MAP News Issue 414 – April 15, 2017

AFRICA

A Story Of Regeneration And Reforestation From Eritrea

ERITREA – The application and potential benefits of circular economy thinking have been widely described in the European context. What has been less commonly explored is the application in lower income countries such as those in sub-Saharan Africa. During 1998 – 2003, a remarkable project took place in the tiny desert country of Eritrea that showcased a systems thinking approach to the development of seawater-based agriculture in an arid coastal zone leading to big profits, a revitalised environment and the creation of many jobs. Can this project be replicated to breathe life into some of the other 25,000 miles of poor coastal desert around the world? Since gaining its independence in 1991, Eritrea has experienced many upheavals both social and economic. The location of the young country in a very arid part of the horn of Africa, with high temperatures, low rainfall and poor soil conditions, mean that cultivation of food crops or indeed any kind of agriculture is very difficult. However between 1998 – 2003, a new type of farming enterprise unfolded in this hot dry corner of the continent, that could be a model for the economic, environmental and social revitalisation for many other similar climatic zones around the world. This is a story about how human intelligence and photosynthesis combined to create abundance and natural regeneration in a place where previously only sand, seawater and sunlight existed. READ MORE

ASIA

Mangrove Cell sits still over complaints

INDIA – Despite receiving a letter almost a month back from Plants and Animals Welfare Society (PAWS) about alleged destruction of mangroves, the Mangrove Cell has allegedly not been taking action against people damaging the ‘protected forest’ of Kandivali and Gorai. The Cell has failed to take even a single step against the illegal destruction of mangroves in these areas. According to PAWS, the mangroves in the areas of Manori—Gorai belt are being destroyed through various means. The organization in March had written a letter informing the Cell about the alleged destruction of the mangroves by cutting, destroying, building bund to stop water flow, releasing sewage lines and dumping garbage at Charkop and Gorai areas. In a letter to the Mangrove Cell, suburban collector and local ward officer, PAWS—Mumbai identified two locations with ongoing construction work within mangrove forests, which is a violation of environment laws and Bombay high court (HC) rules. READ MORE

Why the momentum for mangroves?

SRI LANKA – The Global Resilience Partnership announced the winners of its Water Window Challenge, in which 12 projects will share $10 million to tackle flooding in vulnerable areas. One of those organizations was Seacology, a nonprofit environmental conservation organization dedicated to preserving the habitats and cultures of islands, which will use the nearly $1 million grant to expand its work to conserve mangroves in northern and eastern Sri Lanka. A partnership between Seacology, the Sri Lankan NGO Sudeesa, and the Sri Lankan government led this island nation to became the first country in the world to comprehensively protect all of its mangrove forests. “Mangroves are really the unsung heroes of conservation,” Duane Silverstein, the executive director of Seacology, told Devex from his office in Berkeley, California. He said that Sri Lanka could serve as a model for other countries, at a moment when scientific consensus is building about the importance of mangroves — and the international community is acting on that information. READ MORE

AMERICAS

Greenhouse gas effect caused by mangrove forest conversion is quite significant

HONDURAS – Clear-cutting of tropical mangrove forests to create shrimp ponds and cattle pastures contributes significantly to the greenhouse gas effect, one of the leading causes of global warming, new research suggests. A seven-year study, led by Oregon State University and the Center for International Forestry Research, spanned five countries across the topics from Indonesia to the Dominican Republic. The researchers concluded that mangrove conversion to agricultural uses resulted in a land-use carbon footprint of 1,440 pounds of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere for the production of every pound of beef; and 1,603 pounds of released carbon dioxide for every pound of shrimp. "On a personal scale, this means a typical steak and shrimp cocktail dinner produced through mangrove conversion would burden the atmosphere with 1,795 pounds of carbon dioxide," said J. Boone Kauffman, an ecologist at Oregon State University who led the study. "This is approximately the same amount of greenhouse gases produced by driving a fuel-efficient automobile from Los Angeles to New York City." READ MORE

Using satellite technology to map Mangroves
USA -Mangroves are among the most biologically important ecosystems on the planet, and a common feature of tropical and sub-tropical coastlines. But ground-based evidence suggests these vital coastal forests have been strained in many regions because of harvesting for food, fuel, and medicine. Now, scientists have used satellite images to compile the most comprehensive map of mangroves worldwide, which should help in future efforts in monitoring and conservation. These maps show the location and relative density of mangroves, which cover roughly 137,760 square kilometers (53,190 square miles) of Earth’s surface. The forests can be found in 118 different countries and territories, though nearly 75 percent of their area occurs in just 15 countries.he effort to create the maps was led by Chandra Giri of the U.S. Geological Survey and published recently in the journal Global Ecology and Biogeography. Using digital image classification techniques, the research team compiled and analyzed more than 1,000 scenes from the Landsat series of satellites. READ MORE

Ill health of mangroves on Greer Island points to bigger issue

USA – On a Friday afternoon on Greer Island, also known as Beer Can Island, Bob Bunting is surrounded by mangroves — many of which look like sticks in the ground, barren of leaves or other signs of life. Bunting, a former National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration official, affirms these mangroves are dead, or at least suffering. While mangroves remain dense and flourishing in much of the area on and surrounding Greer Island, the sliver of land that connects the “island” to Longboat Key, it is also home to many dead or dying mangroves. Bunting, who lives nearby at 360 North, said erosion is to blame for the declining health of the plants. READ MORE

Mangroves To Gain Forestry Dept's Protection

JAMAICA – AS CRITICAL as they are to Jamaica's defence against climate change, the effects of which are already being seen or felt on the island – from extreme drought conditions to coastal erosion – mangrove forests may appear quite unremarkable. But the Forestry Department knows better, itself understanding the value of mangroves as not only an essential ingredient to the response to climate impacts, notably for coastal protection, but also as a habitat for a variety of in particular juvenile marine life. To that end, the entity is looking to take mangroves under its wings with the implementation of the new National Forest Management and Conservation Plan (NFMCP) now near completion. "Mangrove is one of the important forest types we assessed in our and Land Use Change Assessment. However, the Agency was not actively addressed issues relating to mangroves management and protection due to its limited capacity," said Francine Black Richards, senior manager for public relations and corporate communications in a written response to queries from The Gleaner.READ MORE

EUROPE

Declining mangroves shield against global warming

FRANCE – Mangroves, which have declined by up to half over the last 50 years, are an important bulkhead against climate change, a study released on Sunday has shown for the first time. Destruction of these tropical coastal woodlands accounts for about 10 percent of carbon dioxide emissions from deforestation, the second largest source of CO2 after fossil fuel combustion, the study found. Fewer trees not only mean less CO2 absorbed from the air, but also the release of carbon stocks that have been accumulating in shallow-water sediment over millennia. Mangroves — whose twisted, exposed roots grace coastlines in more than 100 countries — confer many benefits on humans living in their midst. The brackish tidal waters in which the trees thrive are a natural nursery for dozens of species of fish and shrimp essential to commercial fisheries around the world. Another major "ecosystem service," in the jargon of environmental science, is protection from hurricanes and storm surges. Cyclone Nargis, which killed 138,000 people in Myanmar in 2008, would have been less deadly, experts say, if half the country's mangroves had not been ripped up for wood or to make way for shrimp farms. READ MORE

LAST WORD

I appreciate the news I get here. I've shared the article on the successful work being done in Iloilo with my Facebook friends including my Peace Corps friends and counterparts working in Coastal Resource Management in the Philippines.

Spreading the word through social media will I'm sure reach them more effectively than the local news. In my municipality of Inopacan, Leyte, mangrove restoration work has been going on for many years with various rates of success. We have a kilometer elevated bamboo boardwalk through a mangrove wetland area. One of my first assignments was to identify mangrove species. My counterparts thought there were two species and we found ten!

There are ongoing problems with vandalism to the boardwalk and cutting mangroves even though it's illegal. Funding for law enforcement is scarce. Getting revenue from eco-tourism is always the hope. It takes a long time to create a plan,get approval, find funding, get the work done to establish a site and keep it going, as noted in this article.

Much gratitude to MAP for your great work.

Valli Sanstrom