Abstract
Mangroves along the Colombian Caribbean and Pacific coasts are vital ecosystems with numerous environmental, economic, and social benefits. Their dense root systems act as natural buffers, safeguarding coastlines from storms and preserving aquifer integrity. Additionally, mangroves are pivotal in mitigating climate change by efficiently storing carbon, absorbing up to 10 times more than terrestrial ecosystems. Government decision-makers face the challenge of balancing economic development with environmental preservation when approving infrastructure projects. Quantifying the monetary value of mangroves is crucial for assessing potential impacts on these ecosystems. This study used Sentinel-2 composites to train a random forest classifier, identifying and quantifying a total mangrove area of 2756.84 km2 in Colombia by 2020. This information was later used to assess the carbon storage in mangroves for the same year. The estimated value was 96,351.66 ± 13,632.63 kt or 353,610.59 ± 50,031.78 kt CO2. Ultimately, we evaluated two contingents on the mangrove extent: one depicting their disappearance and the other illustrating their growth. These findings underscore the critical importance of mangroves and highlight the need for their conservation and sustainable management to achieve emissions reduction goals by 2030.
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References
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