Marine Protected Areas  

Nusa Hope Resource Management and Development Plan

The main objective of the Nusa Hope Resource Management and Development Plan is to assist the people of Nusa Hope (1) to establish permanent Marine Protected Area (MPA) under customary sea tenure, (2) to implement the "Primary School Classroom Project 2002".

  • The Nusa Hope Resource Management and Development Plan is especially designed to make sure that The ecological processes critical to the self sustainability of the local lagoon systems are protected,
  • The stewardship and long-term responsibility and commitment to conservation of the local resources and culture are maintained and reinforced, and
  • Such conservation activities are integrated with a development initiative that will directly benefit Nusa Hope and the neighboring communities. Unlike most conservation initiatives that focus exclusively on preservation of marine biological diversity, this project also works towards local developmental needs.
Thus, the Resource Management and Development Plan will benefit the Nusa Hope people, and the neighboring villages in two fundamental ways:


1 A permanent Marine Protected Area (MPA) has been established in the inner lagoon reef neighboring the Nusa Hope Village (Map 1). The MPA will allow local communities to restore and protect critical inner lagoon habitats and resources;

2 The plan has contributed with hardware materials to the construction of the Primary School in Nusa Hope Village.


Map 1 (click for larger view)

The Nusa Hope community has designated the Heloro reef that neighbors the village as a permanent "no take" marine protected area. The area is designed to:

1. Preserve representative lagoon shallow and deep reef habitats,
2. Preserve spawning areas for triggerfish (makoto lio and noa), and several species of Serranidae,
3. Preserve bumphead parrotfish nursery areas,
4. Allow for general habitat regeneration of certain areas that have been seriously damaged by human activity.

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