Chapter 16
Integrated Coastal Zone Management in Venezuela:
The Maracaibo System
J.E. Conde· G. Rodriguez
16.1
Introduction
The Maracaibo System (Fig. 16.1) is a remarkable instance of a vast zone that undergoes a gamut of uses, ranging from offshore and coastal oil exploitation and petrochemical industries, to trawl and artisanal fisheries. In this area, urban development,
oil tankers transit, maritime trade, oilfields and petrochemical industries, untreated
sewage discharges, solid waste disposal, engineering works, pesticide- and fertilizerladen runoffs, management of conservation units, and fisheries converge and interact
in a complex fashion (Table 16.1).
The Maracaibo System, located in the heart of Venezuela's petroleum industry, embeds one of the most important oil fields in South America and also one of the largest
in the world. In 1984, there were 8400 active oil rigs, several hundred flux stations and
two refineries, which are connected by 40000 km of pipelines, mainly underwater
(Rodriguez 1984). From 1914 to 1995, roughly 33 000 million barrels (5238 million m 3 )
were extracted in this basin. Most of the oil is drawn out from the lake's bottom, the
largest in South America and one of the largest in the world. Venezuela's most valuable
export is petroleum; the incidence of the oil industry on the national economy is 60%
of the Gross National Product. Thus, it might overshadow the importance of other natural resources that do hot produce profits as huge as oil benefits, but that nonetheless
have hefty social values. That is the case with fisheries in the Maracaibo System. In
addition to supporting a substantial population of more than 6000 artisanal fishermen and a blue crab fishery, the lake also has a marked bearing on the Gulf ofVenezuela trawl fisheries, which rank second in landings in the country.
Since. the late '60S, concerns were arisen about the impending environmental degradation of Lake Maracaibo. In 1964, following guidelines issued by the Ministry of
Mining and Hydrocarbons, oil companies operating in the lake created a committee to
prevent water pollution. This committee was formally chartered in 1969 under the name
of Intercompany Operational Committee for the Conservation of Lake Maracaibo.
One of the earliest implemental efforts to cope with the environmental concerns
arisen by several sectors, was the creation in 1978 of a state-of-the-art laboratory, located in Maracaibo, and affiliated to the Direction of Environmental Research (Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources - MARNR). During a first stage, the
laboratory's agenda focused on the Strait of Maracaibo and El Tablazo Bay (Parra
Pardi 1979), and comprised studies dealing with water quality, organic and bacterial
pollution, and identification of some specific contaminants. Over a second phase, the
laboratory widened its efforts to include the lake itself and its eutrophication prospects
(Parra Pardi 1979).
Integrated Coastal Zone Management in Venezuela:
The Maracaibo System
J.E. Conde· G. Rodriguez
16.1
Introduction
The Maracaibo System (Fig. 16.1) is a remarkable instance of a vast zone that undergoes a gamut of uses, ranging from offshore and coastal oil exploitation and petrochemical industries, to trawl and artisanal fisheries. In this area, urban development,
oil tankers transit, maritime trade, oilfields and petrochemical industries, untreated
sewage discharges, solid waste disposal, engineering works, pesticide- and fertilizerladen runoffs, management of conservation units, and fisheries converge and interact
in a complex fashion (Table 16.1).
The Maracaibo System, located in the heart of Venezuela's petroleum industry, embeds one of the most important oil fields in South America and also one of the largest
in the world. In 1984, there were 8400 active oil rigs, several hundred flux stations and
two refineries, which are connected by 40000 km of pipelines, mainly underwater
(Rodriguez 1984). From 1914 to 1995, roughly 33 000 million barrels (5238 million m 3 )
were extracted in this basin. Most of the oil is drawn out from the lake's bottom, the
largest in South America and one of the largest in the world. Venezuela's most valuable
export is petroleum; the incidence of the oil industry on the national economy is 60%
of the Gross National Product. Thus, it might overshadow the importance of other natural resources that do hot produce profits as huge as oil benefits, but that nonetheless
have hefty social values. That is the case with fisheries in the Maracaibo System. In
addition to supporting a substantial population of more than 6000 artisanal fishermen and a blue crab fishery, the lake also has a marked bearing on the Gulf ofVenezuela trawl fisheries, which rank second in landings in the country.
Since. the late '60S, concerns were arisen about the impending environmental degradation of Lake Maracaibo. In 1964, following guidelines issued by the Ministry of
Mining and Hydrocarbons, oil companies operating in the lake created a committee to
prevent water pollution. This committee was formally chartered in 1969 under the name
of Intercompany Operational Committee for the Conservation of Lake Maracaibo.
One of the earliest implemental efforts to cope with the environmental concerns
arisen by several sectors, was the creation in 1978 of a state-of-the-art laboratory, located in Maracaibo, and affiliated to the Direction of Environmental Research (Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources - MARNR). During a first stage, the
laboratory's agenda focused on the Strait of Maracaibo and El Tablazo Bay (Parra
Pardi 1979), and comprised studies dealing with water quality, organic and bacterial
pollution, and identification of some specific contaminants. Over a second phase, the
laboratory widened its efforts to include the lake itself and its eutrophication prospects
(Parra Pardi 1979).