ACB: There’s high hopes for mangroves in Asean
‘UNCERTAIN future looms for Philippine, Southeast Asian mangroves,” said the headline of a news release from University of the Philippines-diliman College of Science (UPD-CS) scientists, who conducted a comprehensive survey of over 300 mangrove studies across the Philippines and the rest of Southeast Asia.
The survey said the Philippines is the second worst country in the Asean in terms of mangrove losses, suffering a 10.5-percent decline between 1990 and 2010, citing independent studies included in the survey.
The Philippines is surpassed only by Myanmar, which suffered a 27.6 percent loss between 2000 and 2014, the survey undertaken by UP PH.D. Biology student Maria Elisa Gerona-daga and Institute of Biology Associate Professor Dr. Severino Salmo III revealed.
Stark wake-up call
ACCORDING to the UPD-CS scientists, the findings are a stark wakeup call, given the international declaration from 2021 to 2030 as the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, that aimed at preventing, stopping and reversing the degradation of ecosystems worldwide.
“With the countdown well-underway of existing mangrove restoration, research helps identify ways to achieve the [Southeast Asia] region’s restoration targets and safeguard their biodiversity,” the scientists added.
The study, titled “A systematic review of mangrove restoration studies in Southeast Asia: Challenges and Opportunities for the United Nation’s Decade on Ecosystem Restoration,” provides a systematic and quantitative synthesis of 335 mangrove restoration studies in the region that were published before February 2022.
The investigation has also identified regional successes and failures in mangrove restorations.
Recommendations
GERONA-DAGA and Salmo suggested five priority topics for improving the science and practice of mangrove restoration to realize the UN’S targets by 2030.
These are: restoration areas and methods; mangrove restoration in climate change adaptation and mitigation programs; monitoring recoveries of biodiversity and ecosystem services; policies, governance, and community engagement; and strengthening of the Asean network.
Among others, the UPD-CS scientists and researchers proposed to add more mangrove faunal and floral species as bases for selecting and prioritizing sites for restoration, thereby furthering the UN’S biodiversity goals and potentially generating useful data on genetic diversity.
Important ecosystem
MANGROVE forest ecosystems provide the ideal environment for a large variety of animals ranging from mammals, birds, reptiles to fish, crab, shrimp and mollusk species to live and thrive, according to the Asean Centre for Biodiversity.
They also serve as nurseries for many fish species.
Mangroves also provide natural defense against storm surges and protection to coastal communities and are good carbon sink, reducing, if not limiting, greenhouse gas emission into the atmosphere.
Earth’s secret weapons
“MANGROVE forests are some of Planet Earth’s ‘secret weapons’ in stopping climate change,” said Best Alternatives Director Gregg Yan.
“Their branches, leaves and roots passively absorb and store incredible amounts of carbon dioxide. The 2020 book, Carbon-based Material for Environmental Protection and Remediation, states that mangal or mangrove forests store three to four times more carbon dioxide per hectare than terrestrial or land-based forests,” Yan told the Businessmirror via email on January 25.
According to Yan, some estimates even claim that mangroves absorb up to 10 times more carbon dioxide than other forest types.
Unfortunately, the world’s mangrove forests have receded due to continuing coastal development, clearing for brackishwater aquaculture, charcoal-mining and other destructive activities.
Fortunately, there are numerous sustainable alternatives to these threats, from switching to briquettes made from pressed corn husks to promoting mangrove forests as preferential tourist destinations, especially for birdwatchers.
“Once considered fetid swamps, we should look at the protection of the world’s mangroves as one of our best answers to the ongoing climate crisis,” he pointed out.
Alarming problem
RONNEL ARAMBULO, Pamalakaya national spokesman, said the UPD-CS study should raise an alarm to the national government and its agencies concerned with the environment.
“This reflects the previous administrations’ neglect to preserve and protect our marine and coastal resources. Mangroves are crucial to coastal and marine biodiversity, as they serve as habitat of a wide array of fish species,” Arambulo told the Business Mirror via Messenger on January 20.
According to Arambulo, the Marcos Jr. administration should direct the Department of Environment and natural Resources (DENR) to seriously and immediately take on the problem.
“Specifically, we call on the DENR to reject all forms of coastal destruction activities, such as reclamation. We have yet to hear from DENR Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo-loyzaga on her stand on this environmentally destructive project since she took the post,” he pointed out.
Ray of hope
ON a positive note, ACB Executive Director Theresa Mundita S. Lim said members of the Asean, including the Philippines, are very much aware of the challenges brought by the degradation of the coastal and marine environment, including the shrinking mangrove forest cover.
“Though there indeed have been a decline of healthy mangrove areas in Southeast Asia, efforts have not been scarce to protect the remaining mangroves and restore degraded mangrove ecosystems in the Asean as reflected in the Asean Biodiversity Outlook 3, which was recently launched at the CBD COP15 [Convention of Biological Diversity 15th Conference of Parties] in Montreal [in December 2022],” Lim told the Business Mirror via Messenger on January 30 when asked to comment on the UPD-CS report.
According to Lim, the increased awareness of Asean member states (AMS) on the value of mangroves as ecosystem-based adaptation measure against climate change impacts has accelerated restoration initiatives. This already take into account various science-based methods to rehabilitate damaged and degraded mangrove areas.
“Because of these, the ACB has high hopes for mangroves in the Asean, and will continue to support existing efforts of the AMS in protecting and restoring their mangrove areas, in line with the Asean Green Initiative as well as their commitments to achieve the objectives of the Kunming-montreal Global Biodiversity Framework,” she said.
Encouraging scenario
THE ACB’S compilation of AMS efforts to restore and rehabilitate mangrove ecosystems provides a positive and encouraging scenario of the mangroves in the Asean.
For instance, a report by the Provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment in Thua Thien Hue province in Vietnam’s northern coast, stated that from 2015 onward, 23 fishery community-based protection zones with total land area of 6.14 square kilometres were established in Tam Giang and Cau Hai lagoons.
Local fishermen have been actively supporting this community-based management model and followed the development plan and guidelines for implementation
The ACB report also revealed that Myanmar’s community forestry-based enterprises underscore best practices like the nationwide greening of dry zones and forest landscape restoration, promotion of biodiversity, mangrove rehabilitation and coastal management, and reform strategy to boost private sector investments in social forestry/community forestry.
Ecosystem approach
MALAYSIA and the Philippines enhanced conservation efforts by implementing the Ecosystem Approach for Fisheries Management, which entails the monitoring and rehabilitation of coral cover and coastal mangroves.
Myanmar is moving toward sustainable forestry through a certification system. Fisherfolks have accelerated the use of sustainable techniques at all aquaculture sites. These efforts are complemented with mangroves reclamation, provision of extension services, and capacity building.
In the framework of its National Voluntary Land Degradation Neutrality Targets and Measures, Cambodia targets to maintain and enhance ecosystems and their services by inter alia restoring at least 8 percent of degraded and depressed protected areas, conservation areas, agroecosystems, and forest ecosystems including mangroves.
These targets are operationalised in three provinces (Kampong Thom, Preah Vihear and Siem Reap), where Forest Landscape Restoration and Restoration Opportunities Assessment Methodology approach are being implemented.
Increasing mangrove forest
AMID the bleak situation gathered by the UPD-CS scientists, the Philippines’ mangrove forest cover and mangrove cover within forest lands have increased by a total of 1,852.5 square kilometres from 2010 to 2015.
“This may have stemmed from interventions that were introduced to address mangrove rehabilitation in 2014, when the government included the Mangrove and Beach Forest Development Project as a component program under the National Greening Program,” the ACB report said, citing the Philippines own country-report.
“Singapore has also undertaken mangrove restoration projects after it observed many of its important mangrove sites to be undergoing severe erosion,” the ACB report added.
One such site is on Pulau Tekong, which is home to one of Singapore’s largest remaining patches of mangrove habitat, stretching about 3 kilometres along the offshore island’s coast, with a size of approximately 0.92 square kilometres.
Continuing mangrove conservation initiatives
AMS continue to support mangrove conservation initiatives throughout the region, the Asean report said.
For instance, Malaysia’s permanent forest estate now includes 5,440.32 square kilometres of mangroves, with five sites designated as Ramsar Sites, or wetlands of international importance.
In Thailand, a community beekeeping enterprise was established in Nai Nang Village, Krabi province to aid in the conservation efforts of mangroves around their village as well as to provide alternative sources of income to villagers.
In Indonesia, a mangrove conservation project in the Mootilango Village, Gorontalo province, involves five women groups, of which 50 members were trained in mangrove-based food processing as an alternative source of income.