Carbon emissions from the destruction of mangrove forests predicted to increase by 50,000% by the end of the century

According to a new study, the annual rate of carbon emissions due to the lack of carbon storage in mangrove forests is predicted to increase by nearly 50,000 percent by the end of the century. published I Environmental Research Letters. Mangroves are particularly affected in areas such as southern India, southeastern China, Singapore and eastern Australia.

However, mangrove forests store a large amount of carbon, especially in their soil Human development This has led to a reduction in these carbon stocks in these areas. Over the past 20 years, quite a few Mangrove forests It has been replaced by agriculture, aquaculture and urban land management, reducing the global mangrove carbon stock by 158.4 million tonnes, equivalent to flying the entire American population from New York to London. Releases emissions.

The study is led by Jennifer Cromans, professor of biology at Montclair State University, as well as two Ph.D. candidates, Shih-Chieh Chien and Charles Noble. Focused on the relationship between the team Human population density and soil carbon stocks in urban mangrove forests to quantify their role in the global carbon budget.

The results show that when the population density reaches 300 persons per km.² (Similar to the average population density of Britain or Japan), carbon stored in mangrove soils near populated areas is estimated to be 37% lower than in isolated mangrove forests. At the same time, the annual rate of carbon emissions from mangrove loss is currently estimated at 7.0 teragrams, rising to 3,392 teragrams at current population density projections later this century.

Mangrove forests cover about 0.1% of the Earth’s land surface but play an important role in providing habitat for wildlife and regulating global climate stability. These mangroves store a large amount of carbon, particularly in their soil, and are essential for regulating carbon cycling globally. Mangrove soils have three to four times the carbon content of typical boreal, temperate, or Tropical forests.

“This work highlights the importance of protecting existing mangroves, especially in areas of high population density. Mangrove forests are important for the regulation of carbon sequestration, and it is important that we protect them,” says Prof Cromans. Protect them. The first step is to protect them. The impact of human population and activities on mangrove forest carbon stocks.”