Towards Sustainable Coastal Development

Book excerpt: Coastal areas around the world are severely stressed due to a myriad of human activities and marine pollution. They are now detrimentally being affected by climate change and sea level rise as well. One major theater most acutely impacted by these phenomena is coastal South Asia, an overcrowded region with low adaptive capacities. Drawing on the experiences of coastal countries and regions beyond South Asia, Towards Sustainable Coastal Development: Institutionalizing Integrated Coastal Zone Management and Coastal Climate Change Adaptation in South Asia recommends operationalizing integrated coastal zone management and linking the same with coastal climate change adaptation under appropriately crafted coastal laws to facilitate a move towards sustainable coastal development.