Local Participation Towards Marine Conservation in Loreto Bay National Park, Mexico

Ten years after being declared a Marine Protected Area (MPA), the fish populations in Loreto Bay National Park (LBNP) are declining. The implementation of No-Take Zones (NTZs) was proposed as a partial solution to the declines of fish stocks and marine biodiversity. However, in spite their benefits; NTZs are likely to be opposed by some stakeholders, including fishers, as they restrict access to fishing grounds. Stakeholder participation and commitment to establish NTZs inside the LBNP is necessary, since they are the users most affected by this management tool. To achieve conservation goals and economic growth, a basic prerequisite in MPA management is to promote stakeholder participation in decision-making. The objective of this paper is to design a survey to be used as a decision-making tool to evaluate different alternatives for the location of NTZs within fishing grounds of the LBNP. The purpose is to provide qualitative and spatial information about the uses of the LBNP by stakeholders and their willingness to accept certain areas as NTZs. In addition, the participatory survey may help develop consensus about how the local community can or should utilize the LBNP environment and its resources