29 August 2024
The Environment, Natural Resources and Planning Portfolio’s Marine and Fisheries Conservation Section is launching a community survey with the aim of collecting information on how the island’s community views the Marine Protected Area (MPA) and its associated management.
The St Helena Marine Management Plan 2023 – 2028 outlines the management measures needed to conserve, protect and restore the rich biodiversity and unique natural ecosystems of St Helena’s marine environment and sustainably manage its natural resources now and for future generations. To understand whether the Marine Management Plan is working, St Helena Government (SHG) monitors the status of the key values of the MPA. This includes the MPA’s social, cultural and economic values. This questionnaire forms part of this long-term monitoring programme. It aims to help SHG understand how the MPA is currently used and what benefits it brings to the local community.
To ensure there is no sample bias, participants have been selected through a random sampling process using the phone book and surveys will be undertaken over the telephone. Participants must be over the age of 18. Your participation in this questionnaire is entirely voluntary but we encourage you to share your views.
We will treat the information you provide as confidential. Data will be aggregated and will not identify you as a participant of the survey. Any report of this research will not include your name or any other individual information which could identify you. This will help us to assess whether the management measures within the Marine Management Plan are working. SHG may revise management actions if the long-term monitoring shows that they are not working effectively.
It is anticipated that this survey will start tomorrow, 30 August 2024, and run over the course of three weeks.
If you would like any more information, please contact Kirsty Jones by telephone on +290 25966 or via email through kirsty.jones@sainthelena.gov.sh.
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