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Myanmar: Saving the mangroves

Source(s): Frontier Myanmar
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Photo by Flickr user International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 https://flic.kr/p/xPfT2T
Photo by Flickr user International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 https://flic.kr/p/xPfT2T

By Hein Ko Soe

If another powerful cyclone were to pummel the Ayeyarwady Delta it could have a more devastating impact than Nargis in 2008, one of the worst natural disasters in Myanmar’s history, environmentalists have warned.

The reason is the continuing destruction of mangrove forests that provide a coastal buffer against extreme weather.

To help protect the delta and other coastal areas where mangroves are or have been abundant, projects to rehabilitate, regenerate and replant the forests are taking place in Ayeyarwady and Tanintharyi regions, as well as Rakhine State.

“If a cyclone comes to the [Ayeyarwady] delta, the impact could be twice that of Nargis because most of the coastal areas are flat with no mangrove cover,” said U Win Maung, chairman of Worldview Myanmar, an non-government organisation associated with Sri Lanka-based Worldview International Foundation, that is planting mangroves in Ayeyarwady Region.

Deforestation has led to a dramatic reduction of mangrove cover in Myanmar.

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Hazards Cyclone
Themes Environment and ecosystems Advocacy and media Water Social impacts and social resilience Inclusion
Country and region Myanmar
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