Greening with Mangroves Value addition to the Paris Agreement, REDD+ and Bonn Challenge related efforts in Sri Lanka through the Management and Conservation of Mangroves and Associated Coastal Ecosystems Prof. Swarna Piyasiri, Dr. Ananda Mallawatantri, Dr. Damith Chandrasekera and Sandamali Pathirage Draft – December 26, 2017 Greening with Mangroves Value addition to the Paris Agreement, REDD+ and Bonn Challenge related efforts in Sri Lanka through the Management and Conservation of Mangroves and Associated Coastal Ecosystems Draft – December 26, 2017 This document was developed with the support of Mangroves for the Future (MFF) programme to compile the knowledge related to a potential mangrove restoration effort in Sri Lanka. It is expected that the material presented, and the potential mangrove restoration area identified will support and add value to Sri Lanka climate mitigation and adaptation initiatives under Paris Agreement, REDD+ and Bonn Challenge through the Management and Conservation of Mangroves and Associated Coastal Ecosystems. The Mangroves for the Future (MFF) regional programme is implemented by IUCN (https://www.mangrovesforthefuture.org/). About IUCN IUCN is a membership Union uniquely composed of both government and civil society organisations. It provides public, private and non-governmental organisations with the knowledge and tools that enable human progress, economic development and nature conservation to take place together. Created in 1948, IUCN is now the world’s largest and most diverse environmental network, harnessing the knowledge, resources and reach of 1,300-member organisations and some 15,000 experts. It is a leading provider of conservation data, assessments and analysis. Its broad membership enables IUCN to fill the role of incubator and trusted repository of best practices, tools and international standards. IUCN provides a neutral space in which diverse stakeholders including governments, NGOs, scientists, businesses, local communities, indigenous peoples organisations and others can work together to forge and implement solutions to environmental challenges and achieve sustainable development. Working with many partners and supporters, IUCN implements a large and diverse portfolio of conservation projects worldwide. Combining the latest science with the traditional knowledge of local communities, these projects work to reverse habitat loss, restore ecosystems and improve people’s well-being. IUCN has been working in Sri Lanka since 1988. www.iucn.org https://twitter.com/IUCN/ Greening with Mangroves Value addition to the Paris Agreement, REDD+ and Bonn Challenge related efforts in Sri Lanka through the Management and Conservation of Mangroves and Associated Coastal Ecosystems Prof. Swarna Piyasiri, Dr. Ananda Mallawatantri, Dr. Damith Chandrasekera and Sandamali Pathirage Page | ii Published by : IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature), Sri Lanka Office Copyright : © 2017 IUCN, International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources Reproduction of this publication for educational or other non-commercial purposes is authorized without prior written permission from the copyright holder provided the source is fully acknowledged. Citation : Piyasiri, Swarna, Chandrasekera, Damith, Mallawatantri, Ananda, and Pathirage, Sandamali (2017). Greening Mangroves, December 2017. IUCN Sri Lanka Country Office. 25pp ISBN : Cover : Mangrove cover (Kumudini Ekaratne © IUCN) Produced by : IUCN Sri Lanka Office Designed and layout by : Krishani Peiris Printed by : Available from : IUCN Sri Lanka Country Office, 53, Horton Place, Colombo 07, Sri Lanka. www.IUCN.org/srilanka Page | iii Preface IUCN Sri Lanka continuously exerts itself to help the Government of Sri Lanka, IUCN members and communities in the country to enhance the green cover in order to maximize mitigation and adaptation benefits. All efforts are undertaken in line with the Paris Agreement, Bonn Challenge and REDD+ in the global context and along the lines of the Government’s Vision 2025 and the Blue Green Era Development in the local context. Under the Bonn Challenge, which was undertaken in relation to the Paris Agreement, Sri Lanka announced an additional green cover up to about 200,000 ha through multiple initiatives. Mangrove forest could specifically play a key role in meeting this Bonn Challenge target and aid in adding about 10,000 ha, in terms of rehabilitation and improvements, using the historical mangrove areas and other areas next to the mangrove environments. This document is compiled based on a Preliminary Situation Analysis (PSA) carried out with the objective of documenting the status of mangroves management and conservation in the country, led by Prof. Swarna Piyasiri, Senior Professor, Sri Jayawardenapura University. Additional national level data and IUCN knowledge material related to Mangroves Ecosystems and Resilience have been added as well. We hope the material that are included herein will be useful to develop a strategy and an action plan to enhance the mangrove areas to harness sustainability and resilience benefits associated with mangrove ecosystems and as a resource for educational and research purposes. Page | iv Table of Contents Chapter 1: Mangroves in Sri Lanka ............................................................................................... 1 1.1. Background ........................................................................................................................... 1 1.2. Extent of Mangroves ............................................................................................................ 4 1.3. Mangroves in Lagoon Environments ................................................................................ 5 1.4. Mangroves and Salinity ....................................................................................................... 7 1.5. Mangrove Species and Distribution .................................................................................. 9 1.6. Mangrove Productivity ....................................................................................................... 12 1.7. Threats to Mangroves ....................................................................................................... 13 1.8. Selected Mangrove Restoration Efforts .......................................................................... 16 Chapter 2: Mangroves and Carbon Sequestration ................................................................... 17 2.1. Carbon Sequestration by Species and Location ........................................................... 17 2.2. Mangroves and Carbon Stocks ....................................................................................... 18 2.3. Mangroves Monitoring ....................................................................................................... 20 2.4. Land Ownership ................................................................................................................. 20 2.5. Forest Reference Emission Level (FRL) ........................................................................ 21 2.6. Mangrove Ecosystem Valuations .................................................................................... 22 Chapter 3: Climate Sensitive Programming ............................................................................... 23 3.1. Climate Change Initiatives ................................................................................................ 23 3.2. Climate Impact in the Coastal Region ............................................................................ 23 3.3. REDD+ Agenda in Sri Lanka ........................................................................................... 25 3.3.1. REDD+ Progress ........................................................................................................ 25 3.3.2. National REDD+ Coordination ................................................................................. 25 Chapter 4: Mangrove Restoration ............................................................................................... 28 4.1. Analytical Approach Adopted ........................................................................................... 28 Chapter 5: Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 33 Page | v List of Tables Table 1: Estimated Mangrove Area (ha) .......................................................................................................... 4 Table 2: Morphometric features of the coastal lagoons ................................................................................. 5 Table 3: Extents of Mangrove Areas in Major Lagoons of Sri Lanka ........................................................... 6 Table 4: Categorization of Mangrove Species based on their Preference towards Salinity ..................... 7 Table 5: Mangroves Distribution ........................................................................................................................ 9 Table 6: Distribution of Mangrove Species in Different Climate Locations ............................................... 11 Table 7: Classification of Mangroves in Sri Lanka ........................................................................................ 13 Table 8: Observations on Mangrove Destruction .......................................................................................... 14 Table 9: Deforestation of