Lesson 1 - Managing the coastal zone

Learning objectives:

- to be able to define integrated coastal zone management (ICZM)

- to be able to give examples of the pressures on the Mediterranean cosstal area

- to know how the Mediterranean coastal area is being managed (the Blue Plan)

- to practice drawing and interpreting line graphs

You need to learn two key definitons for this part of the course:

Integrated management: management of the whole of an area or a system rather than just its individual parts

Sustainable management: management that meets the needs of the present generation while preserving an area for future generations

The idea of Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) was first introduced by the European Union in 1996, following dicussions at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992. Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) recognises that the coastal environment is more than just the thin strip where the land meets the sea. ICZM is about manging the whole of the coastal area over a long period of time. The key principles behind ICZM are:

- it is a long-term approach involving the sustainable and equitable use of resources (natural, cultural and economic)

- it brings together all the various organisations who have responsiblity for managing the coastal area

- it recognises not only the need to protect the coast but also the importance of recreation and business to coastal settlements

Mediterranean Sea - managing a coast using ICZM

Our case study for this part of the course is the Mediterranean Sea. The Mediterranean Sea covers about 2.5 million square kilometres. It is connected to the Altantic Ocean by the Strait of Gibraltar on the west and to the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea by the Dardanelles and the Bosporus on the east. The man-made Suez Canal connects the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea. The Mediterranean coastal area includes 21 countries from 3 continents:

Europe: Spain, France, Monaco, mItaly, Malta, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania, Greece and Turkey*

Asia: Turkey*, Cyprus, Syria, Lebanon, Israel and Egypt*

Africa: Egypt*, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco

*Egypt and Turkey are transcontinental countries

and has a population of over 300 million people. The coastline is over 45,000 kilometres long and there are 600 cities along it, with more tham 1000 ports and marinas. There are hundreds of indsutrial areas and many power stations in the coastal strip. Tourism is also a huge employer in this area, with tourist numbers expected to double between the years 2000 and 2030.

Useful weblinks

The UK's policy statement about ICZM in England (a very lengthy document - a link for teachers rather than students to follow!) 

Lesson 2 - Planning for rising sea levels

Learning objectives:

- to know how climate change will affect coastal areas

- to recognise that we need to plan for rising sea levels

- to develop a case study of the Response Project around Ancona in Italy

Useful weblinks