Environment News 17.10.14 Part IV: In a cyclone, a wall of mangroves is going to protect you more than any man made wall or structure say scientists It is typhoon season in Asia and though governments in India or Japan are pledging millions in disaster relief, the storm surges and crashing waves will continue to gut and destroy coastal villages and industries until something is done about a natural defence system that is sorely in need of regeneration and protection – mangroves. Experts fear their tremendous value is being woefully under-appreciated, to tragic effect, all around the world and for those currently gathered in South Korea, for the 12th Convention on Biological Diversity this issue has become a major topic of conversation. Not only do these wonderful forests strengthen and protect coastal ecosystems, but, in a single hectare mangroves can store up to 1,000 tonnes of carbon on average (the highest per unit of area of any land or marine ecosystem) according to the U.N. Environment Programme (UNEP). This ability alone should make their protection a crucial component of national and global efforts to combat climate change, yet, experts say, they are not getting the attention and care they deserve. Mangroves thrive in saline coastal sediment habitats, are found in 123 countries and cover 152,000 sq., km the world over. Over 100 million people live within 10 km of large mangrove forests, benefiting from a variety of goods and services such as fisheries and forest products, clean water and protection against erosion and extreme weather events. But, says the UNEP these forests “… are being destroyed at a rate three to five times greater than the average rates of forest loss”. And, the report added, emissions resulting from such losses make up approximately a fifth of deforestation-related global carbon emissions. The situation is particularly grave in South Asia, which by 2050 could lose 35% of the mangroves that existed in 2000. In 1999, Cyclone Odisha Cyclone – the strongest every recorded in the Indian Ocean - smashed into Asia killing thousands. An impact study was conducted soon afterwards and scientists found that the villages to incur the lowest loss per household were those protected by mangroves. “Mangroves can reduce wave height and energy by up to 66%, and surges by 50 cm for every kilometre, as they pass through the trees and exposed roots.” Says UNEP’s Jacqueline Alder who added that many policy makers in Asia are not aware of mangroves multiple benefits but, that with global warming rising at an alarming rate, the importance of mangroves in climate regulation cannot be ignored much longer. ipsnews.net/2014/10/facing-storms-without-the-mangrove-wall/
Posted on: Thu, 16 Oct 2014 22:19:01 +0000
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