TIDE is proud to be featured in the latest edition of MPA (Marine Protected Area) News. The table of contents and the article featuring TIDE are included below.  For the full issue of MPA News, please use the following link.

MPA NEWS, Vol. 11, No. 5 (March-April 2010) (pdf)

Table of Contents

MPA Enforcement: How Practitioners Are Developing New Tools, Strategies, and Partnerships

Managing a Changing Set of Enforcement Challenges: Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park, Philippines

Chagos: Background on a Disputed Archipelago and Efforts to Designate its Waters as a Reserve

Letter to the Editor: Reserve Effects

Notes & News: Pacific tuna closures – Peru – Baltic – Sargasso Sea – High seas closures – US and France – Disney movie – Latin America – Climate change – Economics of MPAs – Reef resilience – Protected area categories – Great Barrier Reef lessons – Underwater sculptures

Science spotlight: Global study shows MPAs help to stop coral loss

* Advice on building, managing ranger stations *

In Belize, an NGO called the Toledo Institute for Development and Environment (TIDE) was founded in 1997 to meet the growing environmental and development needs of the Toledo District.  Among its programs, TIDE assists the Belizean government in planning and managing protected areas, including co-managing the Port Honduras Marine Reserve and the Paynes Creek National Park.  TIDE also manages more than 20,000 acres of private protected lands.  The organization has built a ranger station in each protected area to enforce regulations.  Celia Mahung, executive director of TIDE, was asked for advice on planning and managing such facilities.

“Ranger stations should be sited in a location that is central to the area under management,” says Mahung.  Her organization’s Port Honduras Marine Reserve is multiple-use with no-take zones, and the ranger station is located on a small island (Abalone Caye) near the no-take zones.  “This saves costs on fuel for patrols,” says Mahung.

A station on an island presents unique challenges that must be considered in planning, she notes.  Moving construction materials and workers to the site is an increased cost compared to a land-based station.  Maintenance of a station exposed to the weather on a small caye also includes costs of planning a trip to town by boat to pick up needed materials and a worker, then returning the worker to town afterward.

“The station must be designed and built with prevailing weather conditions in mind to result in a durable and sturdy building,” says Mahung.  “The use of low-energy and alternative sources of energy including solar and wind is an advantage although staff should be trained in basic maintenance activities.  A composting toilet is an asset to any station.”  She says TIDE is always reviewing current conditions and resources for opportunities to make its stations more effective.

Mahung emphasizes the need for well-trained rangers to operate the stations.

“TIDE is proud of its dedicated staff,” she says.  The rangers work on a two-weeks-on/one-week-off schedule and live at the ranger station during the two weeks of work.  “With this as the situation, the station must be seen not only as the center of management for the reserve but also as a home with a suitable kitchen and comfortable sleeping areas,” she says.

TIDE has hired women as park rangers, and they perform the same duties as males.  Some challenges have been encountered as staffers confront traditional stereotypes of male and female roles.  “We have learned that the day-to-day interaction creates dynamics that require additional training in human relations skills and sensitivity to overcome stereotypes,” says Mahung.

TIDE views education in general as critical to the success of enforcing the MPA’s regulations.  The organization offers an abundance of public environmental education programs and also views each ranger as a frontline educator.  “Compliance is improved as people accept the concept [of conservation] and develop stewardship for the protected areas,” says Mahung.  “TIDE utilizes a system that relies on information sharing and warnings.  To be stopped by a TIDE ranger on patrol is to receive information and education on the protected area and the importance of compliance with regulations.”