Community Based Mangrove Management

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Community Based Mangrove Management (CBMM) is a sustainable approach for conserving the rapidly disappearing mangrove forests. It can be defined as community driven management and rehabilitation of mangrove forests involving resource users in the management process directly. CBMM decentralizes authority and power from government to local communities. The dual aim of CBMM is the ongoing conservation of mangroves and generation of sustainable livelihood.

Contents

Mangroves are productive biological habitats which have been degraded rapidly. The major reasons for degradation of this valuable ecosystem include deforestation, pollution, unsustainable harvesting practices and other land use changes. Anthropogenic and climatic factors are threatening this valuable ecosystem which makes conservation and management of mangroves of prime importance. Scientists observed that community managed mangroves have remarkable recovery potential [1] and local people are effective stewards for management of these resources. Community restoration of mangroves is now widely advocated as a solution for conservation of these valuable ecosystems. [2]

History

Traditionally local communities managed the mangroves but during the colonial and post-colonial periods these forests came under the control of state government which gave incentive to farming and other land use changes. Due to complete control of government over these forests, local communities were alienated and started perceiving these forests as extra source of income. [3] Hence, indiscriminate farming and intense logging destroyed this valuable ecosystem. [4] The indigenous knowledge of local communities has been recognized by government and other funding agencies three decades ago, bringing about a shift in conservation and management approaches of mangroves.

Due to past failures of national and state government in the effective management of mangrove ecosystem, the importance of local communities in preserving this ecosystem is being realized lately. The government is no longer recognized as primary steward - involvement of communities and their traditional knowledge is being appreciated and promoted. Policies and programs are framed considering the active role and participation of the local community. The distinct difference between government and community led initiatives in mangrove conservation can be seen in Pondicherry, India. The sites planted based on knowledge of locals ( Rhizophora ) are found to be more effective during Indian Tsunami compared to the government planted mangrove species ( Avicennia ). [3]

CBMM and sustainability

The primary function of CBMM initiatives is identification of sustainable management methodologies. A system dedicated completely to the conservation of biodiversity or a practice committed to greater economic benefits is not appropriate for long term sustainability of the CBMM approach. Hence, ecological, economic and social sustainability need to be considered for the holistic success of CBMM programs.

Ecological Sustainability

Although government and agencies have been conducting the reforestation projects for many years, the ecological perspective is still absent from these projects. The major motivation for management was increased timber and charcoal production, ignoring ecological benefits of mangrove forests. The essential steps for mangrove regeneration are - identification of degraded mangrove site, selection of appropriate rehabilitation sites, timely plantation of seedlings, regular monitoring of outcomes and conservation of mangrove stands. [3] An optimized land use plan should be implemented giving balanced attention to mangrove protection, shrimp ponds, infrastructure, agriculture development, coastal fisheries, and biodiversity conservation.

Economic Sustainability

Any CBMM initiative depends upon the willingness to pay (WTP) of local communities. The success is assessed by the awareness of community on the benefits offered by the mangroves and the initial investment of capital and labor is determined by the communities themselves. [5] Mangrove products are the main source of income for coastal communities who are generally financially backward and marginal ones. People use mangroves for fuel wood, construction material but these activities become unsustainable over time due to exploitation and over-utilization of mangroves and natural resources. [6] One of the major obstacles in implementing the sustainable management mangroves is their undervaluation due to institutional failures. It is important for government agencies to recognize the importance of CBMM initiatives, as the value provided by the mangroves like coastal protection and erosion control minimizes investment on expensive civil engineering projects, thus making mangroves an economically viable solution. There is also a difference in perception from one community to another regarding the valuation of mangrove ecosystems. For example, in Mexico, local communities in one area give importance to mangrove ecological services like fisheries and storm protection while the other community give importance to traditional wood-based activities. [3]

Social Sustainability

Community participation, quality of life, social space, social capital, and social norms are the social components of the mangrove management. In addition to this, mangrove habitats have given rise to a diversity of cultural and aesthetic effects for coastal communities. The reduction of socio-economic vulnerability is important for success of CBMM program. Improvement in social structures by providing basic amenities, livelihood opportunities, and improving education and health is important for success. Hence, social welfare is necessary for the success of CBMM programs. [3]

Case Studies

Colombia

The mangroves have been illegally cleared in the Iscuande River delta which is home to Afro-Colombian communities. The mangroves in this area were cleared for firewood and other uses, threatening mollusk populations. In 2012 a conservation agreement was signed between Conservation International and Afro-Colombian communities to maintain 12,000 hectares of mangroves. Under the agreement, the community agreed to carry out sustainable harvesting of the mollusks, and women will carry out daily monitoring and data collection activities. In return they will get daily wages and development of local community infrastructure. [7]

Thailand

With a high success rate, Thailand adopted CBMM programs in 1980s. The successful CBMM programs maintained more than 2000 sq. km of mangrove cover and were awarded the ‘Green Globe Award’ in 1995-2005. State agencies modified legislation and allocated financial assistance to local communities. The major reason for the success of CBMM in Thailand is the voluntary participation of locals in the program which were further strengthened by support of suitable technologies. [8]

India

CBMM initiatives date back to the 1990s in India. Indian states initiated the Joint Forest Management (JFM) program under which village institutions operates. The duties for conservation and protection of mangrove are shared jointly by the government-run forest department and the communities. [9]

Tanzania

Tanzania started CBMM programming in 1990s with moderate success. The USAID program provided funding to carry out this program through Community Forest Management Groups (CFMGs) and Coastal Resource Management Committees (CRMCs). Under this program logging permits are provided by CFMGs with a control in logging activity (Chotthong and Aksornkoae, 2006). [10]

Ghana

The study in Volta estuary of Ghana indicates the primary motivation for participants in conservation and management of mangroves are livelihood and economic benefits. Institutional arrangements are shown to be effective for mangrove restoration and management with high economic returns. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mangrove</span> Shrub growing in brackish water

A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows mainly in coastal saline or brackish water. Mangroves grow in an equatorial climate, typically along coastlines and tidal rivers. They have special adaptations to take in extra oxygen and to remove salt, which allow them to tolerate conditions that would kill most plants. The term is also used for tropical coastal vegetation consisting of such species. Mangroves are taxonomically diverse, as a result of convergent evolution in several plant families. They occur worldwide in the tropics and subtropics and even some temperate coastal areas, mainly between latitudes 30° N and 30° S, with the greatest mangrove area within 5° of the equator. Mangrove plant families first appeared during the Late Cretaceous to Paleocene epochs, and became widely distributed in part due to the movement of tectonic plates. The oldest known fossils of mangrove palm date to 75 million years ago.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Forestation</span>

Forestation is a vital ecological process where forests are established and grown through afforestation and reforestation efforts. Afforestation involves planting trees on previously non-forested lands, while reforestation focuses on replanting trees in areas that were once deforested. This process plays an important role in restoring degraded forests, enhancing ecosystems, promoting carbon sequestration, and biodiversity conservation.

Adaptive management, also known as adaptive resource management or adaptive environmental assessment and management, is a structured, iterative process of robust decision making in the face of uncertainty, with an aim to reducing uncertainty over time via system monitoring. In this way, decision making simultaneously meets one or more resource management objectives and, either passively or actively, accrues information needed to improve future management. Adaptive management is a tool which should be used not only to change a system, but also to learn about the system. Because adaptive management is based on a learning process, it improves long-run management outcomes. The challenge in using the adaptive management approach lies in finding the correct balance between gaining knowledge to improve management in the future and achieving the best short-term outcome based on current knowledge. This approach has more recently been employed in implementing international development programs.

The Lower Guinean forests also known as the Lower Guinean-Congolian forests, are a region of coastal tropical moist broadleaf forest in West Africa, extending along the eastern coast of the Gulf of Guinea from eastern Benin through Nigeria and Cameroon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Natural resource management</span>

Natural resource management (NRM) is the management of natural resources such as land, water, soil, plants and animals, with a particular focus on how management affects the quality of life for both present and future generations (stewardship).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earthwatch Institute</span> Scientific field research institute

Earthwatch Institute is an international environmental charity. It was founded in 1971 as Educational Expeditions International by Bob Citron and Clarence Truesdale. Earthwatch Institute supports Ph.D. researchers internationally and conducts over 100,000 hours of research annually using the Citizen Science methodology. Earthwatch's mission statement states that the organization "connects people with scientists worldwide to conduct environmental research and empowers them with the knowledge they need to conserve the planet." As such, it is one of the global underwriters of scientific field research in climate change, archaeology, paleontology, marine life, biodiversity, ecosystems and wildlife. For over fifty years, Earthwatch has raised funds to recruit individuals, students, teachers, and corporate fellows to participate in field research to understand nature's response to accelerating global change.

Ecosystem-based management is an environmental management approach that recognizes the full array of interactions within an ecosystem, including humans, rather than considering single issues, species, or ecosystem services in isolation. It can be applied to studies in the terrestrial and aquatic environments with challenges being attributed to both. In the marine realm, they are highly challenging to quantify due to highly migratory species as well as rapidly changing environmental and anthropogenic factors that can alter the habitat rather quickly. To be able to manage fisheries efficiently and effectively it has become increasingly more pertinent to understand not only the biological aspects of the species being studied, but also the environmental variables they are experiencing. Population abundance and structure, life history traits, competition with other species, where the stock is in the local food web, tidal fluctuations, salinity patterns and anthropogenic influences are among the variables that must be taken into account to fully understand the implementation of a "ecosystem-based management" approach. Interest in ecosystem-based management in the marine realm has developed more recently, in response to increasing recognition of the declining state of fisheries and ocean ecosystems. However, due to a lack of a clear definition and the diversity involved with the environment, the implementation has been lagging. In freshwater lake ecosystems, it has been shown that ecosystem-based habitat management is more effective for enhancing fish populations than management alternatives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ecosystem management</span> Natural resource management

Ecosystem management is an approach to natural resource management that aims to ensure the long-term sustainability and persistence of an ecosystem's function and services while meeting socioeconomic, political, and cultural needs. Although indigenous communities have employed sustainable ecosystem management approaches implicitly for millennia, ecosystem management emerged explicitly as a formal concept in the 1990s from a growing appreciation of the complexity of ecosystems and of humans' reliance and influence on natural systems.

Community-based management (CBM) is a bottom up approach of organization which can be facilitated by an upper government or NGO structure but it aims for local stakeholder participation in the planning, research, development, management and policy making for a community as a whole. The decentralization of managing tactics enables local people to deal with the unique social, political and ecological problems their community might face and find solutions ideal to their situation. Overwhelming national or local economic, political and social pressures can affect the efficiency of CBM as well as its long term application. CBM varies across spatial and temporal scales to reflect the ever-changing distinctive physical and/or human environment it is acting within. While the specifics of each practice might differ, existing research maintains that community based management, when implemented properly, is incredibly beneficial not only for the health of the environment, but also for the well-being of the stakeholders.

Global mangrove distributions have fluctuated throughout human and geological history. The area covered by mangroves is influenced by a complex interaction between land position, rainfall hydrology, sea level, sedimentation, subsidence, storms and pest-predator relationships). In the last 50 years, human activities have strongly affected mangrove distributions, resulting in declines or expansions of worldwide mangrove area. Mangroves provide several important ecological services including coastal stabilization, juvenile fish habitats, and the filtration of sediment and nutrients). Mangrove loss has important implications for coastal ecological systems and human communities are dependent on healthy mangrove ecosystems. This article presents an overview of global mangrove forest biome trends in mangrove ecoregions distribution, as well as the cause of such changes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ecological values of mangroves</span>

Mangrove ecosystems represent natural capital capable of producing a wide range of goods and services for coastal environments and communities and society as a whole. Some of these outputs, such as timber, are freely exchanged in formal markets. Value is determined in these markets through exchange and quantified in terms of price. Mangroves are important for aquatic life and home for many species of fish.

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Blue Ventures is a registered charity focused on nurturing locally led marine conservation. The organisation partners with coastal communities that depend on marine resources.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Forest restoration</span>

Forest restoration is defined as "actions to re-instate ecological processes, which accelerate recovery of forest structure, ecological functioning and biodiversity levels towards those typical of climax forest", i.e. the end-stage of natural forest succession. Climax forests are relatively stable ecosystems that have developed the maximum biomass, structural complexity and species diversity that are possible within the limits imposed by climate and soil and without continued disturbance from humans. Climax forest is therefore the target ecosystem, which defines the ultimate aim of forest restoration. Since climate is a major factor that determines climax forest composition, global climate change may result in changing restoration aims. Additionally, the potential impacts of climate change on restoration goals must be taken into account, as changes in temperature and precipitation patterns may alter the composition and distribution of climax forests.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mangrove restoration</span> Ecosystem regeneration

Mangrove restoration is the regeneration of mangrove forest ecosystems in areas where they have previously existed. Restoration can be defined as "the process of assisting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, or destroyed." Mangroves can be found throughout coastal wetlands of tropical and subtropical environments. Mangroves provide essential ecosystem services such as water filtration, aquatic nurseries, medicinal materials, food, and lumber. Additionally, mangroves play a vital role in climate change mitigation through carbon sequestration and protection from coastal erosion, sea level rise, and storm surges. Mangrove habitat is declining due to human activities such as clearing land for industry and climate change. Mangrove restoration is critical as mangrove habitat continues to rapidly decline. Different methods have been used to restore mangrove habitat, such as looking at historical topography, or mass seed dispersal. Fostering the long-term success of mangrove restoration is attainable by involving local communities through stakeholder engagement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nature-based solutions</span> Sustainable management and use of nature for tackling socio-environmental challenges

Nature-based solutions is the sustainable management and use of natural processes to tackle socio-environmental issues. These issues include for example climate change mitigation and adaptation, water security, and disaster risk reduction. The aim is that resilient ecosystems provide solutions for the benefit of both societies and biodiversity. The 2019 UN Climate Action Summit highlighted nature-based solutions as an effective method to combat climate change. For example, nature-based systems for climate change adaptation can include natural flood management, restoring natural coastal defences, and providing local cooling.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Niger Delta mangroves</span> Mangrove forest within a deltaic depositional environment

Nigeria has extensive mangrove forests in the coastal region of the Niger Delta. Considered one of the most ecologically sensitive regions in the world, the Niger Delta mangrove forest is situated within a deltaic depositional environment. These mangrove forests serve a critical role in regional ecological and landscape composition, and support subsistence gathering practices, and market-based income opportunities. Anthropogenic development threatens the survival of Niger Delta mangrove populations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nigerian lowland forests</span> Ecoregion in Nigeria and Benin

The biogeographic regionalization of Earth's terrestrial biodiversity, known as Terrestrial Ecoregions of the World (TEOW), is made up of 867 ecoregions that are divided into 14 biomes. In addition to offering a comprehensive map of terrestrial biodiversity, TEOW also provides a global species database for ecological analyses and priority setting, a logical biogeographic framework for large-scale conservation strategies, a map for enhancing biogeographic literacy, and a foundation for the Global 200.

References

  1. ↑ Bosire, J.O.; Dahdouh-Guebas, F.; Walton, M.; Crona, B.I.; Lewis, R.R.; Field, C.; Kairo, J.G.; Koedam, N. (August 2008). "Functionality of restored mangroves: A review" (PDF). Aquatic Botany. 89 (2): 251–259. doi:10.1016/j.aquabot.2008.03.010. ISSN   0304-3770.
  2. ↑ Walters, Bradley B. (April 2004). "Local Management of Mangrove Forests in the Philippines: Successful Conservation or Efficient Resource Exploitation?". Human Ecology. 32 (2): 177–195. doi:10.1023/b:huec.0000019762.36361.48. ISSN   0300-7839. S2CID   155075764.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Datta, Debajit; Chattopadhyay, R.N.; Guha, P. (September 2012). "Community based mangrove management: A review on status and sustainability". Journal of Environmental Management. 107: 84–95. doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2012.04.013. ISSN   0301-4797. PMID   22595074.
  4. ↑ Zorini, L. Omodei; Contini, C.; Jiddawi, N.; Ochiewo, J.; Shunula, J.; Cannicci, S. (April 2004). "Participatory appraisal for potential community-based mangrove management in East Africa". Wetlands Ecology and Management. 12 (2): 87–102. doi:10.1023/b:wetl.0000021672.15252.54. hdl: 2158/351875 . ISSN   0923-4861. S2CID   22756341.[ dead link ]
  5. ↑ Wattage, Premachandra; Mardle, Simon (2007-12-28). "Total economic value of wetland conservation in Sri Lanka identifying use and non-use values". Wetlands Ecology and Management. 16 (5): 359–369. doi:10.1007/s11273-007-9073-3. ISSN   0923-4861. S2CID   24972882.
  6. ↑ Bandaranayake, W.M. (1998). Mangroves and Salt Marshes. 2 (3): 133–148. doi:10.1023/a:1009988607044. ISSN   1386-3509. S2CID   129317332.{{cite journal}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  7. ↑ "Community-based mangrove management" (PDF). Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  8. ↑ Mohammed, S M (2007-10-08). "Saving the Commons: Community Involvement in the Management of Mangrove and Fisheries Resources of Chwaka Bay, Zanzibar". Western Indian Ocean Journal of Marine Science. 3 (2). doi: 10.4314/wiojms.v3i2.28463 . ISSN   0856-860X.
  9. ↑ Singh, Anshu; Bhattacharya, Prodyut; Vyas, Pradeep; Roy, Sarvashish (March 2010). "Contribution of NTFPs in the Livelihood of Mangrove Forest Dwellers of Sundarban". Journal of Human Ecology. 29 (3): 191–200. doi:10.1080/09709274.2010.11906263. ISSN   0970-9274. S2CID   55799517.
  10. ↑ Chotthong, B., & Aksornkoae, S. (2006). Sustainable community-based mangrove rehabilitation in Thailand. Thailand Environment Institute, Bangkok, Thailand.
  11. ↑ Aheto, Denis Worlanyo; Kankam, Stephen; Okyere, Isaac; Mensah, Emmanuel; Osman, Adams; Jonah, Fredrick Ekow; Mensah, Justice Camillus (July 2016). "Community-based mangrove forest management: Implications for local livelihoods and coastal resource conservation along the Volta estuary catchment area of Ghana". Ocean & Coastal Management. 127: 43–54. doi:10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2016.04.006. ISSN   0964-5691.
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