Blue Carbon in the Sundarbans
The Sundarbans, a sprawling mangrove forest shared by India and Bangladesh, is a vibrant ecosystem of high biodiversity value. Home to indigenous communities like the Mouli tribe, this unique landscape has sustained generations through fishing, farming, and beekeeping. Known for its rich biodiversity, an array of wildlife, including the iconic Royal Bengal tiger, crocodiles, deer, and various bird species. While facing increasing pressures from human activity and climate change, our efforts are underway to restore and protect the Sundarbans through the planting of native mangrove species with the active involvement of local communities.
West Bengal, India
Project Location: South 24 Parganas; West Bengal, India
Methodology: Afforestation & Reforestation of Degraded Mangrove Habitats
Standard: Verified Carbon Standard
Plantation Area: 1400 HA
Current Plantation: 12 million trees
Species Planted: 14
Mangroves are nature’s adaptive marvels, shielding coastlines from the fury of storms and tides, while providing sources of livelihoods for the coastal habitants. Building on this natural resilience, our program aims to strengthen the region’s adaptive capacity leveraging on the power of local communities. “Baha’ Mou” for example supports the Mouli community by facilitating market access for their mangrove honey products, fostering livelihoods. “Learning with Joy” is another such example that enhances access to primary education for the island dwellers. These social interventions and continued engagement with the communities ensure permeance and longevity in these programs, an essential element of a Blue Carbon project.
Given the dispersed nature of these islands, access to schools for younger children is limited. The program works with infrastructure upgradation to one of the existing island schools, from the current limit of intakes of up to 2nd grade to include children for up to the 5th grade. This we hope will act as a bridge for children who can then have the option of continuing their secondary schooling and high school pursuits in neighboring islands.
These island communities have a fight on their hands. Diverse gender participation is crucial for the success of such programs. Gradually pushing the social boundary is an imperative and our women project participants have been instrumental in setting up nurseries, planting mangroves as well as contributing immensely to the operations and maintenance of the projects. The Baha Mou mangrove honey program is also one of the successes of the program, given that this all women’s collective is able to connect itself to a digital and export market place.
The entire program is run by the people, the people of these islands. From seed collection to planting to maintenance, all the operational teams are from these islands. Apart from the direct economic activity that the mangrove program generates, there is a women’s collective as a part of the livelihoods project involving collection, packaging and export of mangrove honey. The project also works with providing livestock and building fisheries in the region to enhance household income.
Mangroves are a crucial defense mechanism for this region. These islands are one of the most vulnerable regions in the world to climate change, and so building walls of mangroves is the only option for a lot of these islands to adapt. The loss of livelihoods due to degrading mangroves and soil erosion are also issues of high relevance. The project hence serves a win-win dual purpose, one of carbon removals and other of coastal adaptation, an imperative for these islands.
This program is the midst of the Royal Bengal tiger habitat. The dense mangroves provide this majestic creature the cover to hunt as well as escape illegal poaching. These mangroves are crucial to their existence and survival. Apart from the tigers, this region is home to the King Cobra, olive ridley turtles, green turtles and estuarine crocodiles. A rich biodiversity ecosystem that needs the mangrove habitat to thrive.
Given the dispersed nature of these islands, access to schools for younger children is limited. The program works with infrastructure upgradation to one of the existing island schools, from the current limit of intakes of up to 2nd grade to include children for up to the 5th grade. This we hope will act as a bridge for children who can then have the option of continuing their secondary schooling and high school pursuits in neighboring islands.
These island communities have a fight on their hands. Diverse gender participation is crucial for the success of such programs. Gradually pushing the social boundary is an imperative and our women project participants have been instrumental in setting up nurseries, planting mangroves as well as contributing immensely to the operations and maintenance of the projects. The Baha Mou mangrove honey program is also one of the successes of the program, given that this all women’s collective is able to connect itself to a digital and export market place.
The entire program is run by the people, the people of these islands. From seed collection to planting to maintenance, all the operational teams are from these islands. Apart from the direct economic activity that the mangrove program generates, there is a women’s collective as a part of the livelihoods project involving collection, packaging and export of mangrove honey. The project also works with providing livestock and building fisheries in the region to enhance household income.
Mangroves are a crucial defense mechanism for this region. These islands are one of the most vulnerable regions in the world to climate change, and so building walls of mangroves is the only option for a lot of these islands to adapt. The loss of livelihoods due to degrading mangroves and soil erosion are also issues of high relevance. The project hence serves a win-win dual purpose, one of carbon removals and other of coastal adaptation, an imperative for these islands.
This program is the midst of the Royal Bengal tiger habitat. The dense mangroves provide this majestic creature the cover to hunt as well as escape illegal poaching. These mangroves are crucial to their existence and survival. Apart from the tigers, this region is home to the King Cobra, olive ridley turtles, green turtles and estuarine crocodiles. A rich biodiversity ecosystem that needs the mangrove habitat to thrive.
Baha’ Mou Honey Production Worker
Sundarbans, West Bengal, India
