Mangroves: Our Guardians of the Coast
Created in 1948
• World's first & largest global conservation
organization,
• Over 1,200 member organizations in >150
countries including 200+ government and
800+ non-government organizations,
• Over 11,000 voluntary scientists and
experts, grouped under Six Commissions,
• Secretariat, HQs in Switzerland, with
offices worldwide,
• Funded by governments, bilateral and
multilateral agencies, foundations, member
organizations and corporations,
• Official Observer Status at the United
Nations General Assembly.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature
VisionA just world that values and conserves nature
The International Union for Conservation of Nature
MissionTo influence, encourage and assist societies throughout the world to conserve the integrity and diversity of nature and to ensure that any use of natural resources is equitable andecologically sustainable
Introduction to Mangroves
A mangrove is a tree, shrub, palm or ground fern, generally exceeding one half metre in height, that normally grows above mean sea level in the intertidal zone of marine coastal environments and estuarine margins.
The physical environment of a mangrove ecosystem includes
• waterways (estuaries, creeks, canals, lagoons, and back waters),
• mudflats,
• Salt pans,
• Islands
And is often highly saline and frequently inundated by the tidal action.
Interactions in
coastal
ecosystems
showing the
connections
between
mangroves, sea-
grass beds and
coral reefs
Ecosystem Services of Mangrove
Forests
• Provisioning (e.g., timber, fuel wood, and charcoal),
• Regulating (e.g., flood, storm and erosion control; prevention of salt water intrusion),
• Habitat (e.g., breeding, spawning and nursery habitat for commercial fish species; biodiversity), and
• Cultural services (e.g., recreation, aesthetic, non-use)Source: TEEB, 2010
Products, services and functions
Mangrove ecosystemsShoreline stabilization
Storm protection
Water quality
Micro-climate stabilization
Groundwater recharge and discharge
Flood and flow control
Sediment and nutrient retention
Habitat protection and biodiversity
Biomass, productivity and resilience
Gene bank
Recreation, tourism and culture
Hunting and fishing
Forestry products
Water transport
Source: Baan (1997)
Mangroves1 provide a number valuable ecosystem services that contribute
to human wellbeing, including
Mangroves in India
• Mangroves in India cover an area of 4,628 km2 (0.14% of India’s
geographical area)
• This accounts for approx. 3% of the world’s mangrove vegetation
• West Bengal has the highest cover (2,155 km2), followed by Gujarat
(1,058 km2) and Andhra Pradesh (352 km2)
• The Sundarbans, spanning across West Bengal and Bangladesh, is
the largest contiguous block of mangroves in the world
• Threats to mangroves in India include deforestation and degradation
due to rapid urbanisation, industrialisation, pollution, reduction in
fresh water flows, and reclamation of land for other uses.
• Change in total mangrove cover over time, in India:
Year 1987 1995 2003 2013
Cover
(km2)4046 4533 4448 4628
Distribution of Mangroves in India
Source : Chellamani et al, Assessment of the health status of Indian mangrove
ecosystems using multi temporal remote sensing data Tropical Ecology 55(2): 245-253, 2014
Key Mangrove areas in India
Mangrove Cover Assessment in
States/UTs
(Area in sq.km)
Source: India’s State of Forest Report, 2013
Mangrove Cover Assessment2013
(Area in sq.km)
Source: India’s State of Forest Report, 2013
• Area under mangroves in 2013 assessment shows a net
decrease of 34 sq km over 2011 figure of 4663 Sq km
• Very dense mangrove cover is 29.2% of total
• Moderately dense mangroves is 31.49 %
• Open mangroves constitute 39.3 %
• State wise Very dense mangroves are found in West Bengal, A&N Islands and Odisha
• Gujarat is the only state to have shown an increase in mangrove cover
Potential restoration sites:
Districts showing loss in mangrove cover
• Bhavnagar, Gujarat
• Kendrapara, Odisha
• Medinipur and South 24 Parganas, West Bengal
• Andaman, A&N Islands
States with more open mangroves
• Kerala
• Karnataka
• Goa
Mangrove Species status
• IUCN categories
CR= Critically endangered, EN=Endangered, VU= Vulnerable, LR= Lower risk;
• Occurence
a= Abundant (81-100%), f=Frequent(61-80%), c=Common (31-60%), r= Rare (1-30%), — Not present
• Coastal States/UTs
WB=West Bengal, O=Odisha, AP=Andhra Pradesh, TN=Tamil Nadu, A&N=Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Gu=Gujarat,
G=Goa M=Maharashtra,KAR=Karnataka, K=Kerala
Mangrove Species Status
• 69 species- 39 true mangrove species and 30 associate
species
• Highest diversity in Odisha of 60 species
• 11 species Critically Endangered, 15 species
Endangered, 11 species Vulnerable
• Only 2 species are Lower Risk
• 10 out of 39 species have very restricted distribution
• Of the 11 globally threatened mangroves, two species
are found in India, viz., Sonneratia griffithii and Heritierafomes
Threats to Mangroves
Ecosystem Services of Mangrove-
Some valuations
• The total economic value of Gujarat mangroves is pegged at USD
498.54 million ha./year and North Malabar at USD 10,960 per
ha./year.
• The recreation value of the Indian Sunderbans is estimated at USD
3,77,000 per year.
• The storm protection value of Kendrappa mangrove forests in
Odisha was calculated at USD 79,504 per km width of the forest
during the super cyclone of 1999.
• It is estimated that the Indian Sunderbans absorb more than 41.5
million tonnes carbon dioxide daily
Mangrove Health
Mean percentage of mangrove health class for 10 years (1999 - 2008)
for each state/UT
Source : Chellamani et al, Assessment of the health status of Indian mangrove
ecosystems using multi temporal remote sensing data Tropical Ecology 55(2): 245-253
Mangroves for the FutureSpecial meeting on MFF Gender Advisory Panel; 27 August 2014
Mangroves for the FutureStrengthening resilience of ecosystem-dependent coastal communities
Local fishers along the Chumphon river © MFF Thailand
The Beginning: “Build Back Better”
.
In 2006, after the Indian Ocean Tsunami, IUCN, the
International Union for Conservation of Nature, and the
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
developed the initiative,
Mangroves for the Future (MFF)
with the vision that natural infrastructure and
strengthening resilience can protect against
future natural disasters.
Since then, MFF has grown to include eight
institutional partners, plus 11 countries. US President Bill Clinton,
UN Special Envoy for Tsunami
Recovery, acclaimed MFF as one of the
most responsive initiatives of the post-
tsunami period.
Mangroves for the Future:
Vision and Goal
Healthy coastal ecosystems for a more prosperous and secure future for all coastal communities
Resilience of ecosystem dependant coastal communities strengthened
Mangroves are a flagship
ecosystem, but MFF is inclusive of
all coastal ecosystems
Coral reefsEstuariesSeagrass Sand dunes
Where MFF works
(geographical scope and countries)
Members: Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Maldives, Myanmar, Pakistan, Seychelles, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Viet Nam
Outreach: Malaysia
Dialogue: Kenya and Tanzania
MFF is co-chaired by IUCN and UNDP, and is funded by Danida, Norad and Sida.
EXAMPLES OF MFF IN INDIA
MFF work with mangroves
Restoration and Rehabilitation
• Over 50 acres of mangrove forest
restored through community-led
sustainable management and
conservation in Odisha, Gujarat and
Tamil Nadu.
• Over 1800 local community members
trained in mangrove restoration
techniques
• Ecological assessments of mangrove
communities conducted for State
Forest Dep. in Ratnagiri
(Maharashtra), Bhitarkanika (Odisha)
and the Sundarbans (West Bengal)
MFF work with mangroves
Livelihoods
• 210 men, & women from SHGs in Sundarbans trained in
integrated mangrove fish-farming systems; 50kg of fish is
yielding INR 7,500
• Integrated mangrove-fishery farming systems developed for
15 marginalised & landless families from the Yenadi tribe in
Andhra Pradesh.
MFF work with mangroves
Governance
• A corporate-community model
for mangrove restoration in
the Gulf of Kachchh is being
piloted
• Village Mangrove Councils
established in Odisha under
local Panchyats, for
community-based
management of mangroves
• Conducted regional
colloquium for sharing lessons
on scientifically-sound
mangrove restoration
India small grant project:
Integrated Mangrove Fishery Farming Systems
(IMFFS)
• MFF designed a brackish
water and mangrove-based
farming system
• Fed by tidal water, making
pumps unnecessary
• High mangrove survival rate
(92%) , high survival rate of
sea bass fingerlings (60%)
• Aquaculture Authority of India
exploring possibility of eco-
labeling IMFFS products
Information resources across countries
Sharing our work online:
Read more projects from MFF Website
www.mangrovesforthefuture.org
• Collaborative content
management with countries
• Quick glance at MFF Grant
Facilities
• Easy access to MFF
publications, images and
videos
• Social Media integrated
THANK YOU