Structural Development and Productivity of Replanted Mangrove Plantations in Kenya Final Technical Report -1

Abstract

Mangrove forests are one of the most important natural resources along the Kenyan coast. They provide goods and services that are of economical, ecological and environmental values to the local and national economy. Consequently, mangrove resources must be managed and utilized in a sustainable way in which ecological and environmental securities of the coastal areas can be achieved at the same time living standard of the local community can be improved. The management of mangroves in Kenya suffers from an inadequate knowledge; of silvicultural technology, of multiple-use potential of resources, and of techniques and economics of natural regeneration and reforestation. To address part of these problems, Alcoa Foundation’s Conservation and Sustainability Fellowship Program funded a project to assess structural development and productivity of mangrove plantations that were established in 1994. The long-term objective of the project is to improve the sustainable management of mangrove forests in Kenya, in order to enhance natural resource productivity, particularly in ways that would sustain continuous flow of desired forest products and services. One of the most important project output was the preparation of yield tables of the replanted mangrove plantations. The standing biomass of a 12-year old Rhizophora plantation was estimated as 106.7 ton/ha, equivalent to 53.3 t C/ha. The document includes an economic analysis of the replanted mangrove stands. Based on indirect and direct products and services such as; firewood and building poles, coastal protection, research and education, ecotourism, and carbon sequestration the value of a 12 years old Rhizophora plantation was estimated at US$ 2,902.87 /ha/yr. It is hoped that governments and other stakeholders in the Western Indian Ocean will find the results useful in promoting mangrove reforestation in the region.