Publication: The Flood Protection Benefits and Restoration Costs for Mangroves in Jamaica
Date
2019
ISSN
Published
2019
Author(s)
Ortega, Saul Torres
Losada, Inigo J.
Espejo, Antonio
Abad, Sheila
Narayan, Siddharth
Beck, Michael W.
Abstract
Jamaica, like other Caribbean and island
nations is at high risk from coastal flooding and related
hazards. Vulnerable coastal communities in Jamaica receive
significant flood protection benefits from natural habitats
like mangroves and coral reefs, even though these habitats
are threatened by human development and activity and by
natural stressors such as sea-level rise and climate change.
As coastal flooding and habitat loss increase, there is
great imperative among national disaster risk reduction
agencies, conservation agencies and international aid
institutions in Jamaica, to quantify the economic value of
conserving and restoring mangrove habitats for risk
reduction and to thereby inform national risk reduction,
climate adaptation and conservation plans. This technical
report provides an ecological, economic and social
assessment of the habitat status, risks, costs and flood
protection benefits of mangroves in Jamaica with a focus on
their role in coastal flood risk reduction. This work aims
to support decisions for sustainable and cost-effective
approaches for mangrove management and flood risk reduction.
First, authors assess the current status and recent trends
in the distribution of mangroves in Jamaica. We then review
the costs of restoration mangrove projects across Jamaica
and the wider Caribbean. Using connected assessments,
authors consider the nationwide restoration potential for
mangroves. The authors then focus on a rigorous nationwide
assessment of flood risk and the risk reduction benefits of
mangroves to people and property across Jamaica.
Citation
“Ortega, Saul Torres; Losada, Inigo J.; Espejo, Antonio; Abad, Sheila; Narayan, Siddharth; Beck, Michael W.. 2019. The Flood Protection Benefits and Restoration Costs for Mangroves in Jamaica. Forces of Nature;. © World Bank, Washington, DC. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/35166 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”