Are Mangroves the Answer Against Global Warming Vulnerability to Disaster? - Kansas City infoZine

 
Click title for link to article which was originally sourced from Rueters, but appears in the Kansas City Infozine piece. Click title for link. I don't think that Kansas City has many mangroves, but our coastal areas do and are protected through the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Snook Islands is an example of coastal mangrove restoration. They are now realizing that not only do mangroves stabilize coastal areas and provide valuable habitat for fish and other wildlife, older stands actually contain carbon deposits that may be thousands of years old. Check out the video for a quick overview.

"Our coasts are more vulnerable now to these natural disasters, whether they be from hurricanes, tsunamis or wave surges because of the loss of natural coastal barriers, such as mangroves, sea grasses, corals, salt marshes or other coastal wetlands. Even sand dunes play an important part in acting as natural barriers against the occasional, but devastating ravages of Nature.

"Mangroves are especially important today in reducing the adverse effects from climate change, because they sequester more carbon dioxide and store more carbon than any other plant species. They can store carbon in their peat soils for millennia if left undisturbed. Mangroves also are the last line of defense against the present rising sea levels that pose immense threats to coastal cities, towns, and villages. Mangroves actually accrue sediments, thus building up the shoreline, which itself is a vital defense against rising sea levels.