Expert affirms the important role of mangroves in curbing climate change
Source: ANTARA News
Date: 13 May 2020
Forestry climate expert Daniel Murdiyarso said the existence of mangroves could have an important role in efforts to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to curb climate change.
"When we talk about excavation, the matter of building aquaculture is a challenge because per unit area there are around 1,500 tons of carbon per unit area, 80 percent is in the ground," said the senior researcher at the Center for Internation Forestry Research (CIFOR) in The Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK) Climate Corner Discussion which was held in Jakarta on Wednesday.
According to him, carbon storage capacity by mangrove forests is three or even five times that of land forests that can store 300 tons in lush conditions.
Because of its ability to store carbon, said the researcher who contributed to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) research, mangroves have a special place in climate change mitigation.
He stressed the importance of the existence of mangroves in Indonesia to achieve the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) commitments made through the Paris Agreement that by 2030 we reduce emissions by 29 percent through our own efforts and 41 percent with international support.
According to data from the National Mangrove Map launched in 2019 by the government, Indonesia has 3.31 million hectares (ha) of mangrove area with 2,673,583 ha in good condition and 637,624 ha with sparse density.
Efforts to restore and conserve mangrove forests must now be one of the main focuses taken to curb climate change, given that Indonesia has 20 percent of total mangroves worldwide.
"The important message we convey is that let's conserve mangroves in the area and then restore those outside the area," Daniel said.
The Professor of Atmospheric Sciences in the Department of Geophysics, FMIPA, Bogor Agricultural University (IPB) also said the effort to reduce emissions from consumption of fossil fuels must also be accompanied by maintaining mangrove forests.
