Once the reserves are created, facilitators will work with local government to officially recognize the reserves. After paperwork is finalized, the reserves will need to be monitored and surveilled to avoid illegal fishing, users will need to gather ecological data over time to track progress, and the facilitators need to help implement other viable economic strategies and ensure their success. If feasible, reserves serving as a network should be implemented at relatively the same time to contribute to the success of the network.
In this first phase, facilitators of no-take marine reserves should aim to establish trusted relationships with the local communities and resources users that would likely be impacted from the implementation of a marine reserve. This entails the facilitator assessing the social, financial, and leadership structures to determine what the community needs to motivate creating a reserve. Concurrently, facilitators should gather any necessary baseline data to better populate tools that will help to create the reserve.
Decision Tree
Decision Tree
Scientific analysis on the status and biology of the target ecosystem and/or species will help determine the size, location, duration, and connectivity of marine reserve that are critical to their effectiveness. Target species for marine reserve conservation include key fisheries species, species with important ecological functions such as herbivores and indicator species, and rare and threatened species (King & Beazley, 2005). Dependent upon how far these focal species move or which life history stage will be protected, facilitators must determine how big a reserve should be, how many, or if it can provide adequate protection for conservation at all.
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Ecological Component
