Restoring carbon-capturing mangroves in Costa Rican wetlands
Mangroves are one of the most effective natural carbon sinks on earth, storing up to four times more carbon per hectare than rainforests. They are also rich in biodiversity and mitigate some of the most catastrophic local effects of climate change; particularly flooding and coastal erosion. Despite all this, mangroves are among the most threatened ecosystems on earth.
Osa Conservation has been working on the Térraba Sierpe National Wetland in Costa Rica for the last five years, restoring 50 hectares of mangroves in partnership with the local community, who not only share in the broader global benefits of carbon sequestration, but have also seen the economic benefit in an increased mollusc harvest, improved coastal protection and the conservation of a beautiful, biodiverse and much-loved ecosystem.