The need to integrate land and marine conservation planning has been pointed out by several studies, yet to date very little emphasis has been placed on examining terrestrial management for achieving marine conservation objectives. Researchers of the Conservation Planning Group published a study that further advances land-sea planning through developing a method that can guide planners (at a resolution amenable to management actions) to prioritise areas for management or protection to achieve terrestrial and marine conservation objectives. The study proposes a method that integrates modelling of catchments, land-use change, and river-plumes with conservation planning software to prioritise management actions. While the modelling required to achieve this kind of land-sea conservation integration is complex and time-consuming, the study shows that it is possible and feasible, but also necessary to better guide integrated land-sea planning.

Paper: Álvarez-Romero, J. G., R. L. Pressey, N. C. Ban, J. Brodie. 2015. Advancing Land-Sea Conservation Planning: Integrating Modelling of Catchments, Land-Use Change, and River Plumes to Prioritise Catchment Management and Protection. PLoS ONE 10(12): e0145574

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