Mangrove ecosystem services and payments for blue carbon in Solomon Islands

Abstract

The AusAID Development Research Project: Poverty Alleviation, Mangrove Conservation and Climate Change: Carbon offsets as payment for mangrove ecosystem services in Solomon Islands (# 49892) was designed to evaluate the potential for mangrove carbon revenue programs in Solomon Islands. The approach was to address three main questions: (1) How are mangrove ecosystem goods and services currently used and valued by coastal populations with a high reliance on a subsistence economy? (2) What is the total carbon stock held in mangrove ecosystems? and (3) Are carbon markets, whether compliance or voluntary, feasible options for Solomon Islands communities and government to alleviate poverty, reduce mangrove forest resource degradation and contribute to climate change adaptation and mitigation? The project was conducted through a partnership between the WorldFish Center and the Solomon Islands Ministry of Environment, Climate Change, Disaster Management and Meteorology (MECDM). Here we present the project’s main research findings and concomitant policy implications for local communities and government agencies, NGOs and other stakeholders involved in climate change and REDD+ activities.