2022 International Day for the Conservation of the Mangrove Ecosystem: Why mangroves are better than sea walls

Aerial view of mangroves in Vikhroli, Maharashtra. (Photo courtesy: Godrej & Boyce)

Mangroves cover 4,992 sq km or 0.15% of India’s total area. Of this, 1,475 sq km has very dense mangrove; 1,481 sq km, moderately dense mangrove; and 2,036 sq km, open mangroves.

Indeed mangroves run along 30 percent of the country’s coastline, and help to mitigate damage from extreme weather events like cyclones. Their dense root systems slow down the flow of tidal water.

Mangroves also encourage the deposit of nutrient-rich sediments. They are important wildlife habitat, store away tonnes of carbon below ground, and provide resources to local communities that can do thriving fishing and beekeeping businesses

While climate change and erratic weather conditions have wreaked havoc worldwide, India’s mangroves have witnessed a slight improvement, according to the 2021 Indian State of the Forest Report (ISFR) - there was an increase of 17 sq km area under mangroves, compared to the 2019 assessment (an addition of 8 sq km in Odisha, 4 sq km in Maharashtra, 3 sq km in Karnataka, and 1 sq km each in Goa and Andhra Pradesh).

Thane Creek mangrove. (Photo courtesy: Debi Goenka)

“India had nearly 6,000 sq km of mangroves in the 1960s which dwindled to 4,046 sq km in 1987. However, since then, the mangroves are witnessing an increase in cover. Between 2017 and 2019, the increase was a remarkable 54 sq km,” says Dr K. Kathiresan, former dean and director, Centre of Advanced Study in Marine Biology (Annamalai University), and founder of Tamil Nadu-based K Kathiresan Trust (KKT).

“The reason for the increase in mangrove cover in Odisha is mainly due to the natural regeneration, and plantation activities in suitable land like on the banks of the rivers near the estuary and on intertidal mud-flats associated with the areas that are inundated by sea water on a daily cycle. In Maharashtra, the increase in mangrove cover is mainly due to natural regeneration,” adds Dr Kathiresan, often called the Mangrove Man of India.

Almost half of the country’s total mangrove forests are in the South 24 Parganas district of West Bengal, thanks to the Sundarbans mangrove ecosystem.

Pranabesh Maiti, founder, Sundarban Green Environment Association (SGEA), grew up in the mangrove landscape. After cyclone Aila caused massive devastation in his homeland, Maiti decided to conserve, restore and protect the river embankment in Gosaba and its adjacent regions. Since 2013, SGEA has planted nearly 75,000 plants ecologically suited to the Sundarbans ecosystem.

“There are 30 mangrove species in the Sundarbans, a few of them being more tolerant to the salty water. Human intervention... erratic rainfall, intense storms have disrupted the mangrove natural system, and it is time we stopped illegal construction and use of mangrove land for shrimp/fish farming,” says Maiti, who believes that building embankments (sea walls) is not a solution and large-scale plantation of mangroves should be undertaken.

The Sundarbans mangrove (Photo courtesy: Pranabesh Maiti)

Mumbai-based Debi Goenka, co-founder, Conservation Action Trust (CAT), agrees. With more than 35 years of experience, Goenka has been determinedly working for conservation and protection of the environment.

“Mangroves in and around Mumbai have undergone massive destruction. The main reasons for this depletion are reclamation of land for paddy cultivation, salt pan scheme, reclamation of land for building activities and dumping, industrial pollution of the creeks, cuttings of trees for fuel wood, etc.,” says Goenka, who through CAT provides technical information, legal advice, aid and equipment to all those who are confronting environmental problems.

“The mangroves have been afforded protection under Category I of the CRZ (Coastal Zone Regulation 1991). They are also entitled protection under the prevailing forest conservation regime, the Maharashtra Private Forest Act 1975, the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 and the Maharashtra Felling of Trees (Regulation) Act 1964,” Goenka adds.

Vikhroli Mangroves

Spread over hundreds of acres and owned by Godrej & Boyce, Vikhroli mangrove is a large tract of privately-owned mangroves. Host to over 1,200 plant species and over 400 animal species, this mangrove is part of the Pirojshanagar Industrial Township and has been preserved by Godrej & Boyce since the late 1940s.

In a bid to protect mangroves and sensitise citizens about mangrove conservation, in 2020, Godrej & Boyce in collaboration with WWF India (World Wide Fund for Nature-India) initiated the Magical Mangroves campaign.

“Now covering nine Indian states (Maharashtra, Goa, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Odisha, West Bengal and Karnataka), the Magical Mangroves campaign has trained 150+ nature enthusiasts as the campaign volunteers. These volunteers have conducted 200+ webinars in last two years, sensitising more than 18,000 Indians across nine coastal states. A three-day workshop was also conducted jointly with the Maharashtra Forest Department and The Naturalist School for local ecotourism guides of Raigadh district of Maharashtra on mangrove biodiversity,” says Tejashree Joshi, Head, Environmental Sustainability, Godrej & Boyce.

“Mangroves App includes mangrove species from across the world, but necessarily captures all from the coastal states of India. The app describes 67 mangrove species in 11 languages and has been downloaded by over one lakh users in 112 countries,” Joshi adds.

Policies are important but Phiroze D. Lam, Chairman, Pirojsha Godrej Foundation, believes that it is imperative to ensure citizen participation and grassroots action for their conservation.

“Historically, philanthropic investment in environmental programs and institutions has been lower as compared to healthcare and education. Investment in environmental organisations is necessary. Philanthropies must invest in research on the biodiversity and functions of these ecosystems and facilitate mass awareness campaigns about them. Philanthropists must recognise environmental concerns as overarching, and support capacity-building of institutions that work for providing sustainable, community-based solutions for preserving threatened ecosystems such as mangrove forests,” says Phiroze D. Lam.

Mangrove forests cover just 0.1% of the earth’s surface but they are essential for the survival of the planet. But it is hard out there for a mangrove today: Humans destroy them. Barnacles choke them. Goats eat them. Shrimp farmers eye them. Urban developers covet them. And yet there's no denying that as global warming and rising sea levels threaten our biggest cities by the sea, there's no better defence in our arsenal than a mangrove forest.

Flamingos in the Thane Creek mangrove. (Photo courtesy: Debi Goenka)