Chapter 17 - Potential carbon loss in sediment through methane production during early development stage of mangrove regeneration in restored mangroves

Abstract

This chapter highlights the potential carbon loss from mangrove sediments through methane (CH4) production. Better mangrove ecosystem management and mangrove rehabilitation and restoration have been proposed as a means of greenhouse gas (GHG) abatement. Mangrove rehabilitation and restoration could increase carbon biomass and even recover to natural and undisturbed states, particularly in productive land. However, because of limited data, net ecosystem carbon balance remains uncertain, and thus, long-term measurements on changes of carbon stocks and GHG fluxes following mangrove loss and regeneration are required. CH4 is a potent GHG, the second-largest contributor to global warming, after CO2. In freshwater wetlands, CH4 releases to the atmosphere represent 3% of primary productivity. This chapter provides data sets showing seasonal changes of porewater CH4 concentrations in regeneration sites of mangroves and its salient factors. The relevance of CH4 to net ecosystem carbon balance is illustrated by a conceptual model of changes in porewater CH4 concentrations and primary productivity following regeneration/successional stages.