ABSTRACT
Mangroves, which were once considered wastelands, are being increasingly recognized for their ecological services that they perform as inshore stabilization, protection from cyclones/storms/tsunami, home to marine biodiversity, etc. Mangroves prosper in warm tropical regions. More than 40% of world mangroves are found in Asia. Mangrove forests in India extend over 4921 km2 in 12 states and union territories. The Sundarbans, recognized as a heritage site, extending to over 6000 km2 in India and Bangladesh support a contiguous patch of mangrove forests that are the largest mangrove forests of the world. Gujarat coasts support the second largest area of mangrove with 1140 km2 of mangrove forests. Mangroves received attention, and efforts for its rejuvenation started, after the declaration of Marine National Park in 1980. The mangrove cover increased from an estimated 427 km2 in 1987 to 1140 km2 in 2017, over two-and-a-half-fold increase. Gujarat is the only state of India that has reported such significant increase in mangrove forests. Though the diversity of species of mangrove species in Gujarat is restricted to fourteen species, the education awareness has played a significant role in making a success of mangrove conservation program in Gujarat. The GEER Foundation has made a significant contribution in providing research inputs with support of Mangrove for Future and IUCN. Detailed mapping of mangroves and potential areas for mangrove has been done.
