Fourteenth International Conference on Climate Change: Impacts & Responses

Abstract

Climate change and its impacts affect coastal systems like wetlands, marshlands, and mangrove forests across the globe. The accelerated sea-level rise is a major concern. The IPCC AR6 emphasises how coastal systems of South Asia are under high stress as a result of global sea-level rise as a result of increasing temperature due to global warming. The vulnerability of mangroves is determined by studying the changes in surface elevation. Mangrove systems will survive with the accelerated sea-level rise if they can elevate their surface or move landwards. There is a large gap in understanding surface and subsurface processes responsible for the elevation of the mangrove floor. The traditional vulnerability assessment using tidal gauges is not enough in understanding mangroves response to sea-level rise. Rod Surface Elevation Tables with Marker Horizons (RSET-MH) is a low cost, high precision technique developed by Cahoon et al 2002. RSET fills this critical gap and can be paired with palynology, sedimentology, hydrology and radiocarbon dating studies to understand mangroves present and past response to sea-level fluctuations. Yet RSET stations are not present in any mangrove forests of India except Pichavaram Reserve forest, Tamil Nadu. This paper discusses the cost involved in setting up RSET stations in Pichavaram mangrove forest and estimation of cost involved in setting up of RSET stations in other major mangrove forests in India. RSET stations across the country will have a coordinated monitoring system similar to other countries across the globe. This will help authorities plan coastal climate change adaptation strategies.