Designing an integrated coastal orientation index: A cross-comparison of Mexican municipalities

To better understand the relation between coastal areas and their influence on social and economic conditions of municipalities, a set of indexes were developed to characterize coastal Mexico with an interdisciplinary approach. The composite of these bio-physical, social and economic indexes is referred to as an “integrated coastal orientation index”. Coastal characteristics should be taken into account in the coastal management policy formulation of a given region, and this index can be used to identify key areas for environmental protection or economic development at a national level. The results suggest that municipalities must manage their coastal jurisdictions, a large and diverse array of coastal space and ecosystems, medium to weak spatial demographics and settlement structures, infrastructure to improve quality of life, an overall low coastal population income, and various coastal activities. Spatial heterogeneity along the littoral zone in the coastal orientation led us to conduct a state analysis. We discuss these values and identify five highly coastal-orientated states in the extremes of the country. The development of this tool could help to pin-point different types of key areas within the regions studied and provide a tool to guide regional priorities. As an example, using a combination of extreme values of bio-physical, social and economic indexes was used to identify specific municipalities as candidates for environmental protection and others as areas where development can continue. Choices of indexes are discussed, and the relative importance given to each component of the coastal orientation (rather bio-physical, social and/or economic) will define the course of the coast's development and its sustainability.