Governance of coral reefs

Traditional views portray governance as unitary, authoritarian, and instrumental, with the central government usually exerting sole authority over resources. Yet, this management style has proven to be ineffective and even damaging for managing complex ecologies. Empirical research has put forth evidence that widespread central control of common-pool resources has in fact accelerated resource deterioration due to such factors as weak institutions, corruption, inefficiency, competition to exploit a resource by other stakeholders and the subsequent ‘tragedy of the commons.’

Additionally, the nationalization of CPRs undermines their traditional management by local communities. Outsider activities, moreover, may neglect the traditional access and harvesting rules and worsen the sustainability of a given resource. Such actions may be deemed legal by the larger political regime, but can severely undermine both the integrity of the resource and the autonomy of the indigenous community. In response to these challenges, a new form of governance has been a major focus of research for the past two decades: collaborative governance.

Collaborative governance brings public and private stakeholders together in collective forums with governmental agencies to engage in consensus-oriented decision-making. ³⁷² In recent times, collaborative governance vis-à-vis the environment has gained traction within policy-making and public management. To that end, the introduction of the integrated coastal management zone (ICMZ) act by CPA is a good first step towards this direction. One of the principles outlined in the ICMZ act is to “establish a public participation system for decisions concerning coastal planning to improve coastal protection and management performance,”³⁷³ which is in line with the criteria required of collaborative governance put forth by Ansell and Gash (2007).

The five other criteria set out by them are also present in the ICMZ, including:

(1) The forum is initiated by public agencies or institutions;

(2) Participants in the forum include nonstate actors;

372 Chris Ansell and Alison Gash, 2007, ‘Collaborative Governance in Theory and Practice,’ JPART 18:4, 13 Nov. 2007, p. 543.

373 ‘Coastal Zone Management Act,’ Chapter 1: ‘General Provisions,’ Article 7. Document provided by CPA.

(3) Participants engage directly in decision making and are not merely

‘consulted’ by public agencies;

(4) The forum aims to make decisions by consensus;

(5) The focus of collaboration is on public policy or public management.³⁷⁴ Sustaining coral reefs and other marine resources and managing their ecological resilience entails the ability to observe and interpret dynamic ecosystem processes and develop the social capability to respond and adapt to environmental changes.³⁷⁵ The difficulty of such decision-making processes is made all the more evident when taking into account the “complexity of coastal systems, the scientific uncertainty associated with predicting the magnitude, timing and direction of socio-ecological change,”³⁷⁶ and the high stakes that are involved when dealing with as vulnerable and fragile an ecosystem as the coral reefs. Thus, what can be done to improve the adaptability of collaborative governance? Dietz et al.³⁷⁷ propose the following five steps:

1. Providing information

Information and scientific data are crucial to making well-informed decisions vis-à-vis the environment. This also includes the human-environment interactions affecting the resources. With regard to the coral reefs, a constant monitoring of the types of corals, diseases, fish and other species, as well as the number of scuba divers or tourists would all be beneficial in gaining reliable, trustworthy data to support collective decision-making. This information should not only pertain to the factual state of the resource and human actions, but also data postulating the nature and types of uncertainty as well as the limitations and extent of scientific ignorance or disagreement.

2. Dealing with conflict

Managing diverse incentive dynamics, especially given the sharp differences in power and in values across stakeholders, is a key aspect of environmental governance.

Managed effectively, the input of the interest parties – including varying perspectives, philosophies, approaches – may contribute to more democratic decision-making

374 Ansell 2007:544-5.

375 Stephen Myers et al., 2012, ‘Adaptive learning and coastal management in South-east Queensland, Australia’ in Sustainable Management and Climate Adaptation, eds. Richard Kenchington et al., Australia: CSIRO Publishing, p. 159.

376 Ibid, p. 157.

377 Dietz 2003:1907-1912.

processes and lead to a ‘self-educating community’ that learns from nature and from each other,³⁷⁸ sparking learning and change. This is especially significant when conflict of beliefs or cultural values comes into play.

3. Inducing rule compliance

In order for governance to be effective, the rules of resource use and extraction need to be followed, with reasonable enforcement mechanisms for treating violations and offenders. Importantly, those who impose these mechanisms must be seen as legitimate and effective by the resource users, otherwise ways to exploit the resource will gain traction and overwhelm the commons governance strategy. If the necessary resources are not employed, no amount of changes in the legal sphere will influence behaviour dynamics or technological advancements. This issue is prevalent in Taiwan, where ineffective enforcement or direct violation of coastal laws remain untreated.

4. Providing infrastructure

This includes effective communication and transportation technologies, resource-harvesting technologies, infrastructure in the form of roads, as well as institutional infrastructure including research, social capital, and multilevel rules to enhance cooperation between the national, regional, and local levels. This point, however, is two-faceted. On the one hand, implementing proper communications equipment can, for instance, alert others to illegal actions; the building of fences and gates can limit human intrusion into protected areas; investing in proper sewage treatment facilities can prevent future costs associated with water hygiene and coastal destruction. On the other hand, technological advancements in fishing practices are not matched by improvements in conservation efforts. New roads or coastal development may lead to sediment runoff, which in turn can engulf coral reefs and severely hinder their growth or destroy them completely.

5. Be prepared for change

Also called ‘adaptive learning,’ institutions must be designed to allow for improvement.

As previously mentioned, uncertainty when dealing with complex ecologies such as coral reefs is a given, and room to shift and adapt when assumptions prove to be wrong or in need of change is essential for effective resource governance. After all, “fixed

378 Myers 2012:159.

rules are likely to fail because they place too much confidence in the current state of knowledge.”³⁷⁹ Of course, too much change will make the institutions seem undecided, the policies backfiring as was described in the Twin Lake case. Nevertheless, a system that is prepared for adaptation will prove to be more beneficial in the long run.

The five steps for adaptive governance of environmental resources which Taiwan should adopt may be summarized in the following illustration:

Table 3: Five principles for the governance of environmental resources and the governance requirements they help meet.³⁸⁰

Additionally, calls to integrate environmental statistics into national accounts (the so-called ‘green GDP’) would improve Taiwan’s ability to manage natural capital as economic assets. One researcher in particular is trying to put a price on Kenting’s coral reefs to then incorporate the data into policy recommendations. Nathaniel Maynard has looked at the ‘willingness to pay’ (WTP) measure using a visual survey, so the amount covers existence value or tourism value only (personal communication, 23-24 May 2017). According to his calculations, the average WTP was NT$625 for a single site and NT$2,502 for the cumulative sites represented (four sites within the Kenting National Park area). That means that each person would have an average WTP of NT$2,502; divided by the amount of households (8,386,495), the existence value of the cumulative sites represented is equal to NT$ 5,241,559,375 per year (conservative

379 Dietz 2003:1909.

380 Ibid, p. 1910.

estimate). If coral reef degradation and biodiversity loss are not important enough to garner the attention of political actors and business sectors, perhaps these economic incentives may be advertised instead.

Finally, delegating autonomy for local self-governance of resources without undue interference by outside authorities is another approach in sustainable management of coral reefs and marine resources. Granting the Tao legal recognition of their traditional access and harvesting rules and even applying their rich marine knowledge to other coral reef sites may be beneficial for the natural environment.

Significantly, the reinvigoration and application of local ecological knowledge for conservation purposes should be encouraged. Grassroots initiatives and cooperation in restoring and managing coral reefs are crucial. “The first step in coral reef conservation should be protection, the elimination or reduction of the stresses responsible for the damage. The second step is rehabilitation, an important issue to repair the damage of the past.”³⁸¹ Without local and indigenous communities involved, other stakeholder efforts will not be effective or sustainable. Yet, without institutional support and economic sustainability, such solutions will lack momentum and ultimately fail.

Collaborative, adaptive governance is the best method thus far in managing these elusive, complex ecologies.

In conclusion, sustainable coastal management and coral reef protection is possible, given the will to do so. Although academic and empirical data show that there is no one-size-fits-all model regarding coral reef conservation, various collaborative governance schemes are offered to aid policy making and public governance. This year, the CPA has put forth the ICZM act in order to achieve sustainable development through engagement and coordination among various stakeholders. The outcome of this act and simultaneously, the future of Taiwan’s coral reefs, will be visible soon.

Nevertheless, there are many measures the government can take to ensure the best possible results, including: nurturing strong science within a strong participatory setting to better support decision-making; identifying and managing incentive dynamics for collaborative governance; facilitating local self-organization by providing indigenous communities with scientific data, a forum for conflict resolution, and granting legal

381 Jacques C. J. Nihoul and Chen-Tung Arthur Chen, 2009, Oceanography, vol. III, Oxford, UK:

EOLSS Publishers/UNESCO, p. 85.

recognition to indigenous rule;³⁸² and significantly, bridging co-existing knowledge systems through dialogue and ‘cheap talk’ opportunities. Overall, whereas the government should be the leader in law enforcement, adaptation, and support, there needs to be a will and incentive from the bottom to ensure the proper governance of coral reef ecosystems will achieve long-term maturity.

382 Ching-Ping Tang and Shui-Yan Tang, 2000, ‘Negotiated Autonomy: Transforming Self-Governing Institutions for Local Common-Pool Resources in Two Tribal Village in Taiwan,’ Human Ecology 29:1, March 2001, p. 50.

8. Conclusion

In summary, the traditional management and legislation in Taiwan had not prioritized environmental protection. Under martial law, national prioritization of economic growth had been achieved at the expense of environmental degradation. Rapid industrialization and decades of coastal development and extensive infrastructure development on the backdrop of increasing urbanization had resulted in high soil erosion, which led to landslides and massive sediment flows into coastal water.

Improper sewage treatment directly discharged into coastal waters has already engendered visible degradation of the coral reef ecosystem.³⁸³The rise of the environmental and social movements in the 1980s is regarded as a turning point in Taiwanese history, undermining the authoritarian regime and paving the way for democratic processes. Democratization, however, engendered its own unique set of opportunities and threats for the environmental movement. While institutions such as Environmental Protection Agency were established and new regulations for environmental protection and conservation gained legal force, the practical temptations of economic incentives and pro-business motives severely marginalized the former’s impact. Moreover, satisfying dominant interests would frequently come at the expense of environmental progress, a phenomenon that did not seem to substantially change with the election cycles.

The absence of local community engagement, lack of local-regional-national partnerships, and unsuitable enforcement of the law all make sustainable management a challenge. The chasm between upholding traditional lifestyles and the incorporation of industrialization is similarly visible on the environmental spectrum, with sustainable fishing set aside for industrial replacements that offer higher yield with less skill necessary. Protecting the environment may not be as effective within a top-down framework if local resistance is high. Creating incentives at the local level to engage in pro-environment measures is an efficient way in long-term sustainability and can act more as a cost-efficient method than any other alternative. However, recovering trust between the local and national government is a key issue that needs to be overcome before collaboration can begin. For instance, relocating the nuclear waste site off of Orchid Island would be a crucial first step towards reconciliation between the Tao and

383 Goodwin 2013:151.

the government, creating a clean slate on which acts such as the integrated coastal management plan could be established. Furthermore, giving the local communities and indigenous peoples more autonomy for self-governance of natural resources would go a long way towards conserving coastal resources for sustainable use, as it is both in their interest and within their traditional heritage to do so. Overall, trust and communication are an integral part of cooperation, two elements that are currently missing between these two stakeholders.

In terms of institutional progress, the existing challenges to protect the coastal environment are clearly outside the scope of the EPA and CPA. The Ministry of Interior should establish a new ministry that would be the primary agency in charge of managing and enacting marine-related legislature and planning. The current division between agencies and sectors in tandem with the unadaptable, overwhelming nature of the Taiwanese bureaucracy cannot compete with the decision-making processes required to manage the evolving, complex marine ecologies. If the ICZM act is to succeed, a better institutional channel at the top is needed to provide support for and respond swiftly to the dynamic ecosystem processes at the local level. In essence, adaptive learning institutions are needed to make way for improvement.

Significantly, there needs to be a re-discovery of the importance of the sea and its resources within the consciousness of the Taiwanese peoples. Taiwan is frequently cited as a seafood nation, yet it is desensitized to the origins of its food. Although there seems to exist a superficial agreement at the political level that environmental protection is needed, this does not translate into substantial action such as funding initiatives. Given the context of modern society, the question of the value of the coast and its resources must be addressed; putting a monetary value on the coastal waters and the coral reefs will go a long way towards raising awareness of the need to conserve and rehabilitate them. Realizing the worth of the coral reefs and the economic opportunities linked with them may benefit every stratum of Taiwanese society, as has already been shown by nations such as Australia and Bonaire. Then, perhaps, protecting the island’s natural biodiversity may be regarded with more magnitude.

Additionally, the diversity in climates should not be neglected during environmental planning and management. In contrast to the north, southern Taiwan needs to be protected like a tropical island. Its rich ecological biodiversity, vegetation, and marine ecosystems all require different, adaptive managing efforts that are not

equivalent to the capital’s subtropical climate zone. Scientific data and dissemination of knowledge would go a long way towards making informed decisions vis-à-vis specific ecological areas.

Finally, pursuing technologies that promote sustainable energy should be a developmental goal of every nation. For instance, Taiwan’s Black Current (Kuroshio) flows along its eastern coast. Investing in a wheel or other form of technology that would permit the generation of power from this source could be of great benefit to the communities in its vicinity. Instead of perpetuating the already-decades long debate on the operations of the fourth nuclear power plant, Taiwan should take advantage of its rich natural environment and invest in renewable energy sources. Frankly, if Taiwan does not begin taking better care of its coastal waters, it will have severe problems in supporting its inhabitants on this finite-sized island.

In summary, coral reefs are incredibly diverse yet fragile ecosystems.

Sustainably managed, these rainforests of the sea can be an important source of natural resources for Taiwan and generate economic value from tourism. Significantly, protection efforts at the local scale can curtail global threats affecting coral reefs.

However, specific knowledge of local coral reef ecosystems is necessary to adequately implement management and conservation measures; given the limited amount of research vis-à-vis Taiwan’s coral reefs, especially in the English language, this paper hopes to bridge that information gap, offer an insight into the complex incentive dynamics on the backdrop of past socio-political events, and encourage governmental agencies and the general public to become more aware of and take more initiatives in reef management and conservation. Overall, despite the monumental challenges set before marine conservation, the solution lies within a unified collaboration of all the stakeholders determined to protect and cultivate the many benefits of a sustainably-managed coast and healthy coral reefs. In the end, long-term sustainability is crucial.

But it cannot be achieved if we do not realize that protecting the environment today matters more.