跨界自然保护区——实现生物多样性保护的新手段

随着区域合作和大尺度景观保护的需求不断增加,跨界资源管理越来越受到人们的关注,作为跨界资源管理的一种典型方式,跨界自然保护区正成为保护区研究中的热点问题。在对跨界自然保护区概念、类型及历史发展进行阐述的基础上,分析了建立跨界自然保护区的效益和代价及影响跨界自然保护区成败的因素,指出建立跨界自然保护区可能是在更大尺度上实现生态系统管理和生物多样性保护的有效途径。同时,分析了我国保护区的跨界现状和存在的问题,并对我国不同行政区间展开跨界合作的必要性进行了探讨。最后对跨界保护的未来研究提出展望。

Transboundary protected areas as a means to biodiversity conservation

Interest is rapidly growing in transboundary natural resource management (TBNRM), due to the increasing emphasis in recent years on regional cooperation and conducting landscape conservation at larger scales. Transboundary protected areas (TBPAs) are commonly used in TBNRM and have become an important subject for research into protected area management and biodiversity conservation. TBPA studies in China are limited to the conflicts caused by the development of tourism resources and administrative integration, while TBPAs measures have received relatively less attention. In particular, a large proportion of China's nature reserves span two or more administrative regions, but no conclusions have reached on how the experiences of cross-border conservation in developed countries can be usefully applied to these protected areas. Therefore, in this paper we reviewed the benefits, costs and factors influencing TBPA success or failure on the basis of relevant research review. This analysis indicated that establishing TBPAs might be an effective means to fulfill the objectives of ecosystem management and biodiversity conservation at larger scale. The current status and existing problems during transboundary protected area management are identified, and the necessity of building TBPAs across different administrative boundaries in China is discussed. Finally, we propose potential future research activities and the following recommendations: (1) While transboundary protection has received greater attention and TBPAs studies are becoming more in-depth, a theoretical explanation is urgently needed to explain what triggeres cross-boundary administrative responses, including how to protect cross-border ecosystems or coordinate transboundary cooperation practices. (2) At present, most TBPA studies consider international boundaries, and there are fewer studies focusing on administrative regions within one country. Therefore, it is important to strengthen TBPA research and management at the sub-national level. For China's TBPAs, the problem may be potential cross-border impacts emanating from the whole protected area system. Therefore, it is essential to establish an identification system, analyze the possibility and necessity of cross-border cooperation, consider the costs and benefits, and determine the priority protection areas. In addition, conflicts and serious difficulties have occurred in some local cross-border protected areas Feasibility analysis for TBPAs should be established so as not to complicate the problem in areas where it is not appropriate. (3) Evaluating effectiveness is a hot topic of TBPA research. Many countries have developed detailed evaluation systems to ensure the effective management of TBPAs and the sustainable development of large-scale ecological systems. However, these evaluation systems are not sensitive to different sets of cross-border indicators, and do not necessarily reflect the conservation achievements. Therefore, the establishment of a cross-border management performance evaluation system and analysis methods would be of great significance for the effective management and protection of TBPAs. (4) Although co-management methods are diverse, it is a huge challenge to achieve effective cooperation between different countries with different languages, different political systems and cultural backgrounds. Because each TBPA is unique it cannot be copied. In the absence of a successful reference model, cross-border managers and decision makers should develop appropriate ways for their own cross-border nature reserve management based on their specific circumstances.