Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

Better restoration policies are needed to conserve mangrove ecosystems

Nature Ecology & Evolution volume 3, pages 870–872 (2019)Cite this article

Subjects

Current mangrove planting schemes aimed at reversing global losses are prioritising short-term increases in area over long-term establishment. Without sound, evidence-based restoration policies, this approach could accelerate the demise of mangrove forests and the ecosystem services they provide.

Global mangrove ecosystems, especially those in Southeast Asia, have been plagued by continual losses of 1–2% per annum1 over the past few decades. These ongoing losses have prompted doubts about the future of global mangrove ecosystem services2. However, despite these worrying global trends, recent work in Southeast Asia suggests that mangrove ecosystems in the region are on a recovery trajectory3. At the second Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Mangrove Congress held in Manila, Philippines, in September 2017, a significant increase in the area covered by mangroves was reported for many countries. On the surface, this is a welcome turnaround in mangrove conservation. However, this rapid reversal of the trend in aggregate mangrove area may be obscuring important processes that are still endangering these valuable ecosystems. If not addressed adequately, such threats could actually accelerate the loss of critical mangrove services globally.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Relevant articles

Open Access articles citing this article.

Access options

Rent or buy this article

Prices vary by article type

from$1.95

to$39.95

Learn more

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Fig. 1: Planting problems.

References

  1. FAO. The World’ s Mangroves: 1980–2005 89 (FAO, Rome, Italy, 2007).

  2. Duke, N. C. et al. Science 317, 41–42 (2007).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Richards, D. R. & Friess, D. A. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 113, 344–349 (2016).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Primavera, J. H. et al. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 109, 744–750 (2016).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Villamayor, B. M. R. et al. Ocean Coast. Manage. 132, 1–14 (2016).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Primavera, J.H. et al. in World Seas, An Environmental Evaluation 2nd edn, Vol. 3 (ed Sheppard, C. S.) 1–34 (Elsevier, 2018).

  7. Lewis III, R. R. Ecol. Eng. 24, 403–418 (2005).

  8. Lee, S. Y. & Khim, J. S. Chemosphere 168, 765–776 (2017).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Peng, Y. et al. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 109, 691–699 (2016).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. He, Z. et al. Plant Soil 432, 425–436 (2018).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Ewel, K. C. et al. Glob. Ecol. Biogeogr. 7, 83–94 (1998).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Barbier, E. B. et al. Science 319, 321–323 (2008).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Lewis III, R. R. et al. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 109, 764–771 (2016).

  14. Barbier, E. B. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Environmental Science: Environmental Economics 23 (Oxford University Press, Oxford, 2017).

Download references

Author information

Author notes

  1. Deceased: R. R. Lewis III.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China

    Shing Yip Lee

  2. Salisbury University, Salisbury, MD, USA

    Stu Hamilton

  3. Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA

    Edward B. Barbier

  4. Zoological Society of London, IloIlo, Philippines

    Jurgenne Primavera

  5. Coastal Resources Group, Inc., Salt Springs, FL, USA

    Roy R. Lewis III

Authors
  1. Shing Yip Lee
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Stu Hamilton
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Edward B. Barbier
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Jurgenne Primavera
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Roy R. Lewis III
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Shing Yip Lee.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Supplementary information

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Lee, S.Y., Hamilton, S., Barbier, E.B. et al. Better restoration policies are needed to conserve mangrove ecosystems. Nat Ecol Evol 3, 870–872 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-019-0861-y

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-019-0861-y

This article is cited by

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing