TITLE:
Geospatial Assessment for Sustainable Management of Mangroves in Kilifi Creek, Kenya
AUTHORS:
Mark Kipkurwa Boitt, Amina Omar Said
KEYWORDS:
Environmental Protection, Natural Resource Management, Mangroves, Suitability Analysis
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection,
Vol.7 No.7,
July
18,
2019
ABSTRACT: Mangroves are salt-tolerable trees
that grow on zones parallel to the coastline along the creeks. They follow the
mud flat accretions which are unvegetated areas consisting of sand or gravel
that are either exposed or flooded by tides. They provide 70% of the wood
requirement along the Kenyan Coast. Currently, there are no harvest plans of
the mangroves and there is selective removal of suitable poles and most of the
quality poles have been wiped out. This not only leaves the inferior species
unsuitable for the market but also affects the quality of the forest. Moreover,
areas that are suitable for mangroves growth have been occupied by human
settlement and infrastructure, hence, there is a need of sustainable use of the mangroves so as to
protect them from degradating and eventually extinction. To achieve this, geospatial
techniques need to be employed in order to determine the spatial extent of the
vegetation and devise methods and plans of managing them. The Kilifi Mangrove Forest creek is
home to major six species: Avicennia
marina, Ceriops tagal, Sonneratia alba J., Rhizophora mucronata, Lumnitzera racemosa and Bruguiera gymnorrhiza. This
study showed that the most dominant species in the forest is Avicenna Marina which had a percentage
stand of 25.6%. The less dominant species Lumnitzera
racemosa and Heritiera littoralis had a stand of 0.10% which were restricted for harvesting in the analysis, they
need to be protected so as to prevent its extinction in the forest which will
affect the biodiversity and richness of the forest. Density and heights of the
mangroves were considered so as to decide on which areas to do reforestation in
order to protect the forest and help in preventing soil erosion. The final
suitable area for harvesting after carrying out conditional and majority filter
was 394 acres which are 9% of the total
forest area. The total area most suitable for reforestation is 1151 acres which are 27% of the total Kilifi Mangrove Forest. A recommendation for proper harvesting plans should be made by
identifying suitable sites for harvesting and areas which showed low mangrove
stand density should be identified and necessary measures should be taken to
restore them.