An Appraisal of Mangrove Management in Micro-tidal Estuaries and Lagoons in Sri Lanka

128 Pages·2011·3.16 MB·English

An Appraisal of Mangrove
Management in Micro-tidal
Estuaries and Lagoons in Sri Lanka
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IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, helps the world find
pragmatic solutions to our most pressing environment and development challenges.
It supports scientific research, manages field projects all over the world and brings
governments, non-government organizations, United Nations agencies, companies
and local communities together to develop and implement policy, laws and best
practice.
IUCN is the world’s oldest and largest global environmental network – a democratic
membership union with more than 1,000 government and NGO member
organizations, and 10,000 volunteer scientists in more than 160 countries.
IUCN’s work is supported by more than 1,000 professional staff in 60 offices and
hundreds of partners in public, NGO and private sectors around the world. The
Union’s headquarters are located in Gland, near Geneva, Switzerland. Its Asia
Regional Office is based in Bangkok, Thailand.
The IUCN in Sri Lanka was established in 1986 and is guided by IUCN’s mission and
the environmental concerns embodied in successive National Environmental Action
Plans of the Government of Sri Lanka.
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An Appraisal of Mangrove
Management in Micro-tidal
Estuaries and Lagoons in Sri Lanka
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Published by : IUCN (International Union for Conservation of
Nature), Sri Lanka Office.
Copyright : © 2011 IUCN, International Union for Conservation
of Nature and Natural Resources.
Reproduction of this publication for educational or
other non - commercial purposes is authorized
without prior written permission from the copyright
holder provided the source is fully acknowledged.
Reproduction of this publication for resale or other
commercial purposes is prohibited without prior
written permission of the copyright holder.
Citation : IUCN (2011). An Appraisal of Mangrove Management
in Micro-tidal Estuaries and Lagoons in Sri Lanka. IUCN
Sri Lanka Country Office, Colombo. viii + 116pp.
ISBN : 978 - 955 - 0205 - 05 - 9
Cover Photographs : Mangroves in the Negombo Lagoon
(Ranjith Mahindapala)

Produced by : IUCN Sri Lanka Office
Designed and layout by : K. Amila Tharanga
Printed by : Karunaratne & Sons Ltd.
67, UDA Industrial Estate,
Katuwana Road,
Homagama, Sri Lanka.
[email protected]
Available from : IUCN
Sri Lanka Country Office,
53, Horton Place,
Colombo 07,
Sri Lanka.
www.iucnsl.org
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Contents

Preface vii
1. Introduction 1
2. Outputs of the Colloquia 5
3. Field Observations 19
4. Appropriate Mangrove Restoration in Barrier-built Estuaries and 35
Lagoons
5. Conclusions and Recommendations 49
6. References 53
7. Annexes 57
Annex 1 - List of Participants at the two colloquia 59
Annex 2 - Programme of the Colloquium on Mangrove Rehabilitation Efforts in Sri
Lanka held at the Hector Kobbekaduwa Agrarian Research & Training
Institute (HARTI), Wijerama Mawata, Colombo 7 on 6 November, 2009 63
Annex 3 - Presentations made at the Colombo Colloquium (only those made available
by the authors are presented) 65
Annex 4 - Programme of the Colloquium on Mangrove Rehabilitation Efforts in Sri
Lanka (Eastern Province) held at the Hotel Bridge View, New Dutch Bar
Road, Kallady, Batticaloa on 24 November, 2009 87
Annex 5 - Summaries of the presentations of the Batticaloa Colloquium (prepared by
IUCN) 89
Annex 6 - Physiography of Sri Lanka’s Coastal Plains, Origin and Behaviour of
Micro-tidal Barrier-built Estuaries and Lagoons and their Sedimentation
with Mangrove Planting and other Land Uses – Paper prepared by Dr J I
Samarakoon 105
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Preface
This study was inspired by observations and experiences from post-tsunami (2004)
mangrove planting and ‘restoration’ work in the country. Since the tsunami, IUCN Sri
Lanka supported a number of initiatives for improving mangrove management in the
context of the structure and functioning of the parent ecosystems – estuaries and
lagoons. In 2009, several mangrove planting and ‘restoration’ initiatives were supported
under the Small Grants Programme of the Mangroves for the Future Initiative (MFF)
in different parts of Sri Lanka. Inconsistent results from the Small Grants Programme
together with other observations on changes to lagoon and estuarine ecosystems
compelled us to undertake an appraisal of mangrove planting initiatives in the country.
Many have helped us in this study. Observations of grantees and the critical questions
they posed obliged us to seek the scientific basis for some of the mangrove related
work, otherwise considered as routine.
This appraisal had two main components, namely, colloquia and field observations.
IUCN organised the main colloquium in Colombo and a satellite colloquium in Batticaloa
with stakeholder state agencies, academia, researchers, practitioners and policy
makers to discuss and debate a number of themes relating to mangrove replanting (and
‘restoration’), their successes and failures, and possible effects on ecosystem health
and productivity. The practitioners were appreciative of the opportunity to share their
experiences with the scientists, as there were hardly any opportunities in the past for
such a discourse. The field observations were collated and analysed by Drs Jayampathi
Samarakoon and T Jayasingam and Professor Senevi Epitawatta, supported by the
team at IUCN.
The Sri Lanka National Steering Committee of MFF, ably chaired by Ms L P Batuwitage,
Additional Secretary, Ministry of Environment, supported this study as a priority. The
contributors at the two colloquia readily provided information and data from their
respective areas of work, without which this report would have been impossible. The
participants at the two colloquia provided valuable information and opinions. Drs
Jayampathi Samarakoon and T Jayasingam and Professor Senevi Epitawatta provided
excellent technical support, analyses of field observations, and writings in compiling this
report. Dr Steven Creech provided a synthesis of the Colombo colloquium.
It was the consensus amongst the participants that mangrove planting and restoration
should be scientifically based and with due regard for the resilience of ecosystems
to regenerate themselves with minimal interventions after natural disasters. This
report captures the main observations and findings from the study, and provides
recommendations for mangrove planting and ‘restoration’ in the future. The report
was critiqued and edited by Dr Tilak Wettasinghe, whose assistance is gratefully
acknowledged.
IUCN Sri Lanka
December, 2010
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(Kumudini Ekaratne)
An Appraisal of Mangrove Management in Micro-tidal Estuaries and Lagoons in Sri Lanka