Translating Wetland Research into Policy

Daniel Murdiyarso, CIFORCarl Trettin, USFS

Translating Wetland Research into Policy

Outline

• Introduction

– What is SWAMP?

– Why wetlands are important?

• SWAMP Deliverables

• Impacts pathways and outcomes

• Emerging opportunities

– Bundling adaptation and mitigation strategies

– Enhancing wetland resilience and coastal security

• Key messages

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Partnership is fundamental for program effectiveness

CIFOR

• Land-use change and Biogeochemical cycles

• Remote sensing and modeling

• Communication and outreach

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USDA Forest Service

• Forest inventory and analysis

• Wetland ecology and management

• Restoration ecology

Boundary partners• National universities• National/local NGOs• Government agencies

SWAMP leverages other programs• Carbon Analysis Laboratory

– Univ. Eduardo Mondlane , Mozambique (funded by NSF-PEER)

– Bogor Agric. Univ., Indonesia (funded by State Dept.)

• Total Carbon Estimation in African Mangrove and Coastal Wetlands (funded by NASA)

• East Africa Mangrove Carbon Project (funded by USAID Africa Bureau)

• Carbon stocks and emissions of high altitude tropical peatlands in the Andes (funded by State Department)

• The Kalimantan Wetland s and Climate Change Study (KWACS), funded by USAID Indonesia Mission

• Indonesia Peat Network (IPN), funded by State Department

Why wetlands?

• Wetlands are important in the global carbon cycles• Very high C stocks, some of the highest on the

planet• Highest rates in deforestation/land cover change in

the tropics GHG emissions

• Wetlands provide numerous ecosystem services • Natural sponge flood control• Habitat for rare and endangered species• Coastal systems protect from storms and tsunamis • Breeding and rearing habitat for fish and shellfish• Sources of wood and other forest products• Ecotourism• High biodiversity

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SWAMP Goal and Objectives

The overall goal is to provide policy makers with credible scientific information needed to make sound decisions relating to the role of tropical wetlands in climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies.

The specific objectives are to:• Quantify GHG emissions and C-stocks and

changes• Develop models of ecosystem C-dynamics• Assess the roles of tropical wetland

ecosystems in climate change adaptation• Build the capacity and outreach stakeholders

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Where Do We Work?

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C stocks in

vegetation:

Straightforward

and relatively

inexpensive

Stock change Flux change

Litter fall

Root mortality

Heterotrophic

soil

respiration

Dissolved organic C

Methodology development

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Donato et al. Nature Geoscience (2011)

Indo-Pacific region (30o Lat, 73o Long)

Indonesian archipelago

Murdiyarso et al. Nature CC 2015 (submitted )

Findings: mangroves

• Findings• Ecosystem C stocks 1,083 ± 378 Mg C ha–1

• Soil (78%)• Biomass (20%)• Necromass (2%)

• Total stocks: 3.14 Pg C

• Area

• 1980: 4.2 Mha (FAO 207)• 2000: 3.1 Mha 52,000 ha/yr• 2005: 2.9 Mha (FAO, 2007) (1.4 %/yr)• 2009: 2.6 Mha (MoF, 2009)

• Mangrove loss 6% of the total forest loss

• Mitigation potentials 0. 19 Pg CO2eq yr-1

19% of the total national GHG emissions

Murdiyarso et al. Nature Climate Change 2015 (submitted)

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Findings: peatlands

Murdiyarso et al. PNAS, 2010

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Mapping C and modeling C dynamics

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Gumbricht, 2013

Kurnianto et al.,GCB, 2014

40 SWAMP publications

Peer-reviewed Journals Working papers

73,815 downloads

15,338 distributed

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Technical Session at IUFRO World Congress 2014

• Papers: 12 original research and

reviews

• Habitat: peat swamp forests,

mangroves, deltas, water birds

• Region: Africa, South and Meso-

America, Asia and the Pacific

• Issues: CC mitigation and

adaptation

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Wetlands on the web SWAMP project site: www.cifor.org/swamp

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Impact pathways and Outcomes

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1. Introduction2. Drained Inland Organic Soils3. Rewetted Organic Soils4. Coastal Wetlands5. Inland Wetland Organic Soils6. Constructed Wetlands for Wastewater

Treatment7. Cross-cutting Issues and Reporting

http://www.ipcc-nggip.iges.or.jp/home/wetlands.html

Impact pathways and Outcomes

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(p.10)

(p.28)

Impact pathways and Outcomes

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Lidar

Hi-Res Satellite Data

Development of Applications Using High Resolution Remote

Sensing Data to Estimate Mangrove Biomass

Estimation of Canopy Height

Next Step:Evaluate with Field Height and Biomass Data

Source: Lagomasino, NASA, 2015 USDA FOREST SERVICE

Sea-level Rise – IPCC AR5

For RCP8.5, by 2100 0.52 to 0.98

RCP2.6: 0.26 to 0.55 mRCP4.5: 0.32 to 0.63 m RCP6.0: 0.33 to 0.63 m RCP8.5: 0.45 to 0.82 m

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IPCC (2012)

VietnamRepublic of Palau

Sedimentation rate = sea-level rise

MacKenzie et al. (Forthcoming)

Adaptation to CC/SLR

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R-SET and Radionuclides (210 Pb)

2 cm intervalsin the first 20 cm

20 cm intervals up to 1m deep

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E WN 255o E

2D RESISTIVITY SECTION_TG01TANJUNG GUNUNG AREA, KAYONG UTARA

SW

N 220o E NE

2D RESISTIVITY SECTION_TG03-TG05TANJUNG GUNUNG AREA, KAYONG UTARA

• Use of Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR)• For more accurate estimate of peat volume

Better estimate of peat depth

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B1, Slide 24 of 36

New approaches for restoration and sustainable management

Photo by: Ben Brown

Firewood $270k Mangrove Crab $550kEcotourism ??$

Integrating science with local objectives

Bosma et al. 2014

Integrated Associated Separated Idealized?

Key messages• Additional science is needed to

inform public policy-making processes

• The UNFCCC and IPCC remain important fora to deliver wetlands science

• Mitigation-based adaptation may be promoted at all levels across multiple-stakeholders

• Outreach and capacity building to policy and scientific community through trainings are increasingly important

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Future directions for discussionContinue Building the Science Base

• Documenting emissions from degraded wetlands

• Developing robust assessment tools

• Monitoring wetland dynamics

Integration wetlands into national planning and management

• National mapping (e.g. Indonesia - peatlands, Mozambique - mangroves)

• Enhance policy dialogue and outreach in selected USAID countries (e.g.

PNG)

• Developing governance and socio-economic tools to reflect local values of

wetlands into national mapping and planning efforts

Guiding strategic investments in coastal security

• Improve tools available to USAID and other donors for wetlands restoration

that increases effectiveness and outcomes

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www.cifor.org/swamp

THANK YOU