Mangroves are considered one of Indonesia’s tourism attractions, but hectares of this unique carbon-rich biome have been levelled to make space for tourism.
Local conservationists are intent on raising awareness of the issue globally, emphasising the importance of these carbon stores and biodiversity hotspots.
To reverse this damage, tour operators now want to include tourists in programmes to ensure the recovery and rehabilitation of the mangroves, according to euronews.com.
This type of ecotourism involves tourists in cleaning up, replanting and cultivating the mangrove forests. The Mangrove Paddling Centre is one tour operator that organises these tours through the mangroves in Jakarta’s 98-hectare Angke Kapuk Nature Reserve, where guides take tourists into the park’s mangrove forests.
According to Indonesia’s Mangrove and Peatlands Restoration Agency, this country of more than 17 000 islands and enormous tracts of shoreline lost 700 000 hectares of mangrove last year alone.
"A lot of people and businesses have these mangrove forests levelled and then build a tourist spot above, piling on sand to make artificial beaches. That contradicts nature preservation," said the owner of the Mangrove Paddling Centre, Muhammad Saleh Alatas.
Mangroves in Indonesia have dwindled to about 4,1 million hectares due to development and seafood farms. This has removed a natural barrier against rising sea levels and saltwater intrusions.
Experts say these efforts are only a tiny part of the environmental recovery required to save the mangroves. The Director of the Nature Conservation Agency, Muhammad Ilman, said efforts needed support from not only government but from private institutions as well.
