DRIVING FORCES OF DEVELOPMENT CHANGE: CASE OF A CARRIBEAN ISLAND

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AMERICAN RESEARCH THOUGHTS ISSN: 2392 – 876X Available online at: www.researchthoughts.us

http://dx.doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.1431580

Volume 1 │ Issue 7 │ May 2015

Impact Factor: 2.0178 (UIF)

DRIVING FORCES OF DEVELOPMENT

CHANGE:

CASE OF A CARRIBEAN ISLAND

Haven Allahar1, Kenneth Snaggs2

1Arthur Lok Jack Graduate School of Business, University of the West Indies and

Socioeconomic Planning Consultant, APDSL

2Land Use Planning Consultant, APDSL, Trinidad and Tobago

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is the formulation of a framework for assessing development

change in small developing countries modified for application to small islands, and further, to propose

a development process to be used alongside the framework. The methodology utilized in the case study

involved research of official published documents, analysis of relevant statistical data, and application

of Landsat imagery for producing a land cover map. The main finding is that the existing assessment

framework developed by the European Environmental Agency does not fully fit the conditions in

small islands and has to be modified for implementation which is better used in combination with a

development process that provides a better fit for purpose. The modified framework and the detailing of

a new development process presented in this paper are original in the suggested applications and will

be valuable to the agencies that carry the responsibility for undertaking environmental and

development assessments in small countries.

Key Words: Driving forces; Development change; Land use; Land cover change; Small

islands; integrated environmental assessments; DPSIR framework.

1. INTRODUCTION

This paper sets out to examine the applicability of the environmental assessment

framework which was developed by the European Environmental Agency (EEA) in

1999 and presented as a causal chain of Drivers-Pressures-State-Impacts-Responses

framework (DPSIR). This paper will adapt the EEA framework to the case of the

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Haven Allahar, Kenneth Snaggs- DRIVING FORCES OF DEVELOPMENT CHANGE: CASE OF A CARRIBEAN

ISLAND

1608 AMERICAN RESEARCH THOUGHTS- Volume 1 │ Issue 7 │2015

Caribbean island state of Trinidad and Tobago (TT) to demonstrate its applicability at a

small scale. An additional purpose is to present a complementary development process

framework which can be applied alongside the DPSIR to provide greater relevance to

small countries.

TT is a country located at the end of the Caribbean chain and comprises two

small islands with Trinidad as the main island of 4,828 square kilometres with a

population of 1.3 million people, and Tobago significantly smaller at 300 square

kilometres in area with a population of 55,000 people. The economy of Trinidad is based

on the drilling and production of crude oil and natural gas and the manufacture of

petrochemicals, while Tobago is tourism oriented. The economy of the country is

sustained mainly by the petroleum sector which accounted for an average of 42 percent

of the gross domestic product (GDP) of the country over the period 2009 to 2013

(Central Bank, 2013).

2. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The methodological approach employed in this case study included: research of

published documents to confirm the components of the driving forces of development

change and to determine the resulting impacts and official responses; extraction of raw

statistical data from official databases for analysis of the key socioeconomic forces;

identification, listing and description of large-scale discrete land uses and types of

development which significantly impact the environment; and the use of Landsat

imagery as the foundation of the categories of land cover.

3. BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT

The paper explores the issues related to the driving forces of change as they are

categorized in the literature, and the practice of land use planning as applied in small

developing countries. The context for the assessment of the driving forces of

development change is presented through the application of the DPSIR framework

which, according to Carr et al. (2007), originated with the European Environmental

agency in 1999. It was noted that the creation of integrated assessment frameworks for

analysing development changes has long occupied the energies of development

agencies and researchers, and the search picked up momentum with the entry of


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environmental issues and climate change into the discussion. In accordance with this

framework, there is a chain of causal links which all together impact the human and

natural environment. The chain comprises: driving forces which are the critical social

processes that direct human activity; pressures which include both human action and

natural forces; state which reflects the current environmental conditions and trends;

impacts which record the changes that influence human well-being; and responses

which are the institutional actions taken to mitigate negative impacts (Carr et al., p.

545).

The DPSIR has become a tool for assessing the state of the environment and was

applied to areas of activity such as water issues where a conceptual framework was

devised for assessing limited freshwater resources and identifying inland waters in

South Africa (Kristensen, 2004).The DPSIR was also applied to Cairo to examine and

classify land use and land cover (LU-LC) changes and determine the resulting linkages

and impacts (Hassan, 2013). Further, an integrated environmental assessment was

conducted for a wetlands district of Bangladesh and concluded that an integrated

management plan was needed which should include a buffer zone in allocating land

uses in the area (Ahmed et al., 2015).

While the DPSIR is increasingly used in environmental assessments, certain

criticisms of the framework were summarized by Carr et al. (2007) as: utilizing stable

indicators which ignore changing system dynamics; incapable of determining trends

without repeating studies at regular intervals; excludes clear cause-effect relationships

for environmental problems; and employs a linear analysis for complex problems (pp.

545-546). Carr et al. also identified issues with the DPSIR in its application to

developing countries which included: discounting of local knowledge because of the

developed-country bias in the assumptions of the framework which uses

predetermined categories; focusing on large scale at the global level which may not be

applicable at the smaller scale of some developing countries; reduced emphasis on

sustainable development by not paying sufficient attention to social diversity and

gender issues as central factors (p. 551). The overall conclusion by Carr et al., was that

the DPSIR can be applied on a limited basis to local-scale studies by accounting for the

‚nuanced understandings, inputs, opinions, and goals of multiple stakeholders‛ (p.

552). To the extent that the framework promotes effective environmental management,

Turnbull (2004) argued that, in the case of developing countries such as the Fiji Islands,


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the political, social, cultural, and economic factors must be included in considering any

assessment or management framework (p. 74).

The practice of land use planning is relevant to the assessment of development

change because, according to Godschalk (2004), land use planning is expected to deliver

‚sustainable development and livable communities‛ (p. 5) which constitutes the main

challenge of the discipline in terms of resolving the inherent conflicts in achieving those

ideals. It was asserted that land use planning was required to address the three

dimensions of the spatial world which included the sustainable development value-

conflicts of ecology, economy, and equity to which Godschalk added livability.

In the particular case of managing adaptation to environmental change in small

islands in the Caribbean, Lane et al. (2013) highlighted the vulnerability of small islands

to pressures which are often concentrated because of scale. Further, small scale provides

constraints such as ‚limited access, accommodation space, infrastructure, and economic

and institutional capacity‛ (p. 470). The authors concluded that small islands need to

adopt ‚best practices in land use planning, emergency preparedness, institutional and

governance coordination, infrastructure design and construction, and public

communication and education‛ (Lane et al. 2013, p. 470).

With respect to land use structures, Salvati and Carlucci (2014) argued that urban

growth issues should follow an integrated approach which incorporates socioeconomic

and ecological components in understanding spatial distribution of land. The rationale

provided is that suburbanization dictated significant changes in land use structures on a

regional scale by modifying the socio-ecological relationships between urban and rural

spaces (Salvati and Carlucci, 2014, p. 1). Salvati and Carlucci further observed that

urban planning and socioeconomic policies in support of sustainable development

benefitted from an assessment of landscape structure and land use changes. Further,

land use changes were influenced by socioeconomic dynamics which often lead to

transformation of landscapes on a wider spatial basis (p. 2).

The issue of climate change is much debated as to the urgency for action,

especially in island communities. In this context, Hills et al. (2013) acknowledged that

climate change is likely to have a range of impacts on the current and future

development of the Pacific Islands and supported an applications-based adaptation

approach which integrates sustainable use of biodiversity and ecosystem services as a

comprehensive strategy (p. 455).


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4. DESIGN OF A MODIFIED DPSIR FOR SMALL COUNTRIES

While the DPSIR has been acknowledged as a major tool for understanding changes in

the environment of advanced countries and has also been modified to apply to specific

issues such as water resources, it has not been widely used in small island states. This

paper will adapt the framework to the Caribbean island state of TT to demonstrate its

potential applicability even if the drivers of change differ from the standard indicators

in common usage. For the purposes of the current discussion, the key driving forces

relevant to the small islands of TT are presented as social, economic,

governance/political, LU-LC, and environmental sustainability forces. A modified

DPSIR (M-DPSIR) framework was constructed to concretize the issues relating to the

pressures created by these driving forces, the environmental conditions created, the

human and natural impacts, and the responses generated at the national level to

address the impacts (Figure 1). The authors propose the use of the modified framework

in TT for assessing the state of the environment and development change on a limited

basis as suggested by Carr et al. (2007) in the context of developing countries.

4.1 Driving Forces

The main social force that typically drives development change is population

characteristics, in particular the rate of growth. When applied to TT, the social forces

are: population growth which creates demands for shelter, recreation, education

facilities, health facilities, entertainment, jobs, transport infrastructure, and public

utilities; inward migration which influences the location of demand for housing and

other facilities; poverty which leads to a search for livelihoods (subsistence agriculture)

and housing space (squatting) often resulting in inappropriate use of land; cultural

practices which have many positive but also negative behavioural implications, such as

misuse of the environment, lack of understanding, care and sensitivity by users for the

environment, and lack of knowledge of interconnectedness between land use,

development actions and environment; and increasing prominence and direct

contribution of non-governmental and community-based organizations in activities

which embrace environmental restoration and preservation.

The economic forces constitute: the opportunities for converting natural mineral

resources such as oil, gas, stone, sand and asphalt to marketable products involving

exploration, extraction, and production activities; policies and programmes on the use


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of developable agricultural lands to satisfy the demand for food and achieve the goal of

food security; growth in international trade with liberalization and globalization

generating increased demand for air and sea ports; pursuit of business opportunities in

both the traditional sectors (such as retail trade) and development of new green

businesses involving recycling and reuse; establishment of industrial estates and

business parks to utilize oil and gas resources and diversify economic production away

from traditional energy activities to knowledge sectors such as ICT and downstream

energy products; increased construction activities leading to more quarrying and

production of construction materials; demand for modern internal communication in

the form of roads, highways and water transport facilities to transport people and

goods; and creation of key infrastructural elements including transportation and

public utilities such as water mains and waste water facilities, electricity and telephone.

Governance/Political Forces include: development policies as they relate to choice of

industries and geographical locations; development strategies such as alliances with

foreign entities to pursue projects and the scale of development projects; strategy of

centralization versus decentralization of governmental activities which influences

location of building facilities leading to intensification in urban centres or dispersion;

political governance policies to devolve authority to local levels; and policy approach to

conservation of the natural environment and the built heritage.

LU-LC: As small islands, the impacts of land use changes and destruction of land cover

in TT are magnified when compared with larger countries. Therefore, even small

changes in these indicators can be linked to major negative consequences for the

population and for overall environmental sustainability as the ultimate goal of

development policy.

Figure 1: Modified DPSIR Framework for Application to Small Countries like TT


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4.2 Pressures

In the particular case of TT; the main pressures involve: rapid urbanization; heavy

Industrial development; and increasing demand for land and water. The built

environment is relatively urbanized with most services located in the capital city and

other urban centres which have led to the problems of urban sprawl and traffic

congestion. For very small islands, the country has a major heavy industrial sector with

oil exploration and refining, liquefied natural gas, steel manufacture; and

petrochemicals of urea, ammonia, and methanol forming the base of an export sector.

The small scale of the land space has driven a demand for land for housing and other

built uses which in turn fuel a demand for water for residential, commercial, and

industrial uses.

4.3 State of the Environment

As a result of the driving forces identified and the pressures faced, the current

environment of TT is marked by urban centralization mainly in the capital city where

major resources were allocated to construction of office buildings. More recently, a

limited process of decentralization was initiated but not in consonance with a

comprehensive economic or land use plan. Agricultural activity, apart from vegetable

farming, is in rapid decline and combined with urban centralization has generated

significant informal housing, destruction of the landscape, incursion into wetlands, and

danger to sources of water resources.

4.5 Impacts

The impacts of the driving forces and pressures and conditions created in the

environment are increasingly severe especially in the areas of traffic congestion where

gridlock is experienced regularly despite new roads and highways construction. Heavy

automobile usage creates pollution and catering to the needs of automobiles leads to

alienation of fertile land for road construction. TT is also prone to hillside degradation

for construction of formal and informal housing, and subsistence agriculture which

result in flooding during the period of heavy rainfall. As small islands, the effect of

climate change is reflected in increased erosion of coastal areas which impacts housing

and beach resorts.


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4.6 Responses

Adequate responses must emerge from the official levels if the impacts of development

change are to be satisfactorily addressed. The responses should involve: formulation of

a policy framework with specific policies devised to target key activities that threaten

the quality of life of the population; introduction of formal plans at the national and

regional levels based on widespread stakeholder consultation; approval of legislation

which is solution oriented rather than prescribing negative incentives; and assigning

responsibilities to specialized management agencies to monitor action and record

progress on improvements in environmental management. In the TT case, a policy

framework is lagging but a national physical development plan and a nation spatial

development strategy were prepared in 2012 while regional plans were prepared in

2010. The legislative framework is in place with the existence of laws governing land

use planning overseen by the Town and Country Planning Division, and immediate

environmental issues regulated by the Environmental Management Authority.

The argument in this paper is that the EEAs framework is of limited applicability

to the state of the environment of small islands but could be modified, as presented in

Figure 1 to enhance its usefulness.

5. DEVELOPMENT ASSESSMENT FRAMEWORK FOR SMALL ISLANDS

This paper acknowledges that the original DPSIR can be realigned to the specific

circumstances of small countries like TT but will have limited applicability until, as

argued by Carr et al. (2007), a new framework is devised which accounts for issues of

power, informal responses, local knowledge, and diversity which are issues critical to

small societies (p. 552). Towards this end, this paper proposes a development

assessment framework for small islands (DAF) presented as a six-step process which is

suggested for use with the DPSIR for assessing the progress of development activities in

small islands. The DAF is highly appropriate to TT as it identifies the key actions to be

taken on a step by step basis which makes the process easily understandable and, as

such, more likely to be implemented. The steps proposed comprise: identification of

driving forces which is consistent with the DPSIR; specific mandates and directives;

outline of strategies and programmes; highlights of the development areas and projects;

physical development as demonstrated by LU-LC; and the critical environmental

impacts (Figure 2). The details already covered in the description of activities under the


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M-DPSIR are not repeated in the analysis of the DAF and only additional insights are

provided.

5.1 Step 1: Driving Forces

The DAF identifies the key driving forces as social, economic, and governance/political

which is consistent with the M-DPSIR. The commonly used definition of driving forces

in TT is considered as any natural, human, or institutional factor that directly or

indirectly explains impacts on an ecosystem. Within this definition LU-LC are

considered direct drivers because they influence the pattern of land use and land-cover

change through agriculture, housing, infrastructure, mining, and related activities

(although some human actions such as pollution and hillside degradation have direct

impacts), while institutional, human, or natural actions are considered indirect drivers.

The role of population growth as a major driver is relegated to lower prominence

in TT because the non-institutional population of the country has remained relatively

stagnant over the past eight years and recorded at around 1.3 million persons (CSO,

2012). In growth terms, the population growth rate has not exceeded 0.5 % per annum

and grew by 0.4 % in 2011 over 2000. In respect of the age composition, the major

feature is the aging factor with persons 60 years and over accounting for 13.4 %

compared with young persons of 24 years and under representing 36.6 %. From a

gender view, the population is essentially evenly divided with males constituting 50.2

% and females 49.8 % (Ministry of Finance and the Economy, 2014). The main

implication of the population growth statistics is that the impact of population as a

driving force in land use change will be reduced as the population stagnates. However,

for the period under study, the effect of population as a driving force was demonstrated

more through pent-up demand for shelter and other facilities rather than mere

population growth as reinforced by increased incomes and prosperity of individuals

and families. The specific social, economic, and governance/political forces outlined

under the M-DPSIR remain relevant here.

5.2 Step 2: Mandates and Directives

This step covers the strategic directives of ministries especially in transmitting policy

guidelines and harmonization of plans of all relevant state agencies. More particularly,

the most important part of the DAF is the legislation for control of land use and

management of the environment, namely the Town and Country Planning Act, Chapter


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35:01 (TCP Act) and the Environmental Management Act, Chapter 35:05 (EM Act),

respectively. There are other acts and regulations which provide control over various

resources and activities relevant to LU-LC, but these key pieces of legislation establish

the statutory measures for controlling the change of use of land and the process of

development and for managing the environmental consequences of land cover changes

and other environmental impacts of land use and development.

The statutory powers in the regulatory system can only be applied directly in the

control of development. However, changes in LU-LC are the result of development;

thus, in a broad sense the regulatory system is a common framework incorporating all

of the relevant factors and parameters required for the analysis of change at the overall

national level as well as the regional level. In terms of relevant policy promulgation, a

national environmental policy (NEP) was developed to: prevent, reduce or eliminate

various forms of pollution and where possible to recycle waste, to ensure adequate

protection of the environment and consequently the health and well-being of humans as

well as the fauna of the country; conserve the vitality and diversity of the natural

environment through the conservation of ecological systems and biodiversity which is

pursued by the mandatory replacement of mangrove cover through the policy of ‘no

net loss’; and develop within the carrying capacity of the environment through physical

development and planning, sustainable use of renewable resources, and the

conservation of non-renewable resources.

The NEP recognises the linkages among the human resources, natural systems

and development processes and the competition for use of the same resources by

different interests and the measures that must be in place to achieve the desired goals.

In pursuit of the goals, the EMA is empowered to implement laws, policies and

programmes and to administer regulatory functions over development activities to

ensure that land and associated environmental resources will be used wisely and yield

sustainable benefits for the population. Together these two pieces of legislation

constitute an effective statutory system for regulating development. The TCP Act

provides for the control of land use and location of activities and the EM Act for

management of the environmental impacts of projects in the course of development and

in operation. Other statutory measures are available under the TCP Act by means of

development plans to propose appropriate land use and prescribe policies and

strategies to influence future decisions on use and development of land and guidance

for locating projects. This should be complemented by similar measures by the EMA


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through strategic environmental assessments to provide guidance on environmental

requirements when development decisions are being considered. The objectives of wise

use and environmentally responsible development of land are more likely to be

achieved if these measures are applied at the inception of the development process, that

is, when overarching socio-economic needs and intentions are articulated and policies

and strategies are being adopted for realising them.

5.3 Step 3: Strategies and Programmes

As a hydrocarbon-based economy, TT has developed a relatively extensive and modern

industrial complex of oil, liquefied natural gas (LNG), and petrochemical plants but this

exposes the country to the vagaries of the global commodities markets for such

products. This situation has long imposed the imperative to diversify the structure of

the economy away from hydrocarbon dependence to a more sustainable range of

economic activities such as tourism, creative industries, cultural/entertainment exports,

food and beverage processing, educational services, and technical services built on the

considerable experience of operating major plants. Current national and regional plans

need to be reoriented towards these new areas of development while future planning

must focus on these areas if environmental sustainability is to be achieved. Strategies

must be formulated to meet part of the food needs of the country as well as meeting the

land requirements for housing of the low income segment of the population, in

particular addressing the matter of appropriate subsidies. Strategies and programmes

aimed at securing balanced spatial development through effective decentralization of

activities to centres outside the capital city are critical to the entire process.

5.4 Step 4: Development Programmes and Projects

Inescapably, action towards the monetization of oil and natural gas must proceed to

avoid severe economic shocks while diversification activities are initiated. A more

comprehensive approach to small-scale agricultural development is needed as a food

security initiative and the determination and planning of appropriate housing forms to

meet growing needs for residential accommodation. Greater emphasis is required at the

community level where the need for facilities, public services, and development projects

is strongest. The issue of public housing and the vexed question of identifying and

developing land for the landless members of society are emerging as a ‘tipping point’

matter.


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5.5 Step 5: Physical Development and LU-LC

The physical development activities which embrace oil and gas installations, industrial

parks, urban development, and productive infrastructure such as sea and air ports,

harbours, utilities, roads, highways, and drainage, form the core of the proposed areas

of development and are integral to any assessment of development. Land use is defined

as the human utilization of a piece of land for specific purposes. Land use inevitably

involves two factors, the manipulation of the biophysical attributes of land or the

development of land, and the human intent underlying the act of manipulation or

development. Land use is the physical manifestation of decisions taken by people to use

land in satisfying a wide range of needs and purposes as detailed in Table 1.

Category Land Use and Development Activities

Urban Development Residential, commercial, institutional, social, public utilities and

related infrastructure; tourist facilities, hotel, beach facilities

Rural Development Plantation; short crops; livestock; aquaculture; agro-forestry; agro-

industry; and related small settlements

Large-scale Developments:

Social/entertainment;

Conservation & preservation;

Heavy engineering

Recreational (fun/water parks); golf courses; natural environment;

buildings and sites; transmission lines; water dams/reservoirs; and

trunk mains

Industrial Development Light Industry (manufacturing of textiles, food etc.) and heavy

Industry (oil, gas and downstream); agro-industry

Coastal Development Beach facilities; fishing; marine industrial; reclamation

Mining Quarrying; oil and gas drilling; and groundwater extraction.

Transportation Roads and highways; ports and harbours; airports; water ferry

terminals

Waste Disposal Development or expansion of landfills and wastewater treatment

plants.

Table1: Categorization of Types of Development

Source: Authors Categorization of the TT Case

LU-LC changes are induced by driving forces, some of which are natural while others

are associated with human-directed activities with the latter being the most significant

in inducing changes in LU-LC. These major driving forces are derived from deliberate

decisions by agencies and individuals to use land for various purposes. The discussion

on driving forces recognises both authorised and unauthorised action. Some driving

forces are the indirect product of population growth and socio-economic factors others


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are responses to political or governance imperatives and earmarked budgetary

allocations, while others are inherent in development actions involving biological and

physical change in the features and characteristics of land. There is also some difficulty

in distinguishing between land cover and land use on maps, where activities that can be

defined as land use such as agriculture, plantation forest and tree crop cultivation will

appear as vegetative cover.

Events that may be termed natural driving forces, such as storms, excessive

runoff and fires, also result in land cover change and some are induced indirectly by

human action, such as slash-and-burn land clearing for cultivation of food crops and

wildlife hunting. As a small island developing state (SIDS) TT is vulnerable to the

phenomenon of climate change, the effects of which can change LU-LC especially in

coastal zones, mountains and forested areas due to sea level rise, storm surges and

excessive and unseasonable rainfall.

Land cover is defined as the physical coverage of land, usually expressed in

terms of vegetative cover or lack of it. In this study, what is significant is the natural

vegetation, usually recognised in broad categories such as forest, scrubland, wetland

and other natural features of the earth’s crust (Figure 3). Thus, land cover in any area

can be assessed in terms of the biophysical state of the earth’s surface and sub-surface

directly below. Land cover change is significant when natural vegetation in an area is

removed or depleted to the point where it cannot regenerate. This can occur naturally,

be caused by weather events or be human-induced as is the case when the land is

developed for another use. Because of the limitations of the map coverage and detail,

forests and wetlands will be the main component of land cover identified. The accuracy

of these land coverage extractions is approximately 70% which was derived from

overlays done with the available 2008 satellite imagery and the 1998 ortho-rectified

aerial photography.


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Figure 2: Trinidad Land Coverage 2010

Source: State of the Environment 2010, Report by GISCSD Limited, 2011.

5.6 Step 6: Environmental Impacts

In order to deal with environment impacts, the first requirement is to inventory the

recognized natural environmental assets. This paper highlights the following main

assets: forests and forests reserves; wildlife reserves; wetlands and mangroves; beaches

and bays; archaeological and heritage sites; land capability; watersheds and catchments;

rivers and streams; groundwater sources; and fishing resources. Based on these assets,

policies and actions must be initiated to address: soil contamination; water and air

quality; noise abatement; wetlands preservation; beach protection; preservation of

heritage sites; control of quarry sites; and management of fish, wildlife, and endangered

species resources. A specifically targeted initiative towards reducing the negative

environmental impacts of built development and transportation infrastructure is

urgent.


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Figure 3: Development Assessment Framework for Small Islands (Authors’ Compilation)

6. OVERVIEW OF DAF

An examination of the six-step development process indicates that intervention in the

process by the regulatory agencies (EMA and TCPD) is at Step 4 which reflects the point

at which a development project has been formulated and an application seeking

permission to implement is submitted as required by law. This point may be too late in

the process for the planners and environmental managers to exercise effective guidance

and influence on a project and achieve the objectives of wise use and sound

development of land. Also, the situation often arises because in the earlier Steps 1-3

most of the defining aspects of a project are determined and escape the purview of the

regulatory agencies.

At Step 1 the driving forces, which initiate and influence the nature and scope of

a development project, are in effect and operating. These include powerful influences

such as, population needs and demands, economic development initiatives and

governance and political desires, intentions and decisions, and lead directly to Step 2

and 3, the mandates and directives given to the individuals and entities which have the

responsibility to interpret them and formulate strategies and programs to give effect to

them. Regulators have difficulty with a project which reaches Step 4 and is already

firmly committed, but on assessment is seen to be unacceptable. There may be many


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reasons for this, such as inappropriate land use, location, or the potential to cause

serious adverse environmental impact. Often it is too late to make modifications to the

project to meet all of the requirements, resulting in compromise, additional cost or

outright refusal accompanied with serious implications which flow back to the ‘drivers’

responsible for the project.

7. CONCLUSION

The paper has created a modified framework for implementing a DPSIR in a mini state

such as TT which has the potential for application in future assessments of the

environment conducted by the regulatory agencies. A development framework detailed

as a process chart, is proposed to be implemented alongside the DPSIR to address the

limitations of that framework in relation to the lack of local knowledge input,

recognition of population diversity, insufficient emphasis on sustainable development,

relative disregard for gender issues, and problems associated with small scale.

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DRIVING FORCES OF DEVELOPMENT CHANGE: CASE OF A CARRIBEAN ISLAND

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