ECOSYSTEM-BASED ADAPTATION
AND MITIGATION
There is increasing awareness and evidence of the potential of restoring natural eco
systems as a way to mitigate climate change, but also ensuring the continued flow of
ecosystem services (MA, 2005; Trumper et al., 2009). These services, including, but not
limited to, extreme weather and tsunami buffering effects, enhanced food supply, pollu
tion mitigation and health issues, are mainly concentrated in the coastal zone of oceans
(UNEP, 2006; 2008b). Indeed, oceans blue carbon sinks, along with coral reefs and kelp
communities, all fulfil very important functions in the coastal zone while providing op
portunities for jobs and coastal prosperity.
Unfortunately, blue carbon sinks are disappearing at an There is sufficient evidence that reversing the global decline of
alarming rate. Human activities such as deforestation, pol- vegetated coastal habitats and recovering the lost area of blue car-
lution by nutrients and chemicals from agricultural and in- bon sinks would provide a very large improvement in the ecologi-
dustrial runoff, unsustainable coastal development, overfish- cal status of the global coastal environment. This could result in
ing, invasive species infestations, oil spills, dredging, filling the recovery of important services, such as their capacity to oxy-
or drainage that cause sediment-loading, mining, and loss of genate coastal waters, serve as nurseries, helping restore world
biodiversity are impacting coastal ecosystems worldwide, far fish stocks, or shelter the shoreline from storms and extreme
exceeding the natural buffering capacity of these ecosystems weather events (Hemminga and Duarte 2000; Danielsen et al.,
(UNEP, 2006; 2008b). 2005). At the same time by stopping the loss and degradation, we
would rebuild an important natural carbon sink, thereby contrib-
MANAGEMENT OF BLUE CARBON SINKS uting to mitigating CO
2
emissions and, hence, climate change.
AND THEIR RESTORATION
Blue carbon sinks are hot spots for carbon burial in the ocean Because blue carbon sinks occur along the shorelines of all
where they play a globally significant role that needs be incor- continents, except the Antarctic, states in regions with exten-
porated into current inventories of natural carbon sinks. About sive shallow coastal areas across the world (e.g. India, south
half of their sink capacity may have been lost already, mainly east Asia, Black Sea, West Africa, Caribbean, Mediterranean,
through the loss of these vegetated coastal habitats since the eastern USA, Russia) could explore the potential to mitigate
1940s. Efforts to recover the capacity of blue carbon sinks CO
2
emissions and improve their coastal resources by pro-
needs be incorporated in current strategies to mitigate climate tecting and restoring their blue carbon sinks. Expanding blue
change, thus providing an impetus for restoration efforts. The carbon sinks is, therefore, a win-win strategy, (comparable to
recovery of blue carbon sinks will help countries mitigate their strategies in place to protect and rebuild the carbon sink capac-
carbon emissions while restoring valuable ecosystem services ity of rainforests) which, helps to address the commitments of
and key natural resources. Integrated coastal management will states under both the Biological Diversity and Climate Change
become central in this process to ensure both the carbon bind- Conventions of the UN. For instance, the ongoing national wet-
ing capacity and the goods and services rendered for food se- land conservation action plan in China has been estimated to
curity, coastal livelihoods and sustainable coastal development. involve a potential for increased carbon sequestration by 6.57
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