Casamance Mangroves,
Senegal
Restoring wetlands in Senegal
0 ha

under restoration

0

trees planted and growing

0

species regenerating

0

people trained

0

communities engaged

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The estuary of the Casamance river was once home to an abundance of mangroves – tropical trees and shrubs that thrive in salty, tidal waters.

Villages here rely on the mangroves to protect them from storms and to support agriculture, fishing and the harvesting of shellfish. In the 1970s, the area was blighted by drought. People started using the mangroves for firewood, which fed a vicious cycle of deforestation and poverty.

Our project here is expected to form part of the largest carbon-certified mangrove project in the world, together with a similar project in the more northerly Sine-Saloum delta.

Why and how we’re working here

The delta was seriously affected by a drought from 1968 to 1994, which killed the mangroves in the higher parts of the mudflats. The mangroves were also chopped down for their wood, which is used for construction, firewood and charcoal for fish smoking and cooking.
Without the mangroves, the coastal communities are vulnerable to the loss of income from shellfish harvests, as well as to the destruction caused by storms.
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Location

The Casamance river, south Senegal

Restoration approaches

Full planting

restoration partners

Oceanium

Eclosio

species

Rhizophora mangle, R. racemosa, R. harisonnii and Avicennia germinans

Certification

VCS + CCB

The project’s impact on people

The mangroves here are crucial to local people; fish, including shellfish, is the primary source of animal protein in Senegal. Household incomes are low because of ever-diminishing harvests of fish and shellfish after the loss of their mangrove habitat. The communities here also rely heavily on farming, growing ground nuts, maize and rice and collecting wild honey.

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Who’s funding the Casamance Mangroves project?

Updates from the Blue Carbon programme

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