Journal Article

Turning the Tide: How Blue Carbon and Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) Might Help Save Mangrove Forests

King, Lesley, Kairo, James Gitundu, Locatelli, Tommaso, Madden, Sarah, Huxham, Mark, Upton, Caroline, Binet, Thomas, Patenaude, Genevieve

2014

Overview

In this review paper, we aim to describe the potential for, and the key challenges to, applying PES projects to mangroves. By adopting a “carbocentric approach,” we show that mangrove forests are strong candidates for PES projects. They are particularly well suited to the generation of carbon credits because of their unrivaled potential as carbon sinks, their resistance and resilience to natural hazards, and their extensive provision of Ecosystem Services other than carbon sequestration, primarily nursery areas for fish, water purification and coastal protection, to the benefit of local communities as well as to the global population. The voluntary carbon market provides opportunities for the development of appropriate protocols and good practice case studies for mangroves at a small scale, and these may influence larger compliance schemes in the future. Mangrove habitats are mostly located in developing countries on communally or state-owned land. This means that issues of national and local governance, land ownership and management, and environmental justice are the main challenges that require careful planning at the early stages of mangrove PES projects to ensure successful outcomes and equitable benefit sharing within local communities.

• Publisher: Springer-Verlag,Springer,Springer Netherlands,Springer Nature B.V
• Subject: Animal and plant ecology / Animal, plant and microbial ecology / Atmospheric Sciences / Biological and medical sciences / Brackish water ecosystems / Candidates / Carbon / carbon markets / Carbon offsets / Carbon Sequestration / Carbon sinks / Case studies / Coastal / Coastal forests / Coastal zone management / Community / compliance / Conservation of Natural Resources / Conservation of Natural Resources - economics / Conservation of Natural Resources - legislation & jurisprudence / Conservation of Natural Resources - methods / Deforestation / Developing countries / Earth and Environmental Science / Ecology / economics / Ecosystem services / Ecosystems / Emissions trading / Environment / Environment management / Environmental economics / Environmental Engineering/Biotechnology / Environmental justice / Environmental Management / Environmental protection / Fish / Forest conservation / Forest ecology / Forest ecosystems / Forest habitats / Forestry / Forests / Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology / General forest ecology / Generalities. Production, biomass. Quality of wood and forest products. General forest ecology / Governance / Habitats / Hurricanes / International agreements / Land ownership / LDCs / legislation & jurisprudence / Local communities / Mangrove forests / Mangroves / Markets / methods / Natural disasters / Ownership / Payments / Physical Geography / planning / Plantation forestry / Purification / REDD program / Resilience / Resistance / Resource management / REVIEW / Shoreline protection / Synecology / Terrestrial ecosystems / Water purification / Wetlands