A. Name of Proposed Project: DEVELOPMENT OF BELIZE S PROTECTED AREAS INFORMATION SYSTEM"

Transcription

1 A. Name of Proposed Project: DEVELOPMENT OF BELIZE S PROTECTED AREAS INFORMATION SYSTEM" B. Contact information of principal investigator: Name: Mr. Edgar Ek Place: Belmopan Country: Belize Telephone: (501) Fax: (501) lic@mnrei.gov.bz Web page: C. Contact information of responsible institution Institution name: Land and Surveys Department Place: Belmopan, Belize Contact Person: Mr. Edgar Ek Telephone: (501) Fax: (501) lic@mnrei.gov.bz Web page: D. Participating institution Name of Institution: Forest Department Place: Belmopan, Belize Contact Person: Mr. Wilber Sabido Telephone: Fax: fdsecretary@mnrei.gov.bz Name of Institution: Fisheries Department Place: Princess Margaret Drive, Belize City, Belize Contact Person: Mr. Isaias Majil Telephone: Fax: species@btl.net Name of Institution: National Institute of Culture and History Place: Museum Building, Belmopan, Belize Contact Person: Dr. Jaime Awe Telephone: Fax: Page 1 of 9

2 E. Project summary The primary goal of the Government of Belize is to achieve Sustainable Development goals more so the upcoming Millennium Development Goals (MDG). It is not surprising to understand that the underlying principle for the achievement of these goals is better and more informed decisions. Despite the recognition of the power of information as a medium to improve on all aspects of planning, management and policy decisions, there are still very limited resources allocated to development of information systems which in many instances is costly but indispensable for the achievement of the overall goals. In Belize, information systems relating to economic, social and demographic information has reached an acceptable maturity level of development. Yet, information systems related to the effective and efficient management and planning of natural resources and the environment are perhaps the least developed in the country. In this context, there are currently efforts to strengthen and develop a centralized, consolidated and automated information system through the implementation of the proposed National Environmental and Geomatics Information System (NEGIS) but this is still in its planning stage. One of the areas that have received much attention is the information system on Protected Areas. Despite ranking amongst the most developed information system, there is still tremendous work to undertake towards the development of a timely, accessible and scientifically accurate National Database on Protected Areas. As a result, this project seeks to strengthen the current Protected Areas Information System through the implementation of the following activities: close all data gaps by updating all information related to protected areas; consolidate, harmonize and standardize protected areas information on a single framework; validate all information; compile and digitize all legal information; design, implement and manage a database structure functional on the GIS platform; infrastructure development (hardware and software); and develop a website to disseminate information to all stakeholders. In summary, the overall aim is to develop an automated National Database for Protected Areas that is compatible with national and international standards and facilitate information sharing through the implementation of a web service. This will assist the Government of Belize to manage protected areas as well as track progress on conservation measures, in addition to satisfying national, bilateral, regional and global demands for information on protected areas. La meta fundamental del gobierno de Belice es alcanzar las metas de Desarollo Sostenibles aun más las metas de Desarrollo del Milenio (MDG por sus siglas en ίngles). No es sorprendente entender que el principio subyacente para el logro de estas metas es la toma de mejores decisiones. A pesar de el reconocimiento del valor de la información como medio para mejorar las decisiones en el ramo de planeamiento, el manejo y de legislaciones, hoy todavía hay recursos muy limitados asignados al desarrollo de los sistemas de información que en muchos casos estos son costoso pero indispensable para el logro de las metas ateriormente mencionadas. En Belice, los sistemas de información referente a la económica, asuntos sociales y demográfica ha alcanzado un nivel aceptable de madurez en su desarrollo. Sin embargo, los sistemas de información relacionados con el manejo y el planeamiento eficaz y eficiente de recursos naturales y el medio ambiente son quizás los menos desarollado en el país. En este contexto, en el pais hay actualmente esfuerzos para desarrollar un sistema de información centralizado, consolidado y automatizado con la propuesta del Sistema Nacional Ambiental y de Geografica (NEGIS por sus siglas en ίngles) pero éste todavía está en su etapa de planeamiento. Una de las áreas que han recibido mucha atención en el ramo de medio ambiente es el sistema de información de áreas protegidas. A pesar de efectuarse como uno de los sistemas de información mas desarrollada, todavía hay una enorme oportunidad de trabajo para emprender aun mas como la Page 2 of 9

3 base de Areas Pretegidas nacional que sea oportuna, accesible y con valores científicos altamente aceptables. Consecuentemente, este proyecto intenta consolidar en un solo sistema la información referente a areas protegidas con la puesta en práctica de las siguientes actividades: actualizar toda informacion relacionada a areas protegidas cerrando todo los vacios de información; consolidar, armonizar y estandarizar la información de áreas protegida en una estructura de información; validar toda la información; compilar para cerrar los vacios de datos y digitalizar la informacion de marco legal; diseñar, implementar y manejar una estructura de base de datos funcionales en la plataforma de Sistemas de Información Geografica (SIG); as tambien desarollar una infraestructura funcional (con su respectivos components de hardware y software); y el desarrollo de un portal web para la eficaz diseminacion de la información a nuestros clientes. En resumen, el objetivo primordial es desarrollar una base de datos nacional automatizada para las áreas protegidas que sea compatible con estándares nacionales e internacionales y facilitar el intercambio de información por medio de un servicio web. Esto asistirá al gobierno de Belice para manejar áreas protegidas así como monitorear el progreso de las medidas de conservación, además de satisfacer las demandas nacionales, bilaterales, regionales y globales sobre la información de áreas protegidas. Page 3 of 9

4 F. Project Description Belize is a small developing nation located on the far northeastern point of the Central American Isthmus. Despite its relatively small size of approximately 22,966 km 2 the country is blessed with an unquantifiable wealth of natural resources. The country has within its territorial waters the largest barrier reef system in the Western Hemisphere. Furthermore, the country has a rich diversity of flora and fauna for which 3,409 native species of plants, 163 terrestrial species of mammals, 571 species of birds, 121 species of reptiles, 42 species of amphibians and 634 species of invertebrates have been recorded (National Biodiversity Committee, 1998). This wealth of natural resources can be attributed to the country s commitment to natural resources conservation. In this context, the country currently has approximately 69% of its land mass as forested land with 79 legally declared protected areas, with the exception of private reserves which are only recognized by the Forest Department, covering 35% of the country s terrestrial and coastal habitats and 10% of the country s marine area (Lands and Surveys Department, 2006). Information is power! This has been recognized and widely accepted throughout the Government of Belize. In the past the Government dedicated tremendous efforts to build timely and reliable databases on areas of great interest such as economic, social and demographic information. Although great successes in these fields were achieved, the development of other information systems such as those relating to natural resources and the environment were given little importance. The reality on those days was different. At that time, economic development and population growth posed little threats to environmental degradation; in fact, much of the natural resources were still in almost a pristine state. However, in recent times, the situation has changed. The country is developing in a rather rapid manner and when coupled with growing global and transboudary environmental pressures are creating serious threats to local environmental conditions. Today, the Government of Belize has realized that this situation cannot continue on its current trend. There is a great need to develop a national information system that will assist in making better and more informed decisions in the environmental field in areas such as monitoring, assessment, planning, management and policies. In order to satisfy this great demand there is currently a proposal to establish a centralized, consolidated and automated information system through the implementation of the proposed National Environmental Geomatics System (NEGIS) that will provide all the necessary information to make better and more informed decisions. In theory NEGIS is a widely distributed information system that is interconnected through a web service to form a consolidated and automated system. However, NEGIS is still in its premature stage and exists as a proposal only. The design is geared towards the generation of information relating to natural resources and environmental information such as forestry, fisheries, water, waste, greenhouse gases, ozone depleting substances and many others but also considers economic, social, demographic and cultural information. An important component is the information system on protected areas as per the requirements of Goal 7 of the MDGs which calls to ensure environmental sustainability. As with the construction of most information systems there are too many difficulties faced; the protected areas one is not an exception. The legal jurisdiction for the declaration of protected areas in Belize lays on several legislations namely the National Parks System Act, Forest Act, Wildlife Protection Act, Fisheries Act, National Lands Act and the Crown Lands Act. The umbrella organizations mandated to manage these reserves are basically three: Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment, Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries and the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture. With the exception of Private Reserves which have private ownership, these reserves are either managed by Government department(s) within the Ministries or co-managed through partnerships with NGOs and CBOs. This condition results in information related to protected areas be scattered in several organizations. This circumstance is further complicated by the nature of data collection which is usually carried out using different methods and stored in different file formats. In exceptional cases data exists as hardcopy information only. In terms of spatial data, this is usually stored in different file format, coordinate system and projection. It, therefore, means that Page 4 of 9

5 there is not a coherent, standardize, organized and harmonized way on how data on the various protected areas are collected and stored. Recently, the Lands and Surveys Department through the Land Information Centre launched an ambitious mission to build a centralized, consolidated and updated system, using GIS as the platform, for protected areas information system. Presently, the Centre has the most complete information on protected areas with over 80 protected areas existing on the database for which all areas have been mapped and corresponding attribute tables containing name, designation, legal documentation and acreage, have been created. Nevertheless, there are enormous opportunities to further develop the information system that is currently being created. In this context, the Belize Protected Areas Information System project is envisaged to provide complete and updated geospatial information with the corresponding attributes that will be organized in a systematic and efficient manner-enriching the content of the current dataset. Furthermore, the project seeks to validate all information, develop metadata, put in place a functional infrastructure and make this information available to all stakeholders. Below is a concise description of the objectives of the project: 1. Build a centralized, consolidated and automated information system on protected areas; 2. Address the issue of standardization and harmonization; 3. Close all data gaps through intensive research; 4. Collect information relating to management zones and plans; 5. Map all data that is collected through this process; 6. Conduct field assessments to ensure the integrity of the data; 7. Further develop the attribute information to comply with national and international standards. This following will be fields to be considered (consistent with IABIN and WCMC requirements): Name, National Designation, Status, Year first Declared, IUCN Category, Legislation, Statutory Instrument Number, S.I. Year, Documented Area, GIS Area, Main Habitat and Governance Type and Management. Other fields will be considered as data becomes available; 8. Develop a historic trend of Protected Areas in Belize; 9. Digitize and store in a systematic manner all legal decree (Statutory Instruments); 10. Create metadata for all spatial information; 11. Design and implement a web site to disseminate protected areas information in Belize through a consultancy or partnership with other institutions. This will also involve training on maintenance of the system; 12. Explore the possibility of creating an automated web service to update information to regional and global initiatives such as IABIN and UNEP-WCMC respectively; otherwise a strategy will be developed to ensure support for these initiatives. 13. Strengthen partnership, collaboration and coordination amongst all institutions involved. At the very local level, the Lands and Surveys Department is driving this initiative to facilitate the process of land management in Belize, ensuring the integrity of protected areas. At another level, the Department wants to provide its sister departments such as the Forest Department and the Department of the Environment with a set of timely, upto date and accurate information to facilitate better decisions at all levels. At the intermediate level, the Department envisions providing support to other Government departments outside the umbrella institution, i.e. the Ministry of Fisheries and Agriculture, with the tools necessary to successfully implement the goals mandated to them. At the last level, the department wants to provide NGOs, CBOs, private institutions and the Belizean public with much needed decision tools. The overall goal is to monitor progress and achieve the much desired Sustainable Development goals and Goal 7 of the Millennium Development Goals. On a wider perspective the Department hopes to facilitate a medium through which regional and international institutions will have access to updated information on protected areas of Belize. This information will comply with national and international standards. Page 5 of 9

6 User communities, benefiting from the project outcomes 1. People of Belize; 2. Government of Belize; 3. The Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment ( Lands and Surveys Department, Forest Department, Department of Environment and Geology and Petroleum Department); 4. The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (Fisheries Department and Agriculture Department); 5. Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture (National Institute of Culture and History); 6. Educational Organizations (University of Belize and Galen University amongst others); 7. People in Earth; 8. Inter-American Biodiversity Information Network (IABIN); 9. UNEP-WCMC; 10. National and International funding agencies (Protected Areas Conservation Trust, UNDP, UNEP); 11. Central American Commission on Environment and Development; 12. Multilateral Agencies for bi-technical cooperation; 13. Scientific and research community; 14. Non-governmental Organizations, Community Based Organizations and Private Institutions; 15. Conservation groups and many other interested parties. Continuity in data updating after the end of the project Once the database is designed appropriately with all the required fields, the LIC can easily continue to update required information whenever these are legally declared through Statutory Instruments. The Lands and Surveys Department will be the responsible institution for the maintenance of the database and well as official information relating to protected areas. The Department is committed to ensure the sustainability of the project. The department has the technical capacity to build the database on the GIS platform and through the project it will be equipped with the necessary skills to maintain the system especially the website. Compliance with the PATN/IABIN and UNEP-WCMC standards The project will first and foremost satisfy the national need for information using the standards and file formats already developed. However, the Department will ensure to satisfy all data needs as required by the PATN/IABIN as well as the UNDP-WCMC. As mentioned above, the fields being considered are indeed those of the PATN/IABIN and UNEP-WCMC. All metadata will be in conformity of FDGC/ISO standards for metadata which are the standards adopted by the country. Expertise in informatics and Protected Areas data management The Land Information Centre of the Lands and Surveys Department is by default the national institution for GIS, remote sensing and environmental information management. The Centre has the technical expertise to develop the Protected Areas Information System. The weak area is the development of the web service. The Centre envisions to hire a consultant to successfully accomplish this task or through partnership with other institutions that have the expertise in the field. Relationship with the other institutions that manage protected areas information In recent times, the Centre has built strong partnership and collaboration with other institutions that manage protected areas in Belize especially Forest Department and the Fisheries Department. These institutions acknowledge the role of the LIC and see the Centre as the clearinghouse for environmental information, including protected areas. In fact, some such as the Fisheries Department have approached the LIC for the development of the boundary descriptions of the marine protected areas. Page 6 of 9

7 Relationship with the IABIN focal point/ Activities The Land Information Center, Lands and Surveys Department is the IABIN focal point in Belize. Measures to ensure data quality Data used will all be obtained from the official legal decree (Statutory Instruments) published by the Government of Belize, thus ensuring that the official data are being incorporated. A component of the project also entails field verifications to ensure the integrity of the data. Citations Lands and Surveys Department, 2006, Our Environment in Figures Belize 2006, Government of Belize National Biodiversity Committee, 1998, The Belize Biodiversity Strategy, BRC Printing. Calendar of Activities 1. Database design: definition of fields ACTIVITIES 2. Data collection to close data gaps, develop historic trends, management plans and other relevant information 3. Digitization of legal decree MONTHS Field assessment to ensure data integrity 5. Mapping of protected areas boundaries and database creation 6. Interim report: technical and financial report 7. Metadata creation 8. Infrastructure and development of web site/service and personnel training 9. Update IABIN/UNEP-WCMC Protected Areas database 10. Strengthen partnership, coordination and collaboration with stakeholders 11. Final technical and financial report Page 7 of 9

8 Project Budget Activity Activity IABIN Matching funding Total 1 Database design: definition of fields $0.00 $1, $1, Data collection to close data gaps, develop historic trends, management plans and other relevant information $2, $1, $3, Digitization of legal decree $ $ $1, Mapping of protected areas boundaries Field assessment to ensure data integrity Interim report: technical and financial report $ $1, $2, $1, $1, $2, $0.00 $500 $ Metadata creation $ $1, $2, Development of web site/service and maintenance $3, $5, $8, Purchase of hardware and software $2,800 $0.00 $ Final technical and financial report $0.00 $ $ Total Total $10, $13,800 $23,800 Page 8 of 9

9 Performance and Impact Indicators Quantifiable performance indicators. Activities Month 2 Month 3 Month 4 Month 5 Digitize 130 Protected Areas records 30 records digitized in 2 months Digitize 130 Protected Areas Geospatial information (shape files) Create metadata for PA 100 records digitized in 2 months (50%) 100 metadata created (50%) 100 PA shape files generated 30 metadata created 30 PA shape files generated 130 PA records digitized in 6 months (100%) 130 PA shape files generated 130 metadata created Field accuracy assessment Field work carried 130 boundaries assessed Design and develop website Set up a PA Web server Website up and running PA Web Server up and running Impact and result indicators Objectives Belize Protected Areas Information System Impact indicators Result Indicators Data is available to the public through the LIC, IABIN portal, the PATN portal. Better and more informed decisions Document information on PA Metadata creation Metadata for all PA Develop a website for information dissemination Stakeholders have access to PA infromation Better and more informed decisions Develop technical capacity to maintain the PA information system Strengthen coordination and collaboration amongst institutions Database updated Increased expertise Database updated Database updated Build and make available official correct data to assist in decision making for Biodiversity use and conservation. Decision making based on official and quality information increases. An up to date database, based on accurate and recent information Page 9 of 9