Abstract

Marine Protected Areas are becoming a method of choice for managing the living marine resources of coastal marine ecosystems in the Caribbean. Their popularity stems in part from the assumption that MPAs reconcile the competing needs of stakeholders to optimize extractive and non-extractive resource usage. Typically the greatest conflict in management exists between the need to sustain or increase fishery yields, and the need to preserve habitat and species diversity in shallow reef and near shore environments (in part for sustained tourism, and in part for long term ecological survival). No evidence is available to demonstrate that MPAs preserve marine biodiversity: but common sense suggests they will help do so. There is unequivocal evidence that MPAs of adequate size and protection do conserve and even enhance fish biomass on Caribbean coral reefs. No adequate time series exist to demonstrate that MPAs sustain or increase production in characteristic near shore fisheries, although theory predicts that spill over and reproductive export may do so. Results from empirical studies of reef fish movement demonstrate that spill over will rarely be sufficient to offset the immediate loss of harvest suffered by a fishery after MPA creation. The delay before putative yield enhancement resulting from increased recruitment exceeds two years in reef fish communities. Artisanal fishers often lack the reserve capital required to absorb the accompanying loss of income, and increase effort to maintain catches. This response can further delay the development of the MPA. Both the biology and economics of Caribbean reef fisheries create a mismatch of investment and benefit that works against joint optimization of biodiversity preservation and resource conservation. External compensation for lost income during the development of MPAs may be required to reconcile management goals.

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