Chapter 2: State and Trends
Key Messages: Oceans, Seas and Coasts
The LAC region has a maritime territory of 16 million square kilometres and 64 000 kilometres of coastline (World Bank 2015). Even though some of the coastline is protected by coral reefs, sea grass beds and mangrove forests (More…21), they are still vulnerable to natural and man-made threats. Improperly managed coastal developments have created serious problems related to water pollution from land-based sources, degradation of critical habitats, and depletion of natural resource stocks. These impacts negatively affect the economy and society through loss of employment, increased costs of living, decreased investment and health problems.
Climate change and its associated impacts coupled with degradation of natural defences (mangroves, coral reefs, etc.) have made the coastal zone more susceptible to disasters. More than 8.4 million people in LAC live in the path of hurricanes, and roughly 29 million live in low-elevation coastal zones where they are highly vulnerable to sea-level rise, storm surges, and coastal flooding (World Bank 2014b).
Governments need to identify areas that are most at risk and implement adaptive strategies in the most cost effective and integrated manner. Although local waste collection campaigns take place frequently in different parts of the region, they can´t cope with the magnitude of the waste stream into the oceans. Governments need to design comprehensive policies at all levels to ensure proper disposal of waste in all forms.
There is an urgent need to address the challenges that are described in this section. One of the main challenges for the future is the need for a more effective and integrated approach to the management of marine resources. The achievement of national and international goals on sustainable development will depend ultimately on new consumption and production patterns, institutional capacity building, pollution control, financial investment, monitoring, information management and dissemination.
in very distant areas inland of the coast can have a significant impact on the marine environment. Urbanization in particular continues to transform areas near river courses and low-lying coastal areas. Figure 2.3.1 shows the population distribution in the region being highly concentrated along the coastline, especially in the Caribbean islands and also in large cities like Bogota, Rio de Janeiro or Lima, and along important rivers (Buenos Aires at the Rio de la Plata River or Manaus at the Amazon River). Many economic activities such as tourism and shipping are also concentrated in coastal areas (IDB 2016). In Small Island Developing States, pressures arise over limited land resources as people are dependent on them for economic development and their livelihoods.
Together with LUC, extreme climatic events trigger changes in beach extent, in the amount of sediments and pollutants released to the sea and in the health of marine/coastal ecosystems.
Finally, consumption and production patterns are becoming a bigger and more important pressure on coastal areas. World Bank (2012b) highlighted that there is a connection between the income level and urbanization of a country and the amount of waste generated. A range of different industrial inputs and consumer products end up in marine waters as populations increase, consume more and lack capacity to recover, reuse or treat waste. Extractive and commercial
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