Species Composition and Carbon Stock of Rehabilitated Mangrove Forest in Kupang District, East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia

Abstract

Since 1994, the community around the mangrove forest in Kupang district, East Nusa Tenggara Province, Indonesia, has rehabilitated the mangrove forest. Unfortunately, almost three decades of the success story of mangrove rehabilitation has not followed appropriate documentation on biodiversity and potential carbon stock. This research aimed to describe the species composition and estimate the carbon stock of rehabilitated mangrove forests. Forty-five sampling plots were distributed using purposive sampling based on mangrove zonation (distal, middle, proximal) and year of rehabilitation (2004, 2006, 2008). The findings revealed that there are ten mangrove species. Two species, namely Avicennia marina and Sonneratia alba, showed a high importance value index. The average aboveground carbon stock was 454.712 t/ha, distributed in seedlings, saplings, poles, and trees at 0.04%, 2.41%, 51.61%, and 45.94%, respectively. Mangrove rehabilitation in Kupang district, East Nusa Tenggara Province, has successfully increased the richness, heterogeneity, and carbon stock.

Features of mangrove ecosystems after ten years of restoration on Flores Island, Indonesia

“…Mangrove species capable of thriving and adjusting to rising sea levels should therefore be protected (Ward et al 2016). Matatula et al (2023), also observed a limited range of species in mangrove forests following ten years of restoration efforts in the Kupang Gulf. The occurrence may arise due to the distinctive attributes of this ecosystem, which serve as inhibitory factors for species.…”

“…Three indicators were selected to evaluate plant-animal diversity metrics in every site, i.e., richness, heterogeneity, and evenness. Species richness was quantified using the Margalef index (𝐷 𝑚𝑔 ), while species heterogeneity was assessed using the Shannon-Wienner index (𝐻 ′ ) (Matatula et al 2023). On the other hand, the species evenness was determined using the Pielou-Evenness index (𝐽 ′ ) (Suyanto et al 2022).…”

“…The carbon sequestration at our study site was much lower when compared to another restored mangrove ecosystem in Indonesia. Matatula et al (2023) reported that the mean carbon storage of regenerated mangroves in Kupang, following nine years of reforestation, was 454.71 Mg ha -1 . The carbon sequestration at our research location was 47.3 Mg ha -1 , while the current value is ten times greater.…”

Managing Mangrove Resources in Conflict of Interest Zones in Bangka Island's Eastern Coast

“…Mangrove forests play a significant role in their physical, biological, and economic contributions (Supandi et al, 2023;Matatula et al, 2023). They generate an annual ecosystem service value of around 21,100 USD.hectares -1 (Getzner and Islam, 2020;Sari et al, 2023).…”