Abstract
For the period 1996-2010, we provide the first indication of the drivers behind mangrove land cover and land use change across the (pan-)tropics using time-series Japanese Earth Resources Satellite (JERS-1) Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and Advanced Land Observing Satellite (ALOS) Phased Array-type L-band SAR (PALSAR) data. Multi-temporal radar mosaics were manually interpreted for evidence of loss and gain in forest extent and its associated driver. Mangrove loss as a consequence of human activities was observed across their entire range. Between 1996-2010 12% of the 1168 1°x1° radar mosaic tiles examined contained evidence of mangrove loss, as a consequence of anthropogenic degradation, with this increasing to 38% when combined with evidence of anthropogenic activity prior to 1996. The greatest proportion of loss was observed in Southeast Asia, whereby approximately 50% of the tiles in the region contained evidence of mangrove loss, corresponding to 18.4% of the global mangrove forest tiles. Southeast Asia contained the greatest proportion (33.8%) of global mangrove forest. The primary driver of anthropogenic mangrove loss was found to be the conversion of mangrove to aquaculture/agriculture, although substantial advance of mangroves was also evident in many regions.
Highlights
Mangrove forests are located in the tropics and sub-tropics but extend into temperate regions where they reach their geographical limits [1, 2]
Mangrove forests contain very high levels of above ground biomass (AGB) as well as high quantities of below ground biomass [4], which equates to carbon storage levels [5,6,7] equivalent to those measured in dense Amazonian rainforests [8]
Over the period 1996-2010 the most frequent cause of anthropogenic induced change was the conversion of mangrove to aquaculture/agriculture (11.2% of all tiles, 131 tiles), which was prominent in Southeast Asia (8.3% of the global number of tiles, 97 tiles), followed by logging which was almost exclusive to Southeast Asia
Summary
Mangrove forests are located in the tropics and sub-tropics but extend into temperate regions where they reach their geographical limits [1, 2]. They provide many ecosystem services, such as support for local livelihoods through the provision of fuel, food and construction materials [3]. Mangrove forests contain very high levels of above ground biomass (AGB) as well as high quantities of below ground biomass [4], which equates to carbon storage levels [5,6,7] equivalent to those measured in dense Amazonian rainforests [8].
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