Coastal development, logging, agriculture, and climate change are proving to be the nemesis of mangrove forests. The first ever assessment of mangrove species by the IUCN Red List found 11 out of 70 mangrove species threatened with extinction. Two of them Sonneratia griffithii and Bruguiera hainesii find a place in critically endangered list. In the past 60 years Southeast Asia has lost 80 percent of its mangrove ecosystems,
In the pursuit of development many countries forget that mangrove forests provide vital ecosystem functions. They conveniently overlook the fact in terms of monetary value, ecosystem services provided by mangroves works out to a staggering 1.6 billion US dollars annually.
Mangroves act as nurseries for a variety of fish and other marine species and act as buffers against erosion. They also provide carbon sequestration. During the 2004 tsunami in Southeast Asia the regions with mangroves suffered less damage than those without.
The study is a timely reminder of the imminent catastrophe. Details of the study appear in the latest issue of journal PLoS ONE.
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Even in Kerala, India's most literate state Mangrove destruction goes on unhampered. The lonely voices of environmentalists are drowned in the din for development
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