Coastal and Marine Resources Management

Jamaica possesses a varied and irregular coastline which gives rise to a unique ecosystem
formed by the integration of coastal features that include harbours, bays, beaches, rocky
shores, estuaries, mangrove swamps, cays, and coral reefs. These natural features provide
a coastal resource base that contributes significantly to the economic well-being of the
country through tourism. More significantly, most of the Jamaican people live in coastal
plains and ipso facto the majority of the economic activities within the country occur
there, making coastal zone management very important for the country.

Numerous sandy beaches around Jamaica's coastline and on several inshore cays are
invaluable to the tourism industry for the enjoyment of local and foreign visitors. This
resource is under threat from pollution, erosion and illegal sand mining. The erosion of
Jamaica's shoreline may be attributed to several factors. The degradation of coral reefs
and mangrove forests have exposed the sandy beaches to increased wave action, and the
illegal but common practice of mining sand from beaches has exacerbated the problem.
Both recreational and fishing beaches have been fouled by the pileup of refuse, debris
and fish offal, as well as by occasional offshore and nearshore oil spills. The quality of
the water around several recreational beaches is deteriorating due to pollution,
particularly from human waste, which makes sea bathing unpleasant.

The wetland areas are important to the coastal ecosystem in that they provide habitat for a
wide variety of organisms (e.g. birds, crabs, oysters), a nursery area for fish and lobsters,
and provide protection to the shoreline from wave action. The area of Jamaica's wetlands
(mangrove forests and salt marshes) has been steadily decreasing, with a corresponding
decrease in fish and wildlife and an increase in coastal erosion. In the past, the
importance of wetland areas (then called swamps) was not recognized. Considered
eyesores and breeding grounds for mosquitos, many were drained or dumped up and
acres of mangrove forest were cut down to make way for the construction of houses,
hotels or other structures. At the same time, mangroves provided an income for smallscale harvesters of timber. Today, the pressure on the mangroves has increased
tremendously. Mangrove poles are used for fuelwood, to make charcoal, as fence posts,
stakes, yamsticks, scaffolding and construction material. The requirement that permits
must be obtained before cutting is totally ignored, and mangroves are de facto an open
access resource. New harvesting technology (chain saws) has dramatically increased the
quantity of timber harvested, and clear-cutting is making natural regeneration difficult. In
addition, wetland areas are still targets for construction projects.

Jamaica has extensive coral reefs which are important as habitat for a complex mixture of
fish, invertebrates and algae. Jamaica's coral reefs are commercially important for two
main reasons: most of Jamaica's artisanal fishers use traps aimed at capturing reef fish;
and the reefs are important dive sites for water sports operators in the tourism industry.
Recent years have seen extensive degradation of Jamaica's coral reefs, leading to
decreases in fish catches and increases in visitor dissatisfaction. Recent hurricanes

(particularly Allen in 1980 and Gilbert in 1988) have caused major structural damage to
Jamaica's coral reefs. This is an unavoidable occurrence, from which the reefs are
normally able to recover; however other factors are hampering reef restoration. Pollution
of the marine environment by sewage has promoted the growth of algae which are stifling
the coral organisms (eutrophication). The sea urchins, major reef grazers who can usually
be expected to keep algae growth in check, were almost wiped out by a viral disease in
the 1980s, which promoted reef death. The reduction of fish grazers (e.g. parrot fish) due
to overfishing has also made a significant contribution to eutrophication. The widespread
use of fishing methods such as dynamite and certain toxic substances are destructive and
avoidable.

The importance of sea grass beds in the growth cycles of fish, lobsters and other
commercially important species is recognized by scientists but has not been fully
explored. Indeed there is very little information available on the extent and location of
sea grass beds on Jamaica's coastal shelves and (inshore and offshore) banks.

Jamaica's marine environment is notoriously overfished; indeed the CARICOM Fisheries

Resource Assessment and Management Programme (CFRAMP) has declared Jamaican
waters to be the most overfished in the English-speaking Caribbean. A study conducted
by Thompson in 1945 reported the island shelves (North and South) to be overfished by
fishers using unmotorized canoes. As a way of increasing the catch he recommended
expanding the area fished to include the almost unexploited inshore and offshore banks,
which would require motorization. Since then, developments in fishing technology
(including motorization and the introduction of SCUBA gear) have resulted in
overfishing on the inshore and offshore banks. Government initiatives have led to
substantial increases in fishing effort while there is inadequate institutional capacity to
plan for, manage and monitor the fishing industry. Jamaica's catch of marine fish has
declined from 10.89 million kg (24 million lbs) in 1964 to 7.71 million kg (17 million
lbs) in 1980, despite an expansion into new fishing grounds. Not only has overall catch
weight declined but so has the average size of fish caught. The species composition of the
catch has also declined, towards less favoured varieties and trash fish. The mesh used in
fishpots is usually 2.5 cm (1") or3.125 cm (1.25"), which traps fish before they are of age
to spawn (juveniles); thatched pots covered with wire mesh used in certain parts of
Jamaica, have an effective aperture of 1 cm (0.4"), which is very destructive of fish
populations. Dynamite destroys fish habitat, as do certain toxic substances currently in
use and certain seine and trammel nets. Other nets are destructive of fish (e.g. gill nets)
and the mesh in most nets is quite small. The laws of Jamaica which address fisheries
management are deficient. The Wildlife Protection Act (1945) states that juvenile fish are
to be protected, and that the definition of juvenile fish will be provided in accompanying
regulations; those regulations were never issued. The Fishing Industry Act (1975) does
not set minimum mesh sizes for fishtraps, and there are several large loopholes in its
provisions.

Wild stocks of a few species of invertebrates have been traditionally exploited by

artisanal fishers. Lobster, shrimp and crabs (crustaceans), conch and oysters (mollusc)
were generally lightly harvested, but in recent years, increases in demand have led to

large increases in fishing pressure. A lucrative export market for lobster and conch has
brought big business into the fishery, and now these stocks are overfished. The
government is making efforts to manage these wild stocks. Widely ignored closed
seasons for lobsters and conch have been imposed, and efforts are now under way to
establish quotas for the conch harvest. The emergence in recent years of local oyster bars
has led to over-harvesting of the mangrove oysters. Stocks of the more popular cup oyster
(Crassostrea rhizophorae) have declined considerably, and the oyster harvest is now
predominantly of the flat oyster (Isogamon alatus). Many invertebrates are caught by
hand using SCUBA or Hooka equipment. Under the Fishing Industry Act (1975) no
license is required for such activity, which will make management quite difficult. Aside
from the inappropriate behaviour of Jamaican fishers, poachers from Central America and
other Caribbean territories fish illegally in Jamaican waters and EEZ. Jamaican
commercial fishers also appear to breach regulations and agreements aimed at producing
sustainable harvests. The consuming public as a whole does not appear to behave
responsibly, as they continue to purchase lobsters during the closed season, and even
protected species such as turtles and manatees.

Some varieties of agar-bearing seaweed (Gracilaria spp.) locally called Irish moss are
also harvested from the wild as the main constituent in a variety of drinks popular with
Jamaicans at home and abroad. Due to poor harvesting techniques, the yield has
decreased in recent years, and now the wild stocks are unable to satisfy the local and
export demand for Irish moss. Large quantities of a carrageenan-bearing substitute
(Euchuma spp.) are now being imported to address this deficiency. Poor harvesting
techniques are fast reducing the wild stocks of Irish moss. Instead of cutting the algae
with a knife leaving the rest to grow again attached by the holdfast, the standard
procedure is to rip the plant off the substrate.

Arising out of Jamaica's concerns at the state of coral reefs and related ecosystems,
Jamaica has been actively associated with the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI),
co-sponsoring the resolution in 1994 establishing the Initiative. Jamaica has remained
actively involved in the planning of the ICRI International Consultation scheduled to be
held in the Philippines at the end of May 1995 and hosting a regional consultation
planned for early July 1995. Coastal Zone Management is being given significant
attention with the execution of a project emphasizing an integrated approach to Coastal
Zone Management with the support from the Government of Sweden. The national
interest also requires that Jamaica support research and monitoring of global warming
and its effects such as sea level rise which is of critical importance for management of the
coastal zone, given the current patterns of population density and dispersal on the island.
The prospect of increasing sea level rise poses serious implications for the re-siting of
important social, economic and other infrastructure.