What counts in making marine protected areas (MPAs) count? The role of legitimacy in MPA success in Canada

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are powerful management tools used worldwide for conserving marine species and habitats. Yet, many MPAs fail to achieve their management objectives because of shortfalls in understanding the level of legitimacy stakeholders afford to an MPA. Legitimacy refers to the ability of a political action, in this case an MPA, to be perceived as right and just by the various people who are involved, interested, and/or affected by it. Using responses from key stakeholders and managers at two coastal MPAs in Atlantic Canada, this study examined the importance of various factors shaping perceptions of MPA effectiveness and the role of legitimacy in influencing those perceptions. Results indicate that most indicators of legitimacy are important to stakeholders for MPA effectiveness. Specifically, there was consensus across case studies on the importance of community leadership and the establishment of trust in determining the level of legitimacy afforded to MPAs. However key differences in perceptions were evident from stakeholders both between and within groups, and between stakeholders and MPA managers. A novel legitimacy framework and a stakeholder-vetted suite of indicators for legitimacy are presented and recommended for use by MPA managers in assessing the legitimacy of coastal MPAs, before, during and after MPA designation. The results provide an increased understanding of stakeholders' perceptions of legitimacy, giving managers key additional information needed to establish effective MPAs in the future.