Planning and implementing coastal management in Sri Lanka

Abstract

Sri Lanka is one of the island states to have developed very early, and operated fully, a coastal management plan on a national scale. The Coast Conservation Department, by Act of Parliament, has full responsibility for the implementation of the plan. The plan is periodically revised to incorporate emerging challenges, current and projected development trends, in refining policies and guidelines. The paper presents a review of planning and implementation of the coastal zone management in Sri Lanka. It focuses on the approach to coastal zone management via regulation of development activities and environmental protection, second-generation and current initiatives, challenges and constraints. The paper concludes with the future outlook, focusing on the role of the Coast Conservation Department and the relevance of the use of integrated coastal zone management frameworks.