By Mary Collins, IUCN WCPA Connectivity Conservation Specialist Group’s Marine Connectivity Working Group (MCWG) Graduate Associate, hosted by the Center for Large Landscape Conservation

Context and challenge 

The Coral Triangle is a marine region that includes the waters of Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Timor Leste and Solomon Islands – otherwise known as the ‘CT6’ (figure 1). The region is distinct from those surrounding it based on the staggering diversity and number of corals and associated reef diversity. Nearly 600 different species of reef-building corals support more than 2,000 reef fish species and six of the world’s seven sea turtle species. It is also an important region for supporting large populations of commercially important fisheries like tuna (a multi-billion dollar industry) (WWF). Over 120 million people speaking 2,000 languages live throughout the Coral Triangle region, with numbers rapidly increasing. Many rely on marine resources for income, food, cultural identity, and protection from storms (WWF). 

Figure 1. The Coral Triangle region, with abundance of coral reef fish and associated species represented in graduated orange and coral reefs shown in purple (CTI).

Widespread challenges exist throughout the coral triangle, despite the naturally high levels of biodiversity. Fishery-related challenges include overfishing, destructive fishing practices like cyanide poisoning and dynamite fishing, and nonselective fishing gear that increases bycatch. Important fisheries have been depleted to dangerous levels including tuna, grouper, and snapper. Live reef fish trading is also a large threat to these reefs, as it is estimated that up to 50% of reef fish are collected for trade before reaching reproductive age (WWF). Compounding pressures of increasing populations dependent on the marine resources for food and income, land-based pollution and development, as well as the effects of climate change (warming, rising seas and ocean acidification) also threaten the Coral Triangle waters (CTI; WWF). 

Approach

The Coral Triangle Initiative on Coral Reefs, Fisheries, and Food Security (CTI-CFF) is a multilateral partnership between all six countries within the region, the CT6, created to address crucial issues such as food security, climate change and marine biodiversity. Established in 2009, it is the first multilateral arrangement of its kind to take these distinct fields into consideration in tandem. At the CTI Summit in Manado in May 2009, the CTI Regional Plan of Action was endorsed by all parties, laying the groundwork for transforming regional marine resource management through an interagency, holistic approach that incorporates migratory pathways, entire life cycles of species, ocean currents, and financial flows (CTI). 

Shared goals, expertise and an established common set of language and governance within the CTI-CFF helped the region to strategically designate a network of marine protected areas (MPAs). Practical guidance documents further aided countries to align practices. The CTI-CFF guidance on designing MPA networks specifically includes marine connectivity considerations within design principles. Principle two states that “marine reserves should encompass at least 20-40 percent of each habitat type”, with the aim to protect, through representation, the habitats necessary for fish life cycle stages as they shift between habitats like mangroves, seagrass beds, and coral reefs. Principle eight states that marine reserves should be separated by 1 to 20 km, the distance range that will accommodate the larval dispersal patterns of most species. Further, principle 15 calls for locating more protection and higher levels of protection upstream, recognizing that current patterns can help inform protection that boosts ecologic connectivity by providing the larval source for downstream recruitment (Green et al, 2013). These and the remaining principles (1-15) establish common MPA network design practices throughout the region, avoiding duplication of efforts and enabling valuable time and resources to be most effectively allocated. 

To continue building on the three-pronged approach of coral reefs, fisheries, and food security while bearing in mind the effects of climate change, CTI-CFF operates through the guidance of working groups, each encompassing individuals from each CT6 country. Split into technical, governance, and cross-cutting issues, two out of the ten strongly address marine connectivity conservation topics. The Seascape Working Group hosts Regional Exchanges and runs projects that identify Priority Seascapes, help designate them as MPAs, and manage each for their seascape functions. The Sulu Sulawesi Priority Seascape, located within the northern point of the triangle and shared between Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines, exemplifies this approach. Beyond establishing the area as a Priority Seascape, the working group also created a Sub-Regional EAFM Implementation Plan and Trans-boundary Sea Turtle Marine Protected Area Network within the area (CTI), further enabling species movement and aligned management. The MPAs Working Group is a second working group fueling marine connectivity best practices. This working group helps to create a region-wide Coral Triangle Marine Protected Area System (CTMPAS) (figure 2) that is fully ecologically functional, including identifying and nominating prioritized, connected, resilient, and sustainably financed MPAs and MPA networks. The MPAs Working Group has held a number of regional exchanges for information sharing, produced best practice guidelines for MPA network design, established a common framework and action plan for the CT region, developed an MPA management effectiveness assessment tool, among many more accomplishments (CTI).  

Figure 2. The Coral Triangle region, with Marine Protected Areas outlined and shaded in red and coral reefs shown in purple (CTI).

Results 

As CTI-CFF moves into its second decade, recognition that continued support and commitment from Member Parties is paramount for continued cooperation and progress, especially with certain ongoing and intensifying pressures like climate change impacts and coastal development. Support from other governments, like the United States, and NGOs like World Wildlife Fund and The Nature Conservancy, aid in progressing the CTI-CFF mission. However it is recognized that much additional support from the international community will be required to affect real change (CTI).

One large area that CTI-CFF seeks to address currently and into the coming years, is decreasing knowledge gaps through education where possible, and continuing to build best-practice guidelines. To make knowledge, policies, and practices more visible, the Coral Triangle Atlas was established and continues to be built. The Atlas is an online GIS database, providing governments, NGOs and researchers with a view of spatial data at the regional scale, including data on fisheries, biodiversity, natural resources, and socioeconomics. While this is the first open-source resource of its kind in the region and its presence helps in planning and collaboration, there remain challenges in combining multiple and varied types of data from diverse sources consistently on a continuous basis (Coral Triangle Atlas). The CTI-CFF working groups continue to produce new guideline materials including infographics on seascape conservation, a CTMPAS Certification Process, and guidelines for sustainable marine tourism with pilot sites. 

References

Coral Triangle Atlas. http://ctatlas.coraltriangleinitiative.org/About/CTI.

Coral Triangle Initiative. https://www.coraltriangleinitiative.org/.

Coral Triangle Initiative. 2010. Designing and Operating MPA Networks and “Systems” in the

Coral Triangle Countries; A Regional Exchange and Workshop. https://www.coraltriangleinitiative.org/sites/default/files/resources/MPA%20Network%20REX-Summary_Aug30_10_1_.pdf. 

Green, A., White, A., Kilarski, S. 2013. Designing Marine Protected Area Networks to Achieve Fisheries, Biodiversity, and Climate Change Objectives in Tropical Ecosystems: A Practical Guide. Coral Triangle Initiative. https://www.coraltriangleinitiative.org/sites/default/files/resources/12_Designing%20MPA%20Networks_A%20Practitioner%20Guide.pdf. 

World Wildlife Fund (WWF). Coral Triangle. https://www.worldwildlife.org/places/coral-triangle.