(Decision VIII/22)
Stakeholder participation in IMCAM:
The National Water Resources Council created in 2005 a Technical Chamber for the Integrated Management of Watersheds, Estuarine Systems and Coastal Zone, with representatives of all interested sectors: community, industry, government, transport, agriculture, NGOs, among others, which provides a venue for broad community participation in IMCAM.
The National Program for Monitoring Coral Reefs (Reef Check Brazil) is a program that monitors the health of coral reefs and their ecological integrity. Coordinated by the Federal University of Pernambuco and supported by the Ministry of the Environment, this program also counts with volunteer community participation (particularly of artisanal fishermen) to monitor fish and coral species, and to assist in the control of illegal fishing in no-take areas.133
The Ministry of the Environment is also supporting the creation of an effective management network for marine protected areas with the collaboration of participatory protected area councils, and is collecting and disseminating successful experiences in the use of marine protected areas as an instrument for fisheries management, with the production and dissemination of books, CDs and videos.134
Stakeholders also participate in the Shared Management System for the Sustainable Use of Fisheries Resources (see next section). The GEF Mangrove Project (see National IMCAM Strategy below) also foresees broad community participation in project-supported pilot activities for the sustainable use of fisheries resources and environmental monitoring in mangroves, as well as in the identification and testing of sustainable production practices as alternative income sources.
Institutional structures for IMCAM
Brazil has a National Coastal Management Plan since 1988, but its regulation was only approved in 2004. The Plan is implemented through the National Coastal Management Program (GERCO), within the Ministry of the Environment. GERCO has the main
133
Wilkinson, C., ed. Status of the Coral Reefs in the World: 2008. Brasília, MMA 2010.
objective of planning and organizing, in an integrated and participatory manner, the socioeconomic activities in the coastal zone.
Since 2001 the Ministry of the Environment also implements the Coastal Project (Projeto
ORLA), which works on enhancing the ordering of land use in coastal areas through public-
private interaction, seeking the sustainable use of natural resources and rational land use in the coastal zone. To-date, the project has already provided training courses on integrated coastal and marine management to 58 municipalities in 14 coastal states. In 2008, this project published the Macro Diagnosis of the Coastal and Marine Zone (see chapter 1). In 2009, the government created the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture and instituted the Shared Management System for the Sustainable Use of Fisheries Resources, jointly coordinated by the new Ministry and the Ministry of the Environment. This System is composed by representatives of the government and the fisheries sector (artisanal and industrial fisheries), and has the objective of assisting in the development of rules and zoning for the fisheries sector, aiming at the sustainable use of fisheries resources.
National IMCAM strategy
Brazil has not yet developed a national IMCAM strategy. However, the US$20 million GEF-supported Mangrove Project (2008-2013) has a national scale and is organized in five priority mosaics of important mangroves. The project will strengthen protected areas covering these habitats and compile or develop innovative models for the sustainable use of mangroves, in addition to monitoring deforestation and biodiversity through fauna and fauna indicators. At the conclusion of this project, Brazil will develop a national strategy for mangrove conservation.
Review of domestic IMCAM legislation
The National Policy for Marine Resources (PNRM), approved in 2005, is implemented through Sectoral Plans which are updated every four years by the Inter-ministerial Commission for Marine Resources (CIRM), composed by various ministries and other federal agencies. The current Sectoral Plan for Marine Resources (PSRM) was prepared for the 2008-2011 period and has eight specific objectives: (i) defend the Brazilian national and international political-strategic marine interests; (ii) promote the socio-economic development based on the sustainable use of marine resources; (iii) recover the culture of traditional communities and disseminate the marine culture in Brazil; (iv) ensure the good quality of the marine environment; (v) reduce the vulnerability of marine environments to and the risks of extreme climatic events and climate change; (vi) strengthen the marine business value chain, represented by the generation of knowledge, development of technologies, and innovation in products and services; (vii) enhance the strategic partnerships with agencies responsible for controlling natural disasters at the national, state and municipal levels, with the purpose of reducing vulnerability to extreme events; and (viii) increase strategic partnerships to enhance instruments that can contribute to the regional development of the coastal zone in coordination with the National Regional Development Policy.
The 2008-2011 PSRM also lists 13 strategic actions: (1) Management of the PSRM, coordinated by the Brazilian Navy – SECIRM; (2) Oceanographic and climate monitoring – MOC-GOOS/Brasil, coordinated by the Brazilian Navy – DHN; (3) Research on climate and oceanography in the Tropical and South Atlantic and Antartica, coordinated by the Ministry of Science and Technology; (4) Logistics support to the research programs in the Tropical and South Atlantic – Logmar, coordinated by the Brazilian Navy – SECIRM; (5) Scientific research in the São Pedro and São Paulo Archipelago, coordinated by the Brazilian Navy – SECIRM; (6) Scientific research at the Trindade Island – Protrindade, coordinated by the Brazilian Navy – EMA; (7) National infrastructure for marine research – Inframar, coordinated by the Brazilian Navy – SECIRM; (8) Biotechnology of marine organisms – Biomar, coordinated by the Ministry of Science and Technology; (9) Assessment of the mineral potential of the continental shelf under Brazilian jurisdiction and oceanic areas – Remplac, jointly coordinated by the Ministry of Mines and Energy and the Ministry of the Environment; (10) Aquaculture and fisheries – Aquipesca, coordinated by the Special Secretariat for Aquaculture and Fisheries – SEAP/PR; (11) Assessment of the sustainable potential and monitoring of the live marine resources – Revimar, coordinated by the Ministry of the Environment – IBAMA and ICMBio; (12) Enforcement of the fisheries activities, coordinated by the Ministry of the Environment – IBAMA; and (13) Consolidation and increase the number of Research and Post-Graduate Groups on Marine Sciences – PPG-Mar, coordinated by the Ministry of Education – MEC.
International and regional IMCAM instruments
The National Wetlands Committee (CNZU) was reactivated within the Ministry of the Environment, and proposed the creation of specific participatory technical chambers for two coastal ecosystems: mangroves and coral reefs. The creation of these technical chambers is currently undergoing a legal approval process.
In 2006, during COP 8, Brazil joined the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI), and is participating actively in discussions under all international and regional agreements to which the country is party.
Raising awareness
The Fishing Vessel Satellite Tracking Program (PREPS), in addition to preventing IUU, also functions to raise awareness on the importance of the sustainable use of fisheries resources. Additionally, the Ministry of the Environment has been investing in awareness raising campaigns, such as the campaign for responsible conduct in reef environments (active since 2001); the campaign for responsible conduct on beaches, initiated in 2009; and the campaign for informed consumption of seafood, which initiated in 2009 focusing on lobster species, and will continue in 2010 with a stronger focus on marine shrimp and freshwater pirarucu.