Harnessing ocean resources

The Blue Economy is a new dimension of world economy which combines both aspects of economics and environment based on ocean resources. The main feature of the Blue Economy is the sustainable use of ocean resources. However, "sustainable ocean governance" happens to be the prime challenge in reaping the benefits of the Blue Economy.

The oceans cover about two-thirds of the surface of the Earth and are the very foundations of life. They play a major role in food security, medicine, etc., and are a critical part of the biosphere. They not only provide marine resources but are also the "lungs" of our planet because that is where most of the oxygen we breathe comes from. There are three dimensions to be noted: ecological, social and economic. Human actions however have had a detrimental impact on oceans because of the latter's overexploitation.

Bangladesh now has a large maritime area in the Bay of Bengal, especially after legal victories over its two neighbouring countries India and Myanmar. As a maritime nation, Bangladesh aspires to cultivate a Blue Economy based on the marine resources within its maritime boundary. Bangladesh needs a strategic plan and policy to explore those resources without jeopardising the ecological balance of the Bay of Bengal.

The Bay of Bengal is home to migratory species and has ample marine resources. Marine activities, however, have begun to have a detrimental impact on the marine environment and this is of serious concern for many reasons. Scientists, for example, have consistently cautioned about the increasing severity of climate change and incidence of coral bleaching in tropical seas over the past two decades. The ability of reefs to withstand ocean acidification, which could have serious irreversible negative effects on marine organisms, particularly corals, as well as to withstand other pressures, including overfishing and pollution in the oceans, has weakened.

Unfortunately, human pressures, including overexploitation; illegal unregulated fishing; destructive fishing; unsustainable aquaculture practices; marine pollution; habitat destruction; climate change; and ocean acidification are some of the biggest threats for the world's oceans today. The United Nations emphasised upon sustainable ocean governance in the Ocean Conference held on June 5-9, 2017 at the UN headquarters in New York. Sustainable ocean governance has become a priority concern for coastal states all over the world. Almost all coastal countries have established ocean governance front and centre at the national level.

They have adopted marine spatial planning (MSP) to explore and exploit their marine resources sustainably without jeopardising the natural phenomena of the ocean. MSP has emerged as an effective tool for sustainable ocean governance in the modern era. MSP is a public process of analysing and allocating human activities in marine areas based on space/zone to achieve ecological, economic, and social objectives. This is the planning by a coastal state to use marine resources within its maritime boundary—a process that brings multiple users and uses of the ocean including energy, industry, government, conservation and recreation under one umbrella to make informed and coordinated decisions about how to use marine resources sustainably. It integrates conservation, sustainable use of living resources, oil and mineral wealth extraction, bioprospecting (the process of discovery and commercialisation of new products based on biological resources), sustainable energy production and marine transport. It requires demonstrating measurable steps towards critical internationally agreed targets for fisheries, aquaculture, habitat protection and pollution reduction.

MSP is an opportunity through which benefits from blue resources can be reaped with the help of a strategic plan. MSP is more effective than the traditional method/theory of integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) because of its integrated and holistic approach. MSP also highlights the need to address the frontiers of successful integrated approaches that include public-private partners, secure financing and catalysing good ocean governance while reconciling tensions and balancing priorities between (i) growth and conservation, (ii) private sector interests and equitable benefits for communities, and (iii) areas beyond national jurisdiction and exclusive economic zones.

Bangladesh needs a MSP framework for balancing ecological, economic, and social goals that will ensure sustainable development. About 20 coastal countries have already initiated a MSP for sustainable management of their national maritime territory. Unfortunately, Bangladesh, which has acquired a large maritime boundary thanks to two legal victories over India and Myanmar as previously mentioned, is yet to establish ocean governance at the centre of policymaking which is necessary to adopt a national maritime policy and MSP for sustainable ocean governance in the Bay of Bengal.

The government of Bangladesh wants to establish a Blue Economy but it must realise that sustainable ocean governance is the sine qua non. This aspiration will remain unfulfilled if effective steps are not taken. The government has established a specialised maritime university—a positive step—which can be the central platform for research on ocean governance which can then contribute towards the formulation of a national policy for sustainable ocean governance. If we are to attain the benefits of a Blue Economy, we must act now while there's still time.

Md Asraful Alam is a faculty member of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Maritime University and a PhD candidate at Western Sydney University, Australia.