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Deforestation may have increased impact of devastating cyclone

Posted at 12:28 PM on 06 May 2008

The devastating impact of Cyclone Nargis, which has killed at least 22,000 people in Myanmar, could have been mitigated if mangrove forests had remained intact, says the secretary-general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Mangrove forests are densely vegetated and act as natural storm barriers, but many of the forests in Myanmar have been converted into shrimp or fish farms. "Encroachment into mangrove forests, which used to serve as a buffer ... between big waves and storms and residential areas -- all those lands have been destroyed," said ASEAN's Surin Pitsuwan. "Human beings are now direct victims of such natural forces." And of their natural lack of foresight.

source: BBC News
see also, in Grist: A conversation with Alfredo Quarto of the Mangrove Action Project

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Comments: (4 comments)

You are not logged in. Thus, you cannot post a comment. If you have a Gristmill account, log in below. If you don't have a Gristmill account, well, by all means go make one! Meet you back here in five.

"Human beings are now direct victims"?

No, they are the cause of the destruction in the first place.

A Native American once said that all natural disasters are due to the ignorance of white people. What he meant was that if people don't live in the wrong way, including living where they don't belong, natural phenomena don't hurt anything.

While it's possible that the people who were killed by the hurricane were not the ones responsible for destruction of the mangrove forests, there are no rewards or punishments in nature, just consequences, and those who were killed by the hurricane suffered the consequences of destroying the mangrove forests.

by Wolverine at 3:20 PM on 06 May 2008

Greed: pigs get slaughtered

Well, it also goes without saying that climate change is birthing freakishly larger storms.

"Burma: What Climate Change Devastation Looks Like"
http://www.commoncurrent.com/notes/2008/05/burma-what-cli ...

Back to the victory gardens!

by ken1 at 4:03 PM on 06 May 2008

Shrimp farming is the top threat to mangroves!

Cyclone Nargis, like tsunamis, hurricanes, and other disastrous storms, is a reality check that we cannot continue to destroy mangrove forests without devastating effects!

The cyclone has been attributed to development and the converstion of mangroves to rice farms, but shrimp farming is the top threat to mangrove forests worldwide.

We are certainly paying a high price for the cheap imported shrimp available in grocery stores and on restaurant menus. The environment and coastal communities are destroyed, and the shrimp--which may be contaminated with pesticides and antibiotics--is a threat to consumer health.

Mangrove Action Project (MAP) recently launched an awareness campaign, "Shrimp Less, Think More," urging people to stop purchasing imported shrimp and to instead choose local and sustainably-harvested varieties.

As consumers, we can play a part in preventing future disasters simply by making responsible seafood choices: Always ask where your seafood came from and how it was caught. For more information, visit the campaign blog, www.shrimpless.wordpress.com or www.mangroveactionproject.org

by Eli Penberthy at 10:40 AM on 07 May 2008

Mangrove Action Project

Mangrove Action Project in Port Angeles, WA is a key grassroots group combating the loss of mangroves worldwide:

http://www.mangroveactionproject.org

MAP partners with mangrove forest communities, grassroots NGOs, researchers and local governments to conserve and restore mangrove forests and related coastal ecosystems, while promoting community-based, sustainable management of coastal resources.

"If there are no mangrove forests, then the sea will have no meaning. It is like having a tree with no roots, for the mangroves are the roots of the sea." - a fisherman in Southern Thailand

They also do really cool eco-work-study tours on conserving mangroves. Though I don't think they've taken a group to Myanmar any time recently. Usually they go to India and Thailand, I think.

Erik

The Orion Grassroots Network: supporting grassroots groups working for conservation, justice, & more

by Erik Hoffner at 12:04 PM on 07 May 2008

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