ENV11112 Management of Aquatic Protected Areas Assessment Brief Pro forma

 ENV11112 Assessment Brief Pro forma

ENV11112 Management of Aquatic Protected Areas:

Protected Area DPSIR and Zoning Scheme Assessment

Details of assessment

Your task is to produce a DPSIR assessment and outline zoning scheme for the Ria Formosa, a coastal lagoon ecosystem in southern Portugal.

You are required to examine relevant background information and identify feature(s) present within the protected area that the assessment will focus on. You will then summarise the types, extent and effects of pressures within the protected area and the immediate surroundings on the features being prioritised through a DPSIR analysis.

The DPSIR analysis should identify which issues are amenable to management through zoning and this should be used to derive proposals for a zoning scheme and associated management controls for the protected area being considered, giving details of the restrictions on the activities that are allowed to occur in different areas, and a detailed justification for the locations and extent of the proposed zoning.
A range of relevant resources will be made available for reference within a specific forum in Moodle. You are expected to work to locate other relevant materials and upload them to the forum so that as a group you have a comprehensive resource base to work from that is likely to be stronger than that which you could develop individually.

ENV11112 Structure of the assessment

The following sections should be present in the submission:

Outline of feature(s) being considered: Outline of the key feature(s) (flora/fauna/habitats) that you are prioritising for conservation, including information on relevant designations and overview of current status within the area or more broadly. This can include background to the site, but should focus on the actual features.

DPSIR analysis of the features highlighted: DPSIR provides a framework for evaluating issues relating to the management of an area. Based on a review of literature and other sources collated within the Moodle forum you should establish the principal sources of pressure identified for the key features given in the previous section. You are not expected to summarise and evaluate every possible pressure, but should critically analyse the available information and determine which you judge to be the key pressures (with appropriate justification) and those which are amenable to management through zoning. This should be presented as a table and should indicate sources used in relation to the information presented.

Outline of zones proposed and associated management controls: The Responses from the DPSIR analysis that are related to zoning approaches should be used as the basis for the zoning proposals and management controls. This should include justification for the location and extent of different zones within the protected area and the controls on activities or use that are associated with the proposed zones taking into account the activities present.

Illustrative map of proposed zones: map or maps distinguishing the location and spatial extent of the different proposed zones. You should illustrate the extent and nature of the zoning scheme within the Ria Formosa area, including areas that are not specifically covered by zoning.

All sections should include citations to relevant sources of information. This includes any information used within the mapping. These should be formatted according to the APA 7th edition specification (https://libguides.napier.ac.uk/ld.php?content_id=33132616).

ENV11112 Criteria for assessment

The zoning scheme will be assessed against the following criteria:

• Report structure and presentation (10%): Title, section headings, figure and table legends, formatting of references, presentation and clarity of text.
• Clarity of information on and justification of the features being prioritised for protection (10%): Features that are being prioritised are summarised and justification put forward to explain reasoning with reference to relevant literature and sources in relation to their significance, including any relevant designations
• Critical assessment of relevant information and summary through the presentation of a DPSIR analysis (30%): DIPSR analysis undertaken and presented in table format, with reference to relevant sources to evidence information used to support different aspects. Pressures are summarised and prioritised, state should refer to relevant metrics and responses should highlight those which are relevant to zoning proposals developed subsequently.
• Justification for the zoning and management controls proposed in relation to outcome of DPSIR (30%): Clear link between pressures identified through DPSIR and proposals for zoning scheme. Should summarise information (and cite sources) used to guide location and extent of zones proposed in relation to features and pressures. Management controls proposed should be clearly linked to types of pressure and desired outcomes.
• Identification and illustration of appropriate zoning proposals through mapping (20%): Information presented in the preceding justification for the zoning proposals should clearly translate to mapping of proposed zones. Effective mapping of zoning scheme taking into account mapping design principles.