A map of protected marine zones that are being established around the Caribbean island of Barbuda. Credit Waitt Institute

We had not expected to see Dot Earth again, but all of a sudden, thanks again for the surprise Mr. Revkin:

A Small Island Takes a Big Step on Ocean Conservation

By ANDREW C. REVKIN

Marine life in the Caribbean has been badly hurt in recent decades by everything from an introduced pathogen that killed off reef-grooming sea urchins to more familiar insults like overfishing and impacts of tourism and coastal development.

Some small island states are now trying to restore once-rich ecosystems while sustaining their economies. A case in point is Barbuda, population 1,600 or so, where the governing council on Aug. 12 passed a suite of regulations restricting activities on a third of the island’s waters. The regulations and reef “zoning,” in essence, came about after months of discussions involving fishing communities, marine biologists and other interested parties, facilitated by the Waitt Institute, a nonprofit conservation organization.

Of course, it’ll take time to see if the ambitious marine zoning plan works as intended. Local fishermen are seeking help finding new sources of income, according to the Antigua Observer.

But the process, which took nearly two years of study and meetings, provides a promising template not only for other island communities but also for any region where environmental restoration efforts have to mesh with local economic concerns.

The best way to avoid resistance is to involve affected communities from the start. The initiative brings to mind the Cheonggyecheon stream restoration project in the heart of Seoul that I wrote about in 2009. The mayor’s team held hundreds of meetings with merchants and residents to work out issues and explain benefits.

Here’s a piece describing Barbuda’s “Blue Halo” initiative, written by Arthur Nibbs, the chairman of the Barbuda Council and minister of fisheries of Antigua and Barbuda, and Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, a marine biologist and the Waitt Institute executive director (and National Geographic blogger)…

Read the whole post here.