Developing locally-led mangrove blue carbon projects

Title of the Initiative (project/programme): Developing locally-led mangrove blue carbon projects

Project Overview:

Start date: 2011

End date: 2048

Countries covered: Madagascar

Donor(s): UK Government, GEF/UNEP, MacArthur Foundation, The Helmsley Trust, The

Waterloo Foundation, WIOMSA

Principal Investigator: Blue Ventures

Website: https://blueventures.org/conservation/blue-forests/

 

Aim/Objectives:

Generating blue carbon credits through the sustainable management of mangroves could help to alleviate poverty and support biodiversity conservation in the coastal regions of Madagascar. We are contributing to the science required to make community-led, rights-based blue carbon projects a reality, and building the capacity of local management associations to protect their mangroves

Our research is seeking to quantify the exact nature and dynamics of carbon sequestration and fluxes in mangrove forests throughout Madagascar in order to ensure the proper valuation of blue carbon credits. By maintaining strong communications with national institutions, we are supporting the development of mangrove conservation projects that integrate into Madagascar’s national REDD+ strategy.

 

Key activities:

The basis of this work is empowering local management of mangroves and their fisheries, through working with coastal communities to secure legal management rights of their marine resources and develop mangrove management plans. These management plans form the foundations of the activities that generate emission reductions, which can then be valorised into carbon credits for sale on the voluntary market, in close partnership with the Government of Madagascar. In parallel to this, our research priorities stem from our aim to develop blue carbon projects that fulfil the Verified Carbon Standard, Climate Community and Biodiversity Alliance, and Plan Vivo standards. These are:

Quantifying greenhouse gas emission reductions that can be achieved through mangrove conservation

  • Remote sensing analysis of the historical changes of mangrove forest cover
  • Carbon stock measurements within mangrove forests and wetlands
  • Analysis of the drivers and underlying causes of mangrove and wetland loss
  • Modelling of future mangrove forest and wetland changes Understanding socioeconomic impacts of mangrove conservation
  • Participatory research to determine local uses of mangroves and their fisheries
  • Analysis of traditional user rights, tenure and laws affecting implementation of mangrove conservation projects
  • Establishing socioeconomic baselines and projecting scenarios to evaluate the impacts of conservation activities and ensure that any financial costs borne by local communities due to these activities are fully compensated
  • Researching and developing viable alternatives to mangrove forest and fisheries exploitation, including ecotourism and pro-mangrove aquaculture

 

Main outputs:

  • Verified blue carbon credits for sale in the voluntary carbon market that generate financial benefits for the partner communities

 

Partners involved:

Government of Madagascar (primarily BNC-CC/REDD+), L’Institut Halieutique et des Sciences

Marines (Université de Toliara) , l’École Supérieure des Sciences Agronomiques (Université

d’Antananarivo), WIOMSA, The International Partnership for Blue Carbon, The Global Mangrove

Alliance.