The Ayeyarwady Delta, also called the Irrawaddy Delta, Myanmar and Meinmahla Kuhn Wildlife sanctuary. Landsat image taken January 29th, 2014.
Mangrove forests appear bright green in the Landsat images. Their degradation is evident in the reduction of the green color throughout the series. One island remains bright green amid the deforestation. That’s the Meinmahla Kyun Wildlife Sanctuary, which was established in 1986. As guardians of the shoreline, mangroves reduce the impacts from storms and tsunamis. Their dense and partially submerged root system protects inland areas from erosion and flooding. Mangrove ecosystems have a global benefit, too. Worldwide, mangroves sequester an estimated 22.8 to 25.5 million metric tons of carbon each year. A mangrove region as extensive as the Ayeyarwady Delta is well worth monitoring. Captions and image source: USGS
Excerpts;
Meinmahla wildlife sanctuary, established in 1986, is an area known for its diverse mangrove tree species and saltwater crocodiles. However, it has been described as one the most degraded mangrove systems or national parks many researchers have ever seen…
