Author Slobodian, L. N., Rodriguez Chaves, M., Nguyen, L. T. P. & Rakotoson, L. N,

Year of publication 2018

This study asked experts from around the world to identify the most significant threat to mangroves. Figure shows their responses. The main threat identified was agriculture, representing both land conversion for agriculture and agricultural pollution. Aquaculture remains a primary threat as perceived by experts. However, threats such as disruption of the water cycle and urban development received significant attention. Experts wrote about other threats including illegal charcoal harvesting, crab fishing, population growth and climate change as additional growing threats. A key issue according to experts is not just destruction but degradation of mangrove ecosystems, through pollution, siltation, changes in salinity, loss of biodiversity or unsustainable fishing around the roots of mangroves and unsustainable selective cutting. These aspects pose challenges for legal frameworks as well as assessment of outcomes, where it is easier to measure hectares than health of mangrove ecosystems.