By:- Sheikh Alkinky Sanyang
The project coordinator of the Global Climate Change Alliance + (Climate Resilient Coastal and Marine Zone) project for The Gambia (GCCA+) has revealed that mangroves are environmental indicators with positive local impacts with global benefits. He said these incredible trees are doing us a lot of positive favors to upkeep the ecology and keep many of our habitats including humans healthier and safer through diverse services.
Living at the intersection of land and sea, he added that mangrove forests provide ideal habitat for fish, crustaceans and other organisms seeking food and shelter while their dense tangle of prop roots stabilize coastlines and well adapted to the daily rise and fall of tides.
Abubacarr Kujabi was recently speaking at integrated mangrove planting exercises at different coastline communities in West Coast and Lower River Regions, where he buttressed that planting mangrove prevents flooding, storm damage and saves lives. Each mangrove tree also traps several inches of sediment as they also help create clean water for coral reefs and create income for fisher-folks in addition to fish production to families and communities.
Furthermore, he went on to reveal that the exercise is a wetland conservation through eco-system base approach dubbedcoastline greenings, which comprises of the growing of coconut trees and mangroves along shorelines. He told the gathering that the project aims at consolidating and Support The Gambia for her Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) and the mainstreaming of climate change.
Abubacarr Kujabi, GCCA+ Project Coordinator
From West Coast to Lower River Region, thousands of acres has been planted and regenerated with mangrove with the involvement of VDCs and their local communities, women and youth groups. This vital mangrove habitation exercises help to create refuge-home for globally threatened migratory shorebirds, turtles, fish and dozens of other vulnerable species. NEA`s GCCA+ project in collaboration with stakeholders strive to establish and protect these species, their eggs and hatchlings from destruction. This is more of a reason why the GCCA+ project wants to highlight how mangroves protect our planet and how we can help them through restoration and replanting efforts. He posited.
“Mangroves are often under-appreciated, with most people not realizing their true value to the overall health of our communities and our entire planet,” said Abubacarr Kujabi. He therefore call on coastline communities to protect and preserve mangrove as their interdependent.
During this massive planting exercise were thousands of propagules were planted, nine shoreline communities were covered including the villages of Sanyang, Faraba Bantang, Burrock, Bantangjang and Bondali Tenda in the West Coast Region. In the Lower River Region, the villages covered were Jattaba, Kantongkunda, Manduar and Burrong.
Describing this magic three, Kujabi pointed out that “as mangroves live where land and sea connect, one of their most important ecosystem functions is to protect and serve as a frontline defense for people and property along the coastlines. There are many species of mangrove, and the most famous are characterized by their tall, skinny, stilt-like roots, called prop roots. These roots grow in a “tangle” that actually helps them withstand the daily rise and fall of tides. These structures also cause sediments to settle out of the water falling at or near their roots. The roots build muddy bottom near the base of the trees which actually stabilizes the coastline by reducing erosion from storm surges, currents, waves and tides.”
Kujabi finally thanked EU and NAUSU, NEA, Departments of Forestry and Parks & Wildlife Management, Brikama and Mansakonko Area Councils and VDCs of communities involved in the exercise for their unflinching support throughout the entire process.
The NEA implemented GCCA+ Climate Resilient Coastal and Marine Zone project for The Gambia is funded by the European Union (EU) in partnership with the Government of The Gambia. It aims at consolidating results and positive experiences of the previous GCCA project “Support to The Gambia for Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) and the mainstreaming of climate change”.
The objectives of the project are to support the implementation of recommendations set out in the ICZM Management and Strategic Plans (Jan 2016) and the National Climate Change Policy (NCCP) (April 2016) and to enhance institutional governance enabling planning and implementation of improved climate resilience, adaptation and mitigation measures in the Coastal and Marine Zones of the Gambia.