Greece’s Posi donia seagrass faces threats from anchoring, pollution and other human interventions. In order to inform the proper protection of vital and ancient seagrass habitat, Blue Marine is working to provide a comprehensive assessment of the carbon removal and storage potential within Posidonia beds. Employing advanced hyperspectral cameras in collaboration with our partners, this project aims to generate advanced data to understand the climate implications of this vibrant ecosystem and enhance knowledge to help secure future climate smart marine protected areas (MPAs) across the Mediterranean.
Indonesia, accounting for 20 per cent of the world’s mangrove cover, has witnessed significant loss since the 1980s due to shrimp farming and coastal developments. In collaboration with local NGOs, Blue Marine’s work in Indonesia seeks to restore thousands of hectares of mangrove habitat, including 90 hectares of degraded aquaculture ponds in Lombok Island. Blue Marine will bring specialist technical knowledge to local NGO partners to set up a new project to support the restoration of mangrove ecosystems as well as delivering community education, monitoring and protection. Community members, local government officials, and local NGO representatives will be trained in world-leading community based ecological mangrove restoration techniques by Indonesian NGO, Blue Forests. A detailed engineering design will be developed and followed by a project manager and project coordinator, employing community members in restoration activities. The site will be developed as a mangrove eco-tourism destination centre to provide the community with alternative sustainable livelihoods.
Between 1970 and 2015, the Philippines lost 40 per cent of its mangroves, a vital blue carbon habitat that supports an abundance of species such as mudskippers, grouper, and the ancient horse shore crab (considered ‘living fossils’ as they’ve existed unchanged for over 400 million years). To address this, Blue Marine’s partner, Oceanus Conservation, has undertaken significant work to restore these blue forests, with over 8,000 seedlings planted in previously degraded areas. Their next target is a 10-hectare site in the country’s south, repurposing an abandoned shrimp farming site. By using a method that works with nature, Blue Marine seek to repair water flows and plant trees to stabilize sediment, letting nature oversee most of the restoration.
The marine and coastal environments of the Maldives are essential for its very existence as a low-laying island nation yet are under increasing threat from habitat degradation and rising sea levels. Building on Blue Marine’s extensive experience in the Maldives, this project seeks to understand the historical causes of mangrove loss, to inform both active and natural mangrove restoration over the coming years. Meanwhile, the project will also focus on enhancing tourist engagement and education, local restoration training and furthering seagrass protection across the island’s resorts.
