Guatemala Case Study: Using the Marine Spatial Planning Approach to Design a Marine Protected Area in the Guatemalan Pacific

Abstract

As coastal marine ecosystems are facing increasing threats associated with its unsustainable use, along with the fact that they are underrepresented within the Guatemalan protected areas system, the need to protect them through Marine Protected Areas (MPA) in the Guatemalan Pacific was prioritized since 2009. As there are no national official guidelines to design MPA, a Marine Spatial Planning approach was chosen to design “Las Lisas” MPA proposal, process that took place from 2016 until 2018. Emphasis was given to organize stakeholder participation, as “Las Lisas” proposed extent comprehended eight coastal communities and previous protected areas declarations in the country has faced several backlashes given the lack of involvement of local communities in the protected areas planning. As a result of the join planning and design process, the MPA proposal for “Las Lisas” entails 104, 002.46 ha, with 96.15% of those hectares being marine. Its chosen spatial scenario is based on the current and potential activities being developed in the area and it includes within its boundaries seven out of the eight coastal communities originally considered, as one of them, La Barrona, decided not to be included within the MPA proposal. As this is the first time a Marine Spatial Planning approach was used to guide the construction of a coastal marine conservation intervention, is expected for the lessons learned from this initiative to inform future efforts for the territorial planning and ordinance of the whole Guatemalan Pacific.