육상활동으로부터 해양환경을 보호하기 위한 관리체제 개선방향

Abstract

Since 1990, many researches have revealed that land-based activities are the most important cause in the degradation of marine environment and resources. The international society adopted the Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities (GPA) in 1995 as the management framework to address the issue. The World Summit on Sustainable Development held in South Africa in 2002 recognized GPA as an important strategic tool for marine environmental protection by incorporating GPA into its Implementation Plan. Many countries have formulated institutional mechanisms and implemented action plans to deal with land-based activities.Since the Rio Conference in 1992, the Korean government has realized the importance of the management of land-based activities. This realization resulted in the establishment of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries in 1996 and subsequent enactments and amendments of relevant laws. Despite these developments since the mid-1990s, there are still urgent issues to be addressed for the protection of marine environment from land-based activities. Three critical issues are lack of an appropriate agency for integrated coastal watershed management, no consideration of environmental carrying capacity in coastal development, and insufficient knowledge base for rational decision-making.Four strategies were suggested to formulate legal and institutional framework to effectively control land-based activities: i) establishment of integrated coastal watershed management system, ii) adoption of site-specific approach, iii) construction of decision-making support system, and iv) operation of pilot sites, and partnership and capacity building. Amendments of the Marine Pollution Prevention Act and the Water Quality Environment Preservation Act are crucial for these strategies to be implemented successfully.