| 26 DECEMBER
TSUNAMI: ECOSYSTEM IMPACTS AND COASTAL REHABILITATION |
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| Faizal Parish | |
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Director, Global Environment Centre (GEC), |
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| The Asian Tsunami of December 2004 had a devastating impact on coastal
ecosystems and communities in a range of Asian and African Countries. Assessments
of the affected areas indicated that although coastal ecosystems such as
mangroves were damaged by the tsunami - they also played an important role
in protecting coastlines. Coastlines fringed by mangroves were strikingly less damaged than those where mangroves were absent or had been removed. Field reports indicate that mangroves also prevented people being washed into the sea, and in addition, trapped driftwood preventing property damage and injury to people. Green belts of other trees, coastal dunes, and intact coral reefs performed similar functions. Mangrove forests shield coastlines by reducing wave amplitude and energy. Analytical models show that greenbelts can reduce the maximum tsunami flow pressure by up to 90% depending on the dimensions of the greenbelt and the size of the waves. The area of mangroves in the six most affected Asian countries has dropped by more than 25% in the past 20 years increasing exposure of coastlines. Mangroves in the region have been lost and degraded due to pond aquaculture, direct exploitation coastal development and other reasons. Conserving, or replanting coastal mangroves and other forest types, will help buffer communities from future similar events. Mangroves also enhance sustainable fisheries and forestry production. Such benefits are not found in man-made coastal protection structures. Following the tsunami there has also been heightened interest in protecting and rehabilitation coastal forests. Various affected countries in the region have initiated plans to develop coastal greenbelts to protect their shorelines. However poor design and management of such schemes is affecting their effectiveness. A Coastal Greenbelt Initiative (CGI) is being developed by the Global Environment Centre and other partners to complement existing activities and provide an open-ended framework to bring together key stakeholders to collaborate in supporting the protection and rehabilitation of coastal forests in the region. |
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