NEWS

Mangroves prot
By Sera Whippy
THE importance of mangroves that foul smelling muddy forests cannot be over emphasised. The backbone of tropical ocean coastlines, the finger-like roots of mangrove plants protect coastal wetlands against the ocean and are also important fish habitats. And it is for this reason that World Wildlife Fund for Natures project coordinator Monifa Fiu was at the Ba delta last week to conduct an awareness workshop on the issue. Ms Fiu with a group of volunteers were involved in the AusAID-funded Building Resilience Project that included assessing coastal resilience-building in high biodiversity tropical mangrove areas and their associated coral reef, sea grass and upland ecosystems. Mangroves are important because they are the lands natural filters, protecting the ocean from land-based sediments and pollutants and also protecting the land from the ravages of the ocean, she explained. She added mangrove foliage had declined over the past several decades because of increasing coastal development and damage to its habitat. I have volunteers from Ba and Macuata assisting me in this survey It is vi. tal to include the people of the district because this is their land, their environment and they need to be aware of its impact on their environment, Ms Fiu said. The four-day workshop held at Nailaga Village in Ba allowed participants to understand mangrove resilience, taking into account the amount of exposure, sensitivities and its capacity to adapt.

Two Fiji National University students join Senikarawa of Live and Learn during the workshop. Picture: SERA WHIPPY

Mudflats a natural phenomenon: WWF

By Sera Whippy
IN the middle of the Ba delta mangrove swamp was an arid, desolate and dry area looking more like a minidesert. World Wildlife Fund for Natures Building Resilience national project coordinator Monifa Fiu said this was a natural phenomenon that occurred in the dry parts of the country. She said the mudflats were a good area to conduct their baseline mangrove surveys, especially in light of climatic changes occurring. This is a feature in which we can find out, for example, if there was a prolonged dry period, then the madflats would have expanded. But if the size has shrunk, then it can provide a glimpse of past climate, Ms Fiu said. She was at the delta last week conducting a survey on seafront trees with six workshop participants from the Ba and Macuata provinces. We are conducting a preliminary analysis on the area and we hope to complete it in two weeks, she said. They have four transects to complete, one being six kilometres long. We are being ambitious, she said. She said the four-day training program was based on how villagers could conduct a vulnerability assessment taking in the social and economic aspects. This would guide you into an adaptation plan in correlation with disaster elements in consideration, she added.

The mini-desert in the middle of the Ba mangrove swamp. This is a natural phenomenon, says WWF project co-ordinator Monifa Fiu. Picture: SERA WHIPPY

WWF project co-ordinator Monifa Fiu (right) showing a map of the Ba mangrove swamp to volunteers. n Left WWF officers and media personnel leaving the mangrove swamp.
Picture: SERA WHIPPY

Top - WWF project co-ordinator Monifa Fiu with volunteers. Picture: SERA WHIPPY

n Bottom The Ba river is always buzzing with activities. These fishermen are on their way home.
Picture: SERA WHIPPY

n Top right The Ba delta from Nailaga Village.

Picture: SERA WHIPPY

n Bottom right Macuata volunteer in the mangrove swamp in Ba.

Picture: SERA WHIPPY

n Far right - Nawaqarua Village along the Ba river. paula Saurara (facing camera) with volunteers.
Picture: SERA WHIPPY Pictures: SERA WHIPPY

16 THE FIJI TIMES TUESDAY, AUGUST 30, 2011

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tect ocean, land

The training workshop involved two days of theory and two days of practical work. The first two days involved preparations of surveys and how they consider the exposure of their communities. They need to assess the state of their village, both from the social and economic aspects, which would lead them to the planning of the development of an adaptation plan with disaster risk elements in consideration, Ms Fiu said. She said the workshop was not just about protecting mangroves and its surrounding environments but about the villagers ability to consider that there was change and one must be able to learn and understand those changes because of development. As a result of the workshop, villagers from those provinces advised villagers to refrain from cutting mangroves. Village youth president Paula Saurara said mangroves were being used for firewood. The villagers are always using mangroves for firewood because it burns well but they are starting to understand that their actions now will affect their future, where declining mangrove forests will lead to a decline in marine resources, Mr Saurara said. The villagers have also cpme to understand now the importances of mangroves to climate change, he said. Villages like Nailaga in Ba have also asked their people and nearby communities to stop throwing rubbish into the Ba River. It is good to know that our awareness programs are starting to change the way people run their villages and it will take some time before everyone will be acting on protecting the environment, Ms Fiu said.

AT A GLANCE
Mangroves and people
flats in the leeward areas of large islands. Unfortunately, the areas n Mangroves dominate three n quarters of tropical coastlines where mangroves will seek and Fiji has the third largest habitat with sea level rise are mangrove area of an estimat- those areas most favoured for ed 517 square kilometres in coastal tourism development. Other threats to manthe Pacific Region, comprising n seven true mangrove species groves ecosystems include tag reclamation, firewood coland a hybrid. n Largest areas of man- lection, utilising the area as groves are found on the south- a dumping ground for solid east, northwest shorelines waste both household type of Viti Levu and the northern and industrial. n Medium-level threats also shores of Vanua Levu. n Different locations in Fiji include overfishing, watershed are expected to experience alteration, coastal sedimentadistinct effects of climate Whippy Sera tion, aquaculture ponds, sewchange because of climatic erage, pesticide and animal variation and tectonic setting waste runoff, logging, and more. of the islands. n There will also be differ- n According to the Fiji Manences in the rate of sea level grove Management Plan, the rise within Fiji as certain areas mangroves along the Rewa are experiencing tectonic up- Delta were listed as needing lift or subsidence, while others urgent consideration for biological conservation while the are tectonically stable. n Climatic variation across mangroves of the Ba and Labathe larger islands in Fiji influ- sa deltas were listed as requirences mangrove distribution ing consideration in terms of their hydrological functions. and ecology. n Mangroves play an important role in Fijis sewerage Threats to mangroves treatment programs, where n These future mangrove most facilities are associated habitats are lowland forests with mangroves. n Source: WWF on the windward areas or salt

Picture: SERA WHIPPY

president of the Macuata provincial youth association, Manoa Tuiwainikai (right) and a youth measure the height of a mangrove tree. Picture: SERA WHIPPY

Provinces key to project

By Sera Whippy
MACUATA and Ba have been identified as key provinces for the World Wildlife Fund for Natures AusAID-funded Building Resilience project. WWF project co-ordinator Monifa Fiu said the two areas were chosen because of their large river deltas and associated mangrove forests. She said Ba, with its population of 231,760, thriving agricultural communities and large municipalities like Nadi, Lautoka and Ba was seen as an ideal region for the projects work. Mangroves play a major role in our cultural and economic livelihoods, especially for coastal people. With the onslaught of climate change, there will be significant effects on lives and we are hoping to prepare the people for this, Ms Fiu said. She said Macuata province was chosen as it boasted a resident population of 72,441 within its 12 districts, a quarter of whom live in and around Labasa the largest municipality on Vanua Levu. She said Macuata also boasted the globally significant Great Sea Reef. With her 40-plus volunteers, Ms Fiu said she hoped to build local capacity enhance , awareness, integrate its lessons into policy and support community-based adaptation on environmental needs. She said mangroves were crucial in adapting to climate change as it had the ability to withstand a broad range of environmental conditions made possible by its water regulating and storage functions. Mangroves are borderline species worthy of protection as they provide risk reduction measures in combating vulnerability to climate change, she said.

THE FIJI TIMES TUESDAY, AUGUST 30, 2011

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