TDA-IME Project Final Report June, 2013 4 Executive Summary Background The Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis of Indochina Mangrove Ecosystems (TDA-IME) Project was implemented by the Sirindhorn International Environmental Park Foundation (SIEPF) from 01 July 2011 to 31 March, 2013. A macro-level, systematic scientific analysis of mangrove ecosystem integrity was undertaken to gain a better understanding of (a) how to maintain the health of Indochina’s remaining mangrove ecosystems; and (b) how to reduce the rate of mangrove forest loss, which until recently has exceeded 1% per annum in Asia. This project also aimed to enhance regional knowledge about mangrove ecosystems; strengthen national and regional assessments of mangrove forest area and ecological integrity parameters; promote knowledge‐based regional cooperation; and serve as a platform for environmental dialogue on matters of regional and global importance relating to coastal ecosystem services and poverty reduction. The impacts of climate change on mangroves, and the potential roles mangrove ecosystems could play in climate change adaptation and mitigation, were given particular attention. The project was implemented by a manager and secretariat based at SIEPF, with the support of a high-level Scientific and Technical Advisory Committee. The secretariat convened three regionallevel workshops in Thailand, involving all six participating countries: Cambodia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam, plus Myanmar, to exchange knowledge about mangrove ecosystems in Indochina and discuss the need to adopt a regional approach to halt further loss and degradation of mangroves. A causal chain analysis of the proximate to fundamental causes of mangrove forest conversion and mangrove habitat degradation was developed, based on country status papers and advice from national experts who attended the workshops. Scientific research gaps and knowledge management needs were also analyzed. The experts considered, not only to gaps in scientific knowledge about mangrove ecosystems (especially those relating to mangrove economic values, and the role of mangroves in climate change adaptation and mitigation), but also to the failure of science to influence policy-making on mangroves (science-topolicy gaps). The fourth issue analyzed was the need for stronger regional cooperation and a more integrated management approach to conserve and restore the mangrove ecosystems of Indochina. A consultant team of mangrove experts was brought in during the final three months of the project to help SIEPF to prepare the final report and recommend possible post-project follow up activities. Main Findings The Indochina mangrove forests are among the most biologically diverse and extensive in the world. Two-thirds of the approximately 70 species of true mangrove plants occur here, with 11 species classified by IUCN as near threatened to critically endangered. Mangroves in the region have been exploited traditionally for charcoal and other wood products, and in recent decades, also converted on a massive scale for agriculture, aquaculture, as well as for urban and industrial development. Mangrove conversion and degradation not only reduce the direct provisioning services of mangrove ecosystems (timber, fuelwood, non-timber forest products and aquatic resources), but also their important regulating services, including coastal erosion and flood control, and reducing storm (and even tsunami) impacts. In the face of climate change, the region’s mangrove ecosystems can play an even more valuable role, in both climate change adaptation and mitigation, but only if the remaining mangrove forests are properly protected and degraded areas rehabilitated. Although mangrove forests are, due to their intertidal location, highly vulnerable to climate change, especially sea level rise, mangroves are also considered to be resilient at the ecosystem level. They have great interconnectivity because mangrove propagules and many mangrove-associated animal species can disperse widely. Commercially important fish and shrimp, and the mud crab Scylla spp. (a key mangrove-fisheries indicator group), utilize mangroves as nursery grounds, but then migrate offshore. Thus, there is not only connectivity between adjacent and transboundary mangrove areas,
Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis of Indochina Mangrove Ecosystems
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