302
P.W.Giynn
within some of the MPAs, but also numerous coral reefs in good-to-pristine condition are wholly without protective sanction. In Mexico, for example, the large reef system in the Marias Islands (Fig. 19.1, site 2) is not
presently protected by any governmental agency although a prison in
the Marias Islands has restricted public access to the area. The Mexican
federal government has just decreed Bahias de Huatulco as a national park
(Parque Nacional Maritimo Terrestre) which includes an 11,000-ha coastal
zone and the coral reefs therein contained. There is a good chance that this
coral reef tract will now receive adequate protection under government
control and the vigilance of local enterprises cognizant of the value of this
resource for ecotourism. The Galapagos marine reserve, which includes a
40-nautical-mile (74km) perimeter around the archipelago, is the largest
protected area in the eastern Pacific. Even though Galapagos coral reefs
and coral communities have been severely degraded by recent ENSO
events, the cooperative management and research efforts of the Galapagos
National Park Service and the Charles Darwin Research Station should
help minimize anthropogenic disturbances and thus allow natural recovery processes to unfold.
Notwithstanding the recent increase in MPAs, no consistent or sustained
management practices are in effect specifically protecting coral reefs.
Unfortunately, virtually all of the protected coral areas in the eastern Pacific are "paper parks", established with good intentions but with little support or chance for success. Persistent problems are the lack of enforcement
capability and a generally poor public appreciation for the value of coral
reefs. To a large extent, the exploitation of reefs is a 'free-for-all', following
no system of tenure or rules of resource utilization. Even though coral reefs
are among the most productive of all marine ecosystems, they typically
exhibit a low yield. Export fisheries simply cannot be sustained by coral
reefs (Birkeland 1997). Perhaps the greatest hope for the sustainable
exploitation of coral reefs lies with local communities, since people living
nearby benefit most, offering a strong incentive for their protection and
management (White et al. 1994).
A potentially disastrous enterprise that is resurrected every few years is
the plan to construct a sea-level canal across Central America. In light of
the numerous known perturbations caused by introduced species, including the extirpation of native species, there would exist a real threat to coral
reefs and other marine ecosystems with an unchecked mixing of Pacific
and Atlantic waters. If such a project is initiated, every effort must be made
to avert the interchange of Pacific and Atlantic biotas. Some workers have
suggested that the 1983 mass mortality of Diadema in the Caribbean was
caused by an exotic pathogen transported across the Panama Canal in a
ship's balast water. While it is nearly impossible to predict the impacts of
P.W.Giynn
within some of the MPAs, but also numerous coral reefs in good-to-pristine condition are wholly without protective sanction. In Mexico, for example, the large reef system in the Marias Islands (Fig. 19.1, site 2) is not
presently protected by any governmental agency although a prison in
the Marias Islands has restricted public access to the area. The Mexican
federal government has just decreed Bahias de Huatulco as a national park
(Parque Nacional Maritimo Terrestre) which includes an 11,000-ha coastal
zone and the coral reefs therein contained. There is a good chance that this
coral reef tract will now receive adequate protection under government
control and the vigilance of local enterprises cognizant of the value of this
resource for ecotourism. The Galapagos marine reserve, which includes a
40-nautical-mile (74km) perimeter around the archipelago, is the largest
protected area in the eastern Pacific. Even though Galapagos coral reefs
and coral communities have been severely degraded by recent ENSO
events, the cooperative management and research efforts of the Galapagos
National Park Service and the Charles Darwin Research Station should
help minimize anthropogenic disturbances and thus allow natural recovery processes to unfold.
Notwithstanding the recent increase in MPAs, no consistent or sustained
management practices are in effect specifically protecting coral reefs.
Unfortunately, virtually all of the protected coral areas in the eastern Pacific are "paper parks", established with good intentions but with little support or chance for success. Persistent problems are the lack of enforcement
capability and a generally poor public appreciation for the value of coral
reefs. To a large extent, the exploitation of reefs is a 'free-for-all', following
no system of tenure or rules of resource utilization. Even though coral reefs
are among the most productive of all marine ecosystems, they typically
exhibit a low yield. Export fisheries simply cannot be sustained by coral
reefs (Birkeland 1997). Perhaps the greatest hope for the sustainable
exploitation of coral reefs lies with local communities, since people living
nearby benefit most, offering a strong incentive for their protection and
management (White et al. 1994).
A potentially disastrous enterprise that is resurrected every few years is
the plan to construct a sea-level canal across Central America. In light of
the numerous known perturbations caused by introduced species, including the extirpation of native species, there would exist a real threat to coral
reefs and other marine ecosystems with an unchecked mixing of Pacific
and Atlantic waters. If such a project is initiated, every effort must be made
to avert the interchange of Pacific and Atlantic biotas. Some workers have
suggested that the 1983 mass mortality of Diadema in the Caribbean was
caused by an exotic pathogen transported across the Panama Canal in a
ship's balast water. While it is nearly impossible to predict the impacts of