacent ecological communities). Rather the term refers to an ecologically distinct zone which