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handling facilities such as ports and harbors, jetties, oil
terminals, ship repair yards etc. for industrial parks within
the zone. There is concern for deforestation of mangroves,
dredging for approach/access channels and for coastal
sand for reclamation of sometimes vast areas.
The main coastal degradation problems arising from
uncontrolled coastal development are coastal erosion,
flooding, storm surges and in a few cases landslides in the
region. These issues are likely to be of greater importance
with rapid development in the coastal areas.
9.6. Coastal erosion
Coastal erosion is the most prevalent coastal hazard in the
GCLME. It has received some attention through research
and engineering options in the last three decades. Natural
coastal dynamics such as currents, waves and tides, but
also the nature of sediments and coastal topography
play a role concerning coastal erosion. Anthropogenic
activities such as construction of harbour protecting
structures (e.g. moles), jetties, beach sand mining,
construction of dams upstream depriving the beach of
sediment nourishment, and deforestation are causes
of high rates of erosion. Human activities aggravate
the erosion problem on most coastlines when coastal
development is undertaken without cognizing near shore
ocean dynamics and shoreline evolution.
Periodic monitoring of the coastline of Sierra Leone
suggests that it has been subjected to periodic erosion
which is severe at some locations due to both natural
and man-made causes. Coastal erosion will continue
to be aggravated unless actions to reverse the trend
are implemented and enforced. Sand extractions from
beaches are on the increase due to urban expansion. With
increasing population and drift to coastal areas coastline
erosion is likely to persist in the foreseeable future.
The risk for coastal erosion was regarded as high by the
workshop.
9.7. Marine debris
The results of field observations and qualitative assessments
have so far clearly indicated that the Sierra Leonean
beaches will be constantly polluted by debris items, as long
as coastal population increases daily, and fishing, tourism,
leisure and vessel transit activities continue.
The outlook for the country‘s marine litter issue over the
coming decade is an increase as a result of ongoing urban
and coastal industrial development, gradual increases in
shipping activity and exponential growth in oil prospecting
and production nationally as well as within the region.
This prediction is based entirely on examination of related
trends and relationships regarding the sources, causes,
quantities and distribution of marine litter at the national
and regional levels.
The implementation of MARPOL 73/78 is ongoing in some
of the countries in the region with regard to the provision of
adequate waste processing for ship garbage and port waste
reception facilities in major ports. When fully implemented
this would contribute to reducing the threat of marine debris
at local, national and global levels.
The risk that pollution will cause contamination of seafood
was regarded as significant in a 5 years perspective and
high in a 50 years perspective.