Utilizing research for coastal zone management.
1991
Wickremeratne H.J.M.
Inadequacy of the database is a common dilemma that faces resource managers all over the world. The nonavailability of information on the quantitative and qualitative changes in resources over a number of years makes it difficult for resource managers to draw correlations between causes and effects. Hence, it limits their ability to propose management policies and guidelines that impinge on established practices. This is further aggravated by the different approaches that managers and researchers use in acquiring information on coastal resources. Researchers generally want to acquire in-depth information on all elements of a resource and its linkages; managers focus on information that is relevant in addressing management issues. The researchers' approach results in the preparation of detailed inventories that the manager has neither the time nor the knowledge to convert to information that will be relevant for management purposes. The manager's inability to reach the researcher--to define clearly the issues that he wishes to address and the desired management objectives--often results in wasted effort. In preparing the coastal zone management plan for Sri Lanka, the loss and degradation of natural coastal habitats should be addressed. Because there is a dearth of information on these habitats, management issues and objectives are difficult to identify. This paper attempts to document the approaches taken by the coastal zone managers in Sri Lanka to overcome this problem and to present how a productive relationship could be established with researchers to generate information that will be useful in formulating management strategies.
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