
"Grow mangrove, harvest shrimp"
Pakistan has eight species of mangrove stretching
from the Rann of Kutch in the east to Gwatar Bay on
the Iranian border in the west. But, where there
were once vast areas of mangrove forests along the
coastline, these are now just dwindling areas of
trees which continue to be over-exploited.
Local communities have traditionally collected animal
fodder, fuel wood and tannin from the mangrove
forests but, as the tangled roots of mangrove
trees serve as nurseries for shrimps, crabs and
several species of fish, this forest destruction has
led to a decline in the shrimp harvest.
In a bid to improve the fate of Pakistan's mangrove
forests, WWF launched a project in Sonmiani, (an
hour's drive north of Karachi), to encourage local
communities to look after mangrove forests in order
to protect the shrimp population on which they rely
for food and income. As many of the locals
believed that the trees were a "Gift from God" and
would live forever, much of WWF's early work was
aimed at persuading villagers to accept the idea of
sustainable forest management and many of the
initial meetings were held informally in the tea shops
and meeting houses of the area. Now, two
mangrove nurseries have been established and the
seedlings from these have been planted in 40
hectares of bog. WWF aims to rehabilitate an
additional 100 hectares of forest in Sonmiani and, in
time, to increase this to 700 hectares of sustainable
forest.
The education programme has been extended beyond
the poster campaign encouraging locals to "Grow
mangrove, harvest shrimp" and now involves
local schools where children are learning about
"ecosystems" and the importance of sustainable
living.
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