Whats in a Mangrove? Wetlands such as mangroves and marshes make up 6% of the Earths surface, but store 20% of its carbon. They are homes to rich ecosystems. Photo: Gertrud & Helmut Denzau/Sanctuary Photolibrary Mangroves are essential mitigators of soil erosion and act as a buffer against cyclones, storms, sea level rise, and other global warming induced climate disasters. Whats in the Sunderbans? -Worlds largest mangrove system. -Worlds biggest tiger population. -A huge ecoystem made up of 100 plant species, crocodiles, Oliver Ridley turtles, dolphines and more -4 million marginalized villagers. - A dangerous story of sea level rise. The Sunderbans Tiger Story There are 400 tigers in the Sunderbans (274 in the Indian half) The effect of Rising Sea Levels Photo: Dr. Anish Andheria/Sanctuary Photolibrary Rapidly rising sea levels have led to an increase in salinity in the mangroves and degradation of the habitat Caught between a rock and a hard place This increase in salinity makes the water too salty for the tigers, so they begin moving up north to find fresher water and more secure habitats. However, up north they find themselves in the domain of humans Peter Canton A stressful situation This new situation leads to a stress on the tigers population Stress on the environment which is already suffering from both climate change and human destruction Stress on the villagers whose interactions with the tiger are less than pleasant Forest Department awareness measures are not measuring up EDCs Ecodevelopment committees and FPCs- Forest protection committees in order to create sense of responsibility among the villagers for their environment. Teaching alternate sources of income beyond fishing and agriculture, in order to help preserve the mangroves and keep human activity in them to a minimum. More to come The Sunderban mangroves have already decreased by 20% in the last 40 years What will happen in the next 40 years? What if we keep having more of these? Bay of Bengal NARGIS, April 2008 Category 4 Bay of Bengal SIDR, November 2007 Category 5 A sad ending? Where will the tiger prowl? Where will the Olive Ridley Turtle lay its eggs? Where will the people live? Photo: Karthik Shankar/Sanctuary Photolibrary