White paper: using a business plan format for drafting MPA management plans in the Marine Life Protection Act initiative.

• Author: Mize, James
• Position: Marine protected areas - California

TABLE OF CONTENTS I. Introduction A. Scope of Paper B. Summary/Structure of Paper II. The MPA Management Plan A. Introduction B. Constituents C. Strategies D. Operations E. Financials and Sensitivity Analysis F. Milestones III. Conclusion I.

INTRODUCTION

1. Scope of paper

   This paper looks at what would need to be included for the purpose of assessing the financial, human and physical resources required to establish and manage Marine Protected Areas ("MPAs") designated under the MLPA Initiative process as part of an MPA Management Plan. (1) While the Marine Life Protection Act requires "[s]pecific identified objectives, and management and enforcement measures, for all MPAs in the system", no clear guidance is provided as to what constitutes sufficient planning to assure the proper management of the MPAs. (2) As such, this paper seeks to organize a framework approach or logic for how managers can address implementing and improving activities for both individual MPAs.

   In preparation for this effort, approaches of several other agencies responsible for area management plans were reviewed for input of practices appropriate for MPA management plans; while no one approach fits the specific needs of the MLPA Initiative, parts of these other approaches are incorporated where useful. (3) Instead this paper takes an approach similar to that used in business plans that guide development of entrepreneurial organizations. Business plans enjoy several advantages over other types of planning processes reviewed. Rather than being created merely to satisfy statutory requirements narrowly conscribed to its specific regulatory context, a business plan is a "living document" guiding daily activities that can be modified to adapt to new learning throughout its implementation. (4) Applied to MPAs, this flexibility allows adaptation to a particular area's own unique circumstances and local context. Business plans also have the benefit of being tested in countless applications and refined over time. General practices have evolved through practice and less relevant components have been discarded. The essence of the business plan format is in its pragmatism. Business plans are designed to be used, focusing on process rather than the production of a document.

   Business plans typically have multiple objectives. (5) First, they are themselves a process for thinking through the operation's processes in order to anticipate potential conflicts or contingencies that may arise in the course of business. They are planning documents. (6) Second, business plans provide a record of what managers' expectations are so that performance can be measured at a later date and improving accountability of management. (7) Third, business plans lend transparency to the operation by conveying key information to funding sources to justify investing in the venture. (8) While this last purpose most often comes to peoples' minds when asked why business plans are created, in practice, the first two purposes are more prevalent and foundational to the outcome of the venture.

   A business plan follows a general logic to justify its financial conclusions to investors in order to show the "bottom line" for funding requirements. (9) After a brief introductory executive summary, such plans first start with a description of the company and what the company proposes to do. (10) The plans then analyze how the company proposes to market its product or service, and the measures it puts forward to do so. (11) Finally, such plans discuss specific steps to accomplish these measures, and from those steps estimate the affiliated costs. (12) Such plans should be referred to in order to assess whether milestones have been met, and to provide a baseline for adapting to unforeseen circumstances. (13) This paper will apply this business plan framework approach to the development of MPA Management Plans.

   MPA Management Plans developed under this framework are envisioned to be working documents--plans kept handy on the desktop for reference, not shelved in storage. Maintaining the plans' usefulness requires regular updates to incorporate new learning gleaned from actual implementation, consistent with goals of adaptive management. (14) To accomplish this, this framework includes processes for review and revision when necessary as well.

   This whitepaper starts by relying upon the "Suggested Outline for Regional Management Plans (RMPs) of Marine Protected Areas" in the Master Plan Framework. (15) In applying the suggested outline, this paper anticipates that the individual MPAs being planned already have full descriptions through the designation process. (16) Thus this paper only addresses establishment and management issues identified and similar issues. (17) While many of the issues may be identified in the designation documents, (18) the MPA Management Plan allows a discussion specific to the operations of the individual MPA, more targeted than previous general descriptions.

2. Summary / Structure of paper

   In developing an MPA Management Plan, many basic questions arise. Why develop a plan? Who is it to be for? What does it hope to accomplish, and how does it propose to do so? The management issues listed in the suggested outline answer many of these questions. (19) These issues will be separated into several groupings in this paper, according to which questions they answer:

   1. MPA Management Plan Introduction ("Why" and "Where?")

   2. Constituents ("Who?")

   3. Strategies ("What?")

   4. Operations ("How?")

   5. Financials and Sensitivity Analysis ("How Much?")

   6. Milestones ("When?")

      Each section is discussed briefly in turn:

   1. The "Why" & the "Where" (Introduction):

      The MPA designation process answers these questions, and informs the answers to the rest of the questions. An individual MPA Management Plan should include a brief introductory statement of the goals and objectives and a brief description of the boundaries of the MPA at the outset as background for the rest of the plan. (20) The introductory section should be concise, analogous to a mission statement and company overview section of a business plan, setting the context for the following sections of the MPA Management Plan. (21) This description should not be extensive, incorporating by reference the other documents from the designation process.

   2. The "Who" (Constituents):

      Individual MPAs will have different affected stakeholders and different constituent groups interested in the how the MPA will be managed. (22) This section should be analogous to the Market Assessment section of a business plan, which evaluates the aggregate size of all markets or constituencies, what the distribution of constituent groups may be within this combined total, and which segments may be the target market for the plan's activities. (23) In an MPA Management Plan, the different constituent groups are those stakeholders directly affected by activities of the individual MPA, and the "target" constituency groups will be those groups most affected, or that which will have the most activities and operations focused on their concerns. Which constituent group this will be will naturally vary between MPAs as goals and objectives vary; for instance, MPAs near urban centers are likely to have much greater need for interpretative displays and educational outreach activities than remote and comparatively inaccessible locations. (24)

      Determination of constituents will also be important for identifying potential collaborators. Constituent groups bring resources that can assist in achieving strategies to achieve the goals and objectives of an MPA. (25) Identifying these groups during the implementation stage allows managers to better inventory resources available in long-term management of the MPA.

   3. The "What" (Strategies):

      Once constituent groups are known, specific strategies can be identified. This section is analogous to the Market Strategy section of a business plan, setting forth the specific activities to meet the needs of target constituencies according to the goals and objectives. (26) As applied to the development of MPA Management Plans, categories of issues to be considered include (27):

      1. Interpretation and Education:

         Educational outreach activities engaged in to let people know of MPA restrictions and features of the MPA.

      2. Surveillance:

         Oversight efforts followed to assure that restrictions are honored.

      3. Enforcement:

         Measures adopted to apply consequences to violators of MPA restrictions.

      4. Scientific Monitoring and Research:

         Procedures to be followed to meet scientific goals.

      5. Restoration:

         Methods taken to restore impaired habitats, as desired. (28)

         It is important to note that the assessment of activities specifies what is to be done, not who is to do it. Some activities may be best conducted by some of the constituent groups themselves. For instance, scientific monitoring and research activities may be very important to universities, yet universities can provide much of the required facilities to conduct monitoring efforts. (29)

   4. The "How" (Operations):

      This section addresses the tactics to be used, and comprises the "nuts-and-bolts" of the management plan. Specific steps for how to accomplish activities listed in the previous section are detailed in this section, analogous to the Operations section of a business plan. (30) As applied to MPA Management Plans, categories include (31):

      1. Equipment and Facilities :

         Physical resources needed to conduct activities according to the specific MPAs goals and objectives. Depending on goals, may include boats, buildings, specific tools, etc.

      2. Staffing:

         The people needed to conduct activities according to the specific MPA's goals and objectives.

      3. Training:

         Preparation required for the personnel needed according to staffing needs in order to get them "up to speed."

      4. Collaborations and Potential Partnerships:

         A discussion of what other agencies or entities may exist with aligned interests that may be...