Assessment of integrated coastal zone management : a case study in the Seribu islands, Indonesia

The sustainability of marine and coastal environments has received significant attention since the Earth Summit in 1992, where Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) was proposed as a framework for cooperation among decision makers and decisive action in the interests of better coastal management. Vulnerability assessment is one of the methods currently being used to measure the ocean and coastal sustainability in order to enable better evaluation and redesign of land-based development and policy-making. Because of different geological and geographical formations, the elements that comprise the vulnerability indicators are different from each other, and there are various vulnerability equations that have been used. At the present time, there are no fixed vulnerability indicators that can be applied universally in every country. The Seribu Islands, Indonesia, also known in English as the Thousand Islands, have been chosen as a study site for vulnerability assessment according to the basic principles of ICZM theory. The Seribu Islands region, consisting of 106 islands, is located to the north of Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia. The assessment focuses on spatial analysis using Geographic Information System (GIS) data on physical/biophysical change, and is carried out in conjunction with qualitative analysis of socio-economic and governance factors, including reviewing ocean and coastal policies in Indonesia. The history of spatial changes in the study area was crucial for identifying the vulnerability indicators and qualitatively assessing them in terms of socio-economic factors. Governance factors added valuable information for enhancing the accuracy and validity of the results. The results showed that the region possesses sustainability from a social and economic perspective; however, its environment is severely degraded. Urban pressures, over exploitations of fishery and pollutants from four major rivers in Daerah Khusus Ibu Kota Jakarta i.e. Special Capital Region of Jakarta, Banten Province and West Jawa Province have played a significant role in this environmental degradation. As a result, six islands from within the Seribu Islands region had been lost by 2012. The research also found that the policies designed to maintain the balance of social, economic and environmental impacts on the region have failed to protect the region from change. The ambiguity and powerlessness of law enforcement is another factor responsible for environmental damage in the region