New Delhi, Nov 8 (PTI) India has demonstrated expertise in mangrove restoration for nearly five decades and can contribute to the global knowledge base due to its extensive experience, Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said Monday at the launch of the “Mangrove Alliance for Climate”.
He said mangroves were the best option to fight the consequences of climate change and can help countries meet their nationally determined contributions. NDCs are national plans to limit global temperature rise to well below two degrees Celsius, preferably to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
The UAE and Indonesia launched the alliance on the sidelines of the UN climate summit COP27, being held in Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt from November 6 to 18. The alliance aims to strengthen conservation and restoration of mangrove ecosystems worldwide. India, Australia, Japan, Spain and Sri Lanka have joined it as partners.
With notable adaptive features, mangroves are natural armed forces of tropical and subtropical nations. They are the best option to fight against consequences of climate change such as sea level rise and increasing frequency of natural calamities like cyclones and storm surges, Yadav said.
Creating a new carbon sink from mangrove afforestation and reducing emissions from mangrove deforestation are two feasible ways for countries to meet their NDC targets and achieve carbon neutrality, he said.
“The integration of mangroves into the national programmes for reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation is the need of the hour. India can contribute to the global knowledge base due to its extensive experience in mangrove restoration, studies on ecosystem valuation and carbon sequestration,” Yadav said.
India has demonstrated expertise in mangrove restoration activities for nearly five decades and restored different types of mangrove ecosystems both on its east and west coasts, he said, adding there has been a significant increase in the mangrove cover in India in the Andaman, Sundarbans and the Gujarat regions.
As part of its NDCs, India has committed to creating an additional carbon sink of 2.5 to 3 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent through additional forest and tree cover by 2030.
“We see the tremendous potential mangroves have for mitigation of growing greenhouse gases concentration in the atmosphere. Studies have shown that mangrove forests can absorb four to five times more carbon emissions than landed tropical forests,” Yadav said.
Mangroves are distributed in the tropical and sub-tropical region of the world and are found in 123 countries.
They are among the most carbon-rich forests in the tropics and account for three per cent of carbon sequestered by the world’s tropical forests.
“Mangroves are the economic foundations of many tropical coastal regions. To sustain the blue economy, it is imperative to ensure the sustainability of coastal habitats, particularly mangroves for tropical nations, at the local, regional, and international levels,” Yadav said.
As part of this alliance, an international mangrove research centre will be established in Indonesia which will conduct studies on mangrove ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration and ecotourism.
Mangrove trees can grow in saline waters, and can sequester up to four times more carbon than tropical rainforests. Eighty per cent of the global fish populations depend on mangrove ecosystems.
At this year’s climate summit, developed countries are expected to push developing nations to further intensify their climate plans.
On the other hand, the developing countries would seek a commitment from the developed nations for finance and technology that are needed to address climate change and the resulting disasters.
Yadav had on Sunday said India expects action from rich countries in terms of climate finance, technology transfer and strengthening the capacity of poor and developing countries to combat climate change.
“India believes COP27, themed ‘Together for Implementation’, should turn out to be the ‘COP for Action’ in terms of climate finance, technology transfer and capacity building.
“The scale of the problem facing the world is huge. Action cannot be delayed and hence, concrete solutions must come up and implementation must start with COP27,” the environment minister had said.
The UN climate summit this year is being held in the shadow of the Russian aggression in Ukraine and the related energy crisis, which has strained the capabilities of countries to urgently tackle climate change.