People and the Mangroves

The effect of people on East African Mangroves is bad.  Their current status is critical or endangered.  Although there are efforts made to preserve them, such as the creation of biospheres and reserves, mangroves have been severely depleted throughout the years.  Once they covered 15,100 sq. km, but they are now estimated to only be as large as 2,555 sq. km to 7,211 sq. km, less than half their original size.  Globally, mangroves are estimated to have covered 75% of tropical coastlines, but only around 50% survive today.

Mangroves are used mainly for subsistence farming, so they are removed to provide space for agriculture and fishing.  They have been turned into rice paddies, saltpans, and aquaculture.  In the last century, mangrove trees were in high demand from sultans to use in buildings on Zanzibar.  Today, around 70% of Kenyans living on the coast use mangrove trees to build their houses.  From 1893 to present, the Germans have had control of mangrove tree trade along East Africa to the Middle East, where the trees are converted to charcoal.

Pollution of the water is also a problem.  Siltation from rivers that run into the mangrove bring with them sediment that are harmful to coral polyps and organisms living in the area, leading to coastal erosion.  Industrial runoff, untreated wastes from factories, and pesticides also change the water.  Damming of rivers, which leads to changes in water temperature and salinity, is also common.

As the population in this area grows, it is being overused.  Mangroves have been made into protected areas, national parks, and reserves, but there is still a large area of mangroves in Somalia that is not currently protected due to a lack of organization in the government.