When mangroves do what seawalls cannot
Mangroves along India's coastline provide essential protection against climate impacts, often outperforming costly coastal infrastructure. Despite their benefits, ecosystem-based adaptations like mangroves are underutilized in favor of engineered solutions. This oversight limits the effectiveness of India's climate resilience strategies, leaving many communities vulnerable to climate change.
- ▪Mangroves, seagrass meadows, and coral reefs help communities adapt to rising climate risks along India's coastline.
- ▪India's coastal adaptation spending heavily favors engineered measures like seawalls, despite their high maintenance costs and risk displacement.
- ▪Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA) offers a promising strategy for reducing climate risk while sustaining vital ecosystems.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
When Cyclone Dana made landfall near Bhitarkanika on Odisha’s coast, the region’s mangroves quietly provided a form of protection that billions of rupees in coastal infrastructure often struggle to deliver: reducing climate impacts while strengthening ecosystems and livelihoods. Across India’s coastline, mangroves, seagrass meadows, and coral reefs are already helping communities adapt to rising climate risks. Yet seawalls, groynes, and embankments continue to dominate adaptation spending, even though they can be costly to maintain and sometimes transfer risks elsewhere.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at The Hindu.
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