The Management of Coastal and Marine Resources for Sustainable Community Engagement on Coastal and Marine Resources : A Case Study of Marine Rangers Network of Thaphikul Village, Thachang Sub - District, Thachang District, Suratthani Province, Thailand

Abstract

The qualitative research is an action research. The purposes of this study were: 1) to study of context and conditions of marine and coastal resource management in Thaphikul Community 2) to find out alternative strategies for marine and coastal resources participation management of the community. The data was collected by means a documentary analysis, in-depth interview, focused group discussion, SWOT analysis and TOWS matrix with 55 stakeholders of the network.

The research results were found that Thaphikul Community, was a coastal area on the Gulf of Thailand and was an integral part of the area known as “Ban Don Bay”. In the past there were plenty marine and coastal resources which was owned and took benefits by local villagers. Afterward, there were outsideswho took advantage in the area by turning the area into residentials and commercial areas, Them the community had formed a group named “Marine Rangers Volunteer” Still, the group lacked of effective resource management. It was found that 1) most of the villagers lacked of knowledge and awareness on not only resource conservation rentals understanding themself - sustaining management on their resource base. 2) The theft of forests for housing and work had occurred. There were some limitations in work, with a specific system of tracking, search and alternative approaches found that 1) Proactive strategies including strengthening and working of Marine Rangers, the use of integrated tools for the villagers with new technologies and social media optimization. 2) Remediation strategy including support the creation of knowledge, understanding and development of integrative participation. 3) Prevention strategies including adapting the civil volunteer development period to suit changes in the context of the area and accelerating the expansion of the forest reclamation program. And 4) Solving strategies including enforcing fair and thorough law enforcement and increasing surveillance measures to prevent and conserve plant and animal species through an integrated approach.