An ecosystem approach to cave management : Għar Dalam and Għar ta' l-Iburdan case studies

Abstract

On a global scale, little importance is given to cave management and conservation to date and applied research specifically targeting cave management practices is widely lacking. This is also the case in the Maltese Islands. This study aims to investigate local cave management practices and conservation measures in an integrated manner. The premise of the study is that effective cave management can be achieved through the utilization of the ecosystem approach to management, which is geographically specified, adaptive, based on ecosystem knowledge and uncertainties, considers multiple external influences and aims to bring forth and balance wide-ranging societal objectives. In this study, a Cave Ecosystem Management Framework is developed that integrates the scientific study of the cave sites within a complex socio-political value context, which is characterized hy the perspectives, interests, concerns and values of a broad representation of cave stakeholders. The methodology is divided into three integrative stages: physical analysis, socio-economic analysis, and evaluation of management effectiveness of two case studies, whose findings are used to draw up management recommendations for the caves of Għar Dalam and Għar ta' l Iburdan. Both caves under study are Special Areas of Conservation (SAC), forming partof the EU NATURA 2000 Framework. Data were collected from a variety of sources including interviews, qnestionnnires, An alysis of relevant literature and field observations. This study shows that the local cave ecosystems can be managed through an ecological approach, as illustrated by the developed Cave Ecosystem Management Framework. This framework enabled the researcher to investigate cave ecosystems in a systematic, integrated and collaborative manner, thus giving cave management and conservation a management structure which is presently missing. This study also highlights that local ccave ecosystems are integral and valuable components of the natural and archaeological heritage of the Maltese Islands but they are largely unknown to the public. Furthermore, local caves are also subject to a wide range of threats, pressures and impacts, which are resulting in a situation where management of local caves is minimally satisfactory to unsatisfactory to virtually inexistent.