Mangroves: Nature’s gift to coastal communities

Feb 20, 2017 News

---

The Atlantic Ocean unleashes ravenous waves that swiftly approach Guyana’s vulnerable coastline, clashing aggressively against the mangroves forest. The fury of the waves is broken and light ripples kiss rip-rap and concrete structures that prevent majority of the population and economic lands from being flooded.
Guyana, the land of many waters, is home to three main mangroves species: Red, Black and White. The mangroves forest, which grows well in saline waters,supports a rich ecosystem of flora and fauna. However, this thriving mangrove forest did not exist a decade ago. The erosion of mangroves began gradually in the 1960s owing to both natural and manmade activities. By the early 1990s, many mangroves sites along the coastline were destroyed.
In 2010, the Guyana Mangroves Restoration Project was launched. It was co-funded by the Government of Guyana and the European Union under the Global Climate Change Alliance. The project was implemented by the National Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (NAREI) with support from a multi-agency oversight committee, Mangrove Action Committee.
Following the completion of the project phase in 2013, Government continued mangroves restoration and management. The Project Unit was integrated into NAREI’s structure. Its primary objectives are to abate climate change (carbon sequestration through reforestation and forest preservation); and to mitigate its effects via sea defenses. An important responsibility of the Unit is the rehabilitation, protection and sustainable use of mangroves.
A range of interventions aimed at restoring degraded coastal mangroves and creating a suitable environment for mangroves to colonize the coastline were implemented as part of the mangrove restoration programme.  A simple walk along the East Coast Demerara Seawall would reveal the significant difference made by the interventions. The tall stretching mangroves do not only provide a cool shade but beautiful scenery of White and Scarlet Ibis nestled on branches.

1. Mangroves seedling planting: Restoration through the mangrove seedling planting programme began in 2010, and has resulted in the production of over 500,000 mangrove seedlings. Some successful sites such as Better Hope, Village No. 6, Montrose, Success and Lima also achieved significant natural regeneration as a result of the planting. Last year, over 5,000 seedlings were planted at Better Hope.
These planting exercises are made possible through partnership with community members. Persons within the respective communities were contracted by NAREI to grow seedlings in nurseries. The seedlings were later transplanted on the foreshore. Of course, seedling planting is only possible in areas or sites that have a suitable mud elevation.
2. Coastal structures
Structures were installed at sites along the coast to encourage accretion and stabilization of foreshore.  These interventions created a suitable environment that allowed mangrove restoration by breaking wave energy and creating a calm environment along sections of the foreshore – breakwaters and by reducing water velocity and trap mud particles or prevent long shore drift – groynes.  Groynes are structures built across a beach, usually from dry land out
Following collaboration with the Guyana Sea and River Defence Division, three options for construction of low-cost coastal structures were developed using the following technology: Geotextile tubes technology, ‘Iron” bamboos and Rocks or rubbles. Geotextile tubes were installed at Devonshire Castle, Regions Two and Victoria, Region Four to form a groyne and a detached offshore breakwater respectively. Bamboo brushwood dams designed as sediment traps were constructed at Anna Regina and Walton Hall in Region 2 and Buxton and Lusignan in Region 4.
3. Spartina grass planting
In 2013 the GMRP implemented a new restoration strategy for sites along the coastline where mangrove planting was not suitable due to poor mud consolidation and low elevation.   The Spartinabrasiliensis Raddi is one of the lesser known coastal salt marsh species along Guyana’s coastline. Spartina, which is native to the Guyana coastline, was transplanted to nine sites along the coast which did not meet the criteria to support mangrove restoration due to poor consolidation. Combining Spartinabrasiliensis Raddi with structures has shown tremendous success at most sites.  At three of these sites, Spartina was planted following the completion of coastal structures (Devonshire Castle, Walton Hall and Victoria).
The dynamic nature of the Guyana coastline necessitates that mangroves restoration and protection are continuous processes given that the coastline is susceptible to natural and manmade activities. While the natural erosion cycle results in mangrove loss, as is currently happening in Region 3 along Rotterdam to Windsor Forest, this is compounded by negative human activities.  Mangrove restoration and the management of existing stands will not be successful without the support and involvement of coastal communities.  Communities need to become involved in the management of their mangrove forest to reduce the impacts of grazing, garbage dumping and cutting.  Mangroves are a unique ecosystem that provides a range of ecosystem services for our protection and wellbeing.  They protect coastal communities from flooding, serve as a nursery for a variety of fish species including crabs, provide a habitat for a variety of bird species and support our fight against climate change by sequestering carbon in the atmosphere.

---

---