somalia annex iv. areas of concern

7/28/2019 Somalia Annex IV. Areas of Concern

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SOMALIAANNEXIV.AREASOFCONCERNFromversion:Somalia_MEDA_20100825_v4

2.BIOPHYSICALENVIRONMENT

2.1Description

of

the

coast

and

distinctive

features

The Somali Government does not have the capacity to control foreign incursions into the

exclusive economic zone (EEZ)of the Somaliwaters,which leaves thedooropen for foreign

vesselstoexploittheseresources.Atthesametime,thecompletelackofanyregulationsisalso

anotherconcern.Theseproblemsofunsustainableexploitationareexpected topersist in the

future due to a lack of or inadequate capacity for effectivemanagement and surveillance,

including failures inaddressing illegal fishingand conducting stockassessments,coupledwith

inadequateknowledgeandinformation.

2.2Generaldescriptionoftheclimate

Unpredictable

rainfall

patterns

resulting

in

severe

droughts

and

floods

2.3Marineandcoastalgeologyandgeomorphology

Coastalerosion

Mostof theSomali coastlinehasbeen seriouslyaffectedby coastalerosion,especially in the

easternregions,alsoinsouthernparts.Coastalerosionisamajorenvironmentalconcernalong

the East African coast and leads to shifting coastal features such as dunes, beaches and

shoreline.

OilExploitation

Somaliahasbeensparselyexploredandseveralareaswithworldclasspotential remain tobe

tested.

Just

prior

to

the

onset

of

the

civil

war

in

December

of

1990,

several

concessions

were

heldbymajorinternationalpetroleumcompaniesandatleastthreekeywellswerescheduledto

bedrilled.Inadditiongiantoilcompaniesbecameinterestedondifferentsedimentarybasinsof

Somalia.

2.4Freshwaterresourcesanddrainage,includingrivers,estuaries,

deltasandcoastallakes

Salinisation isa seriousenvironmentalproblem related to irrigation in the river. Ithasahigh

salinecontentevenduringhighflows(Markakis1998).

Inbothriverbasins,Somaliaisthedownstreamriparian,whichistheleastfavorablepositionto

bein

hydro

political

terms,

as

the

upstream

basin

country,

Ethiopia,

can

theoretically

divert

and

pollutethewaterintherivers.

Peoplearestartingtoliveintraditionalfloodplaneareasaspopulationpressureincreases;this

increasesthepotentialforlossoflifeandpropertyintheeventofaflood(FAOSWALIM2009).

Themajorfloodchannelsusedtobemaintainedbythegovernmentbuthavefallenintodirepair

since thecivilwar.Thishas increased theeffectsof floods in the lowerandMiddleShabeelle


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areasespecially(FAOSWALIM2009).

Riverembankmentsarebeingused foragriculturewhichcauses flooding inperiodswhen the

riversarestillbelowhistoricalfloodinglevelsstages(FAOSWALIM2009).

2.5

Physical

Oceanography

2.5.1Currents(Coastalhydrodynamicsandoffshorecurrentsystems)

2.5.2Tidalregimeandwaves

The country lacks a disaster management plan for coping with extreme storm surges and

tsunamis.

With urbanmigration increasing (see section 3.1), the number of people along the coast in

major cities is increasing. This puts a high number of people at risk from storm surge and

tsunamis.

2.5.3

Sea

level

change

Reductionincoastalfisheriesproduction

Swampingofcoralreefs

Saltwaterintrusionandflooding

Displacementofcoastalpopulations

Lossofcoastalinfrastructure

2.5.4Oceantemperature

Coralbleaching

2.5.5Salinitypatterns

2.5.6Oceanatmosphereinteraction

Globalwarmingmaycauseextremeeventstooccurduetothedynamicsofthesecouplings.

Oceanacidificationmayhappenduetoclimatechangeanditseffectsontheoceancurrents.

2.6ChemicalandBiologicalOceanography

2.6.1Nutrients

Increasednutrientsleadingtooceanacidificationduetohighlevelsofcoastalpollution

Siltationofestuariesandmangrovesisleadingtoreductioninthenutrientsavailableformarine

species.

2.6.2Persistentorganic/inorganicpollutants

Destructionofturtlenestingbeachesthroughpollutionandplasticwaste

Increasing levels of fertilizers used along river courses resulting in eutrophication of lower

reachesandexcessnutrientsbeingreleasedintotheoceans

Pollutantsmaydestroysensitiveecosystemssuchascoralreefs,mangrovesandseagrassbeds.


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2.6.3Primaryproduction

1)HarmfulAlgalBlooms(HAB):

In January,2002, aHAB along the EastAfrican coast fromMogadishu in Somalia to Lamu in

northern Kenya, associatedwith the strong,upwellingof the Somali current and anunusual

strongNEwind(force56)thatmayhaveblownitonshore.Thisbloomlastedfor10days,with

extensivefish

mortalities

during

the

first

three

days,

and

numerous

fish

and

other

marine

animals,suchasturtlesbeingwasheduponthebeachesorfoundfloatingontheoceansurface.

However, consumption of and trade in fish from beacheswere banned, aswell as, trade in

shellfish for the duration of the red tides, although Somali people do no eat shellfishes.

However,therewerenohumanfatalitiesbutsomecasesofeyeirritationsandheadaches.The

economy, however, was seriously affected as local fishing communities are almost entirely

dependentonfisheries.Accordingto laboratoryanalysis inNairobi,Kenyaand inSouthAfrica,

both identifiedGymnodiniumasamajorcomponentofthebloom,andsatellite imaginary for

the period confirmed an increase level of chlorophyll in the area. Nevertheless, the exact

reasonsforthebloomremainunclear(Hansenetal.2001).2.7

Coastal

zone

and

continental

shelf

2.7.1Descriptionandextentofcoastalandmarinehabitats

Bleaching

The northern coast east of Berbera highlighted extensive coral bleaching, with some reefs

suffering almost totalmortality (Schleyer andBaldwin1999).TheRed Sea coral reefsoff the

coastsofDjibouti,EritreaandSomalia,however,arereportedlyingood,oftenpristinecondition

with3050percent livecoralcoverandtherichestdiversityofcoralandotherreefspecies in

theentire IndianOcean (PilcherandAlsuhaibany2000).SouthernSomaliaalsohasnumerous

smallislandsnorthoftheKenyanborder.Coralbleachinghashadasignificantimpactonmany

ofthe

LMEs

coral

reefs,

especially

during

the

1998

El

Nio.

Acidification

Increasingamountsofcarbondioxidefromhumanactivitiesthat isenteringtheoceansviathe

atmosphere sinceabout1750 is increasing theacidityandcausedapHdecreaseof0.1units.

Increasing atmospheric CO2 concentrations are causing further acidification and the average

ocean surface pH is about 8.1. Projections suggest a further acidification over this century,

leadingtoareductioninaverageglobalsurfaceoceanpHofbetween0.14and0.35units(IPCC

2001).

Coralmining

Limestone(coralreef)miningexistsmainlyonsoutherntownssuchasMarkaandBarawe.The

community in these two townsmine limestoneon the shore for theuse forhousebuilding.

Limemaking is also,used forwhitewashingandhousedecoration.Thisactivityofmining for

limestonerenderscoastalinundation,sedimentationanderosion.

Sandmining

It isverypopular inallcoastal townsand fishingvillages inSomalia. It ismixedwithcement,

coastalsoilandgravel tomakebricks.Thisdestabilizes thecoastalsanddunes,whichalready

causedseverecoastalerosion.


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Urbanexpansion

Somanywardisplacedsettlersbuiltnewhouses,hospitals,telecommunicationsystems,schools

andallotherfacilitiesessentialfortheirlivesalongthecoastalareas.Theexpansionofthecities

increasesgarbagedumpingontheseashore.Duetolackofenvironmentalgovernance,almost

allthecoastalcitiesandtownsusethebeachesasrubbishdumpingsite.Becauseofthat,alotof

rubbish accumulated on the beaches as a sediment. All sorts of runoffs such as animal and

humanwastes, fertilizers and other degrading elements inflict damage towater quality and

healthofecosystemsingeneral.

Nutrientloading

Humanactivitiesrelatedto foodandenergyproductionhavegreatly increasedtheamountof

nutrient pollution entering the Somali current Large Marine Ecosystem which causes

eutrophication of coastalwaters and degradation of fisheries habitats.When phytoplankton

bloomsdieandsinkdecompositionofthebiomassconsumesandmaydepletedissolvedoxygen

inthebottomwaterresultinginhypoxicordeadzones.

2.7.2Productivity

of

the

coastal

zone

(corals,

mangroves,

seagrass

beds)

Mining,pollutionandtheexploitationofreef fishesandotherorganisms forfoodandornamentaltrade,tourismandsiltationcausesdegradationofcoralreefs

Overfishinganddestructivefishingpractices Coralbleaching Sedimentation Thesystematicremovalofmangrovesforfuelandconstructionpurposes Conversionofmangroves for agricultural, industrial and residentialuses and salt and

limeproduction, aswell asoverharvestingofmangrovewood forbuilding, charcoal,

firewoodandtradepurposes

Destructionofmangroveforestsisalsoleadingtoheavyoffshoresiltationandreductioninnutrientsforoffshorespecieswithconcomitantreductioninfishcatches

Dragnetsandpollutionthreatenseagrassbeds Reducedfreshwateroutputsduetomining,dammingandirrigation Sealevelrisecouldcausefloodingofestuaries,seagrassbedsandmangroves Increasingcoastalpopulationsandinadequatemonitoring2.9Macrofauna(stateofbiologicalknowledge)

2.9.2Fishandfishresources

Theproblem

of

Illegal,

Unregulated

and

Unreported

(IUU)

fishing

is

particularly

acute

in

Somalia,

largely asa resultof civilwarsand the lackofa functioning government for the lastdecade

(GelchuandPauly2007).

Foreignfishingfleetsoftenfishcloseinshoreandinterferewithartisanalfleetscausingconflicts

(FAO2005).

Overharvesting: there is ineffective governance in this sector due to the lack of a central


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government.

Destructive fishing practices also pose a threat to coastal fisheries and coral reefs. In areas

aroundcoralreefs,unsustainableexploitationisrelatedtoincreasingfishingeffortandtheuse

ofdestructivegear(McClanahan1996,Oburaetal.2000).Theuseofdynamite,pullseinenets,poisons and selective fishing on certain species andjuveniles arewidespread in the region

(UNEP/GEF2002).

Offshore trawling grounds, especially those targeting prawns, are showing signs of

overexploitationwithexcessivebycatchanddiscards.Asignificantfractionofshrimpbycatchis

composedofjuvenile fishandonaverage,only32%ofthebycatch isretained,withadiscard

rateofupto1.8tonespertrawlerperday(KMFRI2003).

Purseseinesyieldahighbycatchofcetaceansandsharkgillnetsalsocatchnontargetspecies

such as turtles, dugong, dolphins and whales (Van der Elst and Salm 1998, Pilcher and

Alsuhaibany 2000). The by catch of shark gill nets in Somalia also includes sawfish (Pristismicrodonan),which areof global concern as theyhavebeenoverexploitedworldwide (IUCN

1997).

Exotics:seesection2.9.6

Pollution:seesection2.6.2

2.9.4Reptiles

Opportunisticharvestingofgreenturtles

Incidentalgillnetcapture

Degradationofnestingbeachesthroughpollutionandotherhumanactivities

2.9.5Birds

Seabirdsareoftencaughtasbycatchinfisheries

Habitatsofendangeredspeciesarebeingdestroyed

2.10Longtermpredictedatmosphericchanges

lackofknowledge

poormodels

dataavailability

coefficientofvariation

3.HUMANENVIRONMENT

3.1Coastalandislandpopulationscurrentstatusandtrends

Increasingpressuresontownsleadstopoorhealth,degradationofsurroundingresources.

Infrastructurecannotcopewiththeratesofurbanexpansion


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3.2Sitesofreligiousorculturalsignificance

Destructionofmuseumsandlootingduringthewar

Looting,sellingofartifactsandillegaldiggingstofundwarparties

3.3Humanhealth

Lackofhumanresourcecapacityisamajorprobleminexistinghospitals.

Accesstohospitals,schoolsandotherhealthservicesislimitedasaresultmortalitiesratesare

highandlifeexpectancyislow.

Literacylevelsarestilllowduetoloweducationlevels.

Genderdisparitiesstillexistintheeducationsystem.

Thereislimitedaccesstocleanwaterfordrinkingandcooking.

PrevalenceofHIV/AIDS,choleraanddiarrheaishigh.

Foodsecurityislowduetoerraticclimateconditionsandpoliticalinstability.

3.4Infrastructure

Thenew

wireless

technologies

are

based

on

costly

satellite

networks

Someareasarestilllackingelectricity,meaningthatinternetcannotbeusedhere.

Theremainingpoliticalinstabilityintheregionhampersdevelopmentandmaintenance.

4.COASTALLIVELIHOODSSmallScaleFisheries

Weaknesses:

Noeffectivegovernmentandfisheriesmanagementinstitutionalstructures Nomanagementcapability; Noimplementationoffisheriespolicy; Noenforcementcapabilities; Nostructurestoenablesmallscalefisherstoinformpolicydevelopment; Isolationofindividualfishingcommunities; Nohistoricalfisheriesdata; Verylimitedandlocalizedcurrentfisheriesdatacollection; Very limitedmarketingcapabilities verypoor roadsvery little infrastructureand few

airports;

Verylimitedstockstatusinformation; Fishinggearveryold,unsafe,ornotfunctional; Problematicalsupplyandservicingofallfishinggearandequipment; Noboatrepairmaterials,toolsorfacilities; Limitedunderstandingofresourceuse,processingandmarketing issuesbyfishersand

traders;

Greatpovertythatmakessustainableuseissuesirrelevant; Piracyactivities; Land based security issues NGOs and foreign aid unwilling to commit staff and

resources;


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Very large range of makes and models of fishing gear but particularly inboard andoutboardengines;

Limitedshelteredvessel launchsitesandnovessel launch/retrieval facilities.Fewsafeanchorages;

Mostartisanalfishingvesselsunderpowered; Noscientific informationavailable Destructionofarchivesand librariesmuseumsand

universitiesnodocumentsexist,nobaselineinformation,noresearchnoguidelines;

Verylimitedcommunicationfacilitiesandaccesstoalltypesofinformation.Threats:

Industrialanddomesticpollutionofmarineenvironmentinmajorcentresoil,chemicals,wasteproductsandeffluents,sewage,ballastwaters,fuels

Pollutionatallfishingvillagesoffalandwastedumpedintothesea Probableoverexploitationofmost fisheries sectors inshore andoffshore: sharks and

demersalsectorsparticularlyvulnerable

Competitionwithforeignindustrialfisheries Illegalunregulatedunreported(IUU)fishingbymanyhundredsofforeignvessels ExploitationofanddamagetoinshoreresourcesbyIUUfishingsector Nomonitoring,controlandsurveillanceoffishingfleets Widespreaduseofgillnets(driftandbottomset)inmostfisheriessectors Lack of functional government and institutional structures difficult to develop and

implementfisheriespolicyandratifyconventions

Possibledumpingoftoxicwastesinshallowcoastalwaters. BeachsandminingatBerbera,saltminingatHaafun,limestoneminingatMogadishu Catchment degradation and poor agricultural practices in the Juba area lead to

enrichmentandsiltationandconsequentcoastalimpacts.

Piracy Internalsecurity

Tourism

Weaknesses

Verylimitedtourisminstitutionalcapacity Limitedfollowthroughoftourismpolicy No effective government and institutional structures conducive to tourism

development.

Cultureofviolenceandconflict Tourismproductlacks(positive)uniquesellingpoints. Verylimitedtourismmarketingcapabilities. International aid sector currently unwilling to commit resources and personnel to

developingtourisminfrastructure.

Limitedcoastaltourismactivities. Limitedcommunicationinfrastructure

Threats


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Cultureofpovertyassociatedwithsubcultureofcrime. Limitedparticipatoryinputsfromtourismoperatorsinpolicydevelopment. Remainingisolatedforextensiveperiodfrominternationaltourismmarkets. Financial sustainability of accommodation sector, ultimately bottoming out due to

erraticandlowtouristvolumes.

Extensive period of being perceived by the international market as a negativedestination.

Reputationofadestinationusedfordumpingoftoxicwastesincoastalenvironment. Overexploitationofmarineresourcestypicallyusedfortouristcuisinecrayfish,etc. Destinationassociatedwithpiracy. Noprovisionofguaranteedsecurityforanyforeigner. Destinationknownforillegalweaponsmarket.

4.4AgricultureandForestry

Weaknesses

Longhistoryof conflict and continuing instability countrywide combinewith climaticuncertaintyandvariability,includingpropensitytorecurrentdrought,tolimitscopefor

familiestodevelopandsustaintheirlivelihoods

Threats

Continuing conflict and insecurity in central and southern Somalia, including fromAlQaeda presence in the country, suggest that any project or foreignintervention

successeswillbeverylimiteduntilthingssettledown

Illegal offshore fishing and piracy in Somali coastal waters are also a problem forstabilityandgoodgovernanceofthemarineenvironment

4.5EnergyWeaknesses

Insecurityandrecurrentarmedconflicts FailedStateandrampantrivalriesamonggovernancebodies,ateverylevel Countryseconomymostlyinformal,unabletocontributetoStatebuilding Piracyasprinciplecoastalindustry LackofbasicinfrastructuresinmostoftheCountry

Threats

Developmentofoiloperations(drilling,exploitation,transport,processing,storageetc)inaninsecureenvironmentincreasesaccidentsandoilspillrisks.

Involvementofprivatecompaniesfromemergingcountriesarenotalwaysrespectfulofenvironmentalandsocialregulations.


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4.6PortsandCoastalTransportWeaknesses

Absenceofgovernment,lawandorder. PirateactivitiesinSomaliandadjacentwaters. Lowlevelsofeconomicactivity. Aridclimaticconditions

Threats

Continuedmarginalisationduetoviolenceandcorruption

4.7CoastalMiningWeaknesses

Devastatedinfrastructureasaresultofprolongedcivilwar Piracyasprinciplecoastalindustry Noenvironmentauthority Nocoastalmanagementzone

Threats

Ongoingcivilwar

6.PLANNINGANDMANAGEMENT

6.3Areasunderspecialmanagement

Thereisalackofadequatelegislationandmeansofenforcementtopreventtheoverutilization

ofitsnaturalresources.

Mostimportantconservationsitesaresufferingfromovergrazingandoverexploitation.

There is a lack ofMPAs to conserve the countries valuable shallow and deepwatermarine

ecosystems.

Levelsofpoachingarehigh.

somalia annex iv. areas of concern

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