How Are MEBM Initiatives Governed?

For example, the Chesapeake Bay Program is directed by an Executive Council that includes the governors of the participating states and the EPA Administrator. The Council is distinct from yet superordinate to a Management Board, consisting of more than 25 staff members from involved federal and state agencies.

In the Trilateral Wadden Sea Cooperation, a Governmental Council is made up of high-level ministers from each participating nation. The Council meets every three to four years to provide overarching political leadership for the Cooperation. The Council oversees the operations of the Wadden Sea Board, a group of government officials that implement the Strategy, oversee operational and advisory bodies, and secure relations with key stakeholders. A senior government official appointed by the Council chairs the Board; the position rotates between the three participating countries.

At a much smaller scale, the Port Orford Ocean Resource Team is established as a non-profit organization with a governing Board of Directors, which oversees an administrative staff and is advised by a Community Advisory Board. To address scientific questions, POORT carries out research partnerships with state agencies, The Nature Conservancy and Oregon State University.

The Chesapeake Bay Program employs a number of advisory committees, including a Citizens Advisory Committee, a Science and Technical Advisory Committee and a Local Government Advisory Committee. All are advisory to the Executive Council and the Management Board.

In developing the network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) under the California Marine Life Protection Act, a set of five Regional Stakeholder Groups and Science Advisory Teams evaluated existing MPAs and developed proposals for new areas in their region. These advisory bodies ultimately provided input to a Blue Ribbon Task Force that made recommendations to the Director of the California Department of Fish and Game.

At the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary, decisions made by the Sanctuary Manager are informed by a stakeholder-based Sanctuary Advisory Committee and an Intergovernmental Policy Council that involves the Sanctuary, the State of Washington and four area tribes in a regional forum to exchange information, coordinate policies, and develop recommendations for resource management within the sanctuary.

For the Chesapeake Bay Program, a set of Goal Implementation Teams implements agency-based and cross-agency programs. These include teams on Sustainable Fisheries, Vital Habitats, Water Quality, Watersheds, Stewardship, and Partnering/Leadership.

Priority Issue Teams are a critical piece of the Gulf of Mexico Alliance. PITs have included groups working on Water Quality, Environmental Education, Nutrient Impacts, Habitat Conservation, Ecosystems Integration/Assessment and Coastal Community Resilience. An Alliance Coordination Team serves as a bridge between the Alliance’s leadership team and the PITs. Coordination Team members participate in Priority Issue Team meetings and present updates about progress to leadership.

Concerned that Oregon’s state-wide fisheries assessments did not provide adequate information about local fish stocks, members of the Port Orford fishing community started the Port Orford Ocean Resource Team to collect local scientific information to incorporate into local management strategies.

Under Chile’s 1991 Fishing and Aquaculture Law, the fisherman’s union in Caleta El Quisco has legal rights to manage and regulate its own Management Exploitation Area (MEA). To create an MEA, Chilean fishing organizations partner with marine biologists to develop fishery management plans that are then approved and monitored by the Chilean Fisheries Undersecretary. While national law enabled the initiative, community interests govern it subject to approval by the federal agency.

The California Ocean Protection Council was established in 2004 by the California Ocean Protection Act to better coordinate the formerly piece-meal governance of California coasts and state waters, and to help the state transition to an ecosystem-based management approach. Current priorities of the Council focus on six areas of work: governance, research and mapping, ocean and coastal water quality, physical processes and habitat structure, ocean and coastal ecosystems, and education and outreach.

The Massachusetts Ocean Management Initiative evolved out of an Ocean Management Task Force, which was launched in 2003 and charged with examining evolving ocean uses and developing a comprehensive approach to manage ocean resources. The Task Force released its recommendations in a 2004 report entitled, Waves of Change. The effort developed the foundation for mapping and planning activities and passage of the Massachusetts Oceans Act in May 2008. This state initiative led to the adoption in December 2009 of the nation’s first comprehensive ocean zoning plan to manage development in state waters.

The Chesapeake Bay Program is a voluntary regional partnership between Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington, D. C., and is one of the longest-standing MEBM efforts in the U.S. While a significant leadership role is played by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, governance of the program requires multi-state agreements and the political concurrence of multiple governors.

Support from governors of the five Gulf Coast states was critical to creation of the Gulf of Mexico Alliance. By profiling issues associated with the Gulf of Mexico, the governors hoped that a state-led initiative would bring more federal resources to the previously overlooked region. While a set of agreements governs the alliance, ultimately its power flows from the endorsement and commitment of the state governors.

Eastern Scotian Shelf Integrated Management Initiative (ESSIM), a pilot project under Canada’s Ocean Act, seeks to coordinate activity among stakeholders, federal and provincial officials, and jurisdictional agencies within a 325,000 square kilometer ecological region. Led by the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans, the initiative integrates various ecological and socio-political boundaries.

The federal government of the Bahamas initiated a partnership to establish the Bahamas Marine Reserve Network involving government agencies, NGOs and stakeholders. With the goal of protecting at least 20% of near-shore marine resources by 2012, so far the effort has proposed locations for five marine reserves and designated one.

While the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park is subnational in geographic scale, the park was created by a 1975 federal act and is co-managed by the national and provincial governments. GBRMP has made extensive use of zoning to regulate activity within the park’s boundaries.

U.S. National Marine Sanctuaries (including Gray’s Reef, and Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale) are a system of 14 protected areas designated to protect marine areas with significant natural and cultural features. Each functions under the guidance of the federal law that created them, the policies of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the input of a regionally-based sanctuary advisory council that incorporates local objectives and concerns.

Ecuador’s 1998 “Special Law” established boundaries for the Galapagos Marine Reserve and authorized the Galapagos National Park Service to manage and regulate activity within the reserve. The Special Law also mandates community participation in decisions affecting the Reserve.

The Mexican government granted dive fishermen in Puerto Peñasco exclusive rights and management authority over their traditional rock scallop fishing grounds. Fishermen partnered with the non-profit CEDO (El Centro de Estudios de Desiertos y Océanos) and the University of Arizona to develop management plans and monitor success.

Managers of all National Marine Sanctuaries have the authority to regulate access, fishing and recreational activity within a Sanctuary’s boundaries. For example, as part of the federal-state co-management agreement for the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers carry out the enforcement of regulations.