Mangroves are Important to Preserve Carbon Stocks

While mangroves have long been recognized as important nature-based solutions to climate change, many countries still lack local data on carbon stocks.  This study helps fill the carbon data gap for Belize, making it one of the few countries in the region with a comprehensive carbon stock assessment for mangroves.

Orlando Habet

Orlando Habet, Minister of Sustainable Development

“We have the assessment done for a few years and we have done for terrestrial carbon, 2016-2018.  We also have 2019-2020 which is being verified and then after 2020 they are called ITMOs or internationally traded mitigation outcomes.  What we already have for 2016-2018 fall under what we had through our REDD+ program.  We had to put some of those towards our NDCs which were nationally determined contributions and also from the mangrove side, that assessment also looked at what is above ground carbon for mangroves but what is being presented today is what has been assessed for below ground carbon and sediment which is a lot more than what is above ground in terms of mangrove.  But very important is what we have as international commitments under the Paris Agreement.  Belize is a party to and so we have to make our commitments in terms of emissions, reductions and in terms of what we do in terms of conservation.”