China’s Mangrove Forests of the Leizhou Peninsula
by Alfredo Quarto
Exec. Dir., Mangrove Action Project
February 2003

Note: The Ramsar Convention was established to conserve the planet’s threatened and dwindling wetlands areas via a 1971 international accord reached in Ramsar, Iran. Today there are over 1000 Ramsar sites designated by Ramsar as “Wetlands of International Importance”, with responsibility to sustainably manage these wetland sites in the hands of the sponsoring national governments that are members of the Ramsar Convention. China joined Ramsar in 1992, and designated 14 Ramsar sites within China in 2001.

Today, there are serious questions as to whether China is effectively administering its Ramsar sites, as there is ample evidence of severe wetland degradation at many of these wetland areas, including those mangrove sites visited in this report. Shrimp farming is playing a significant role in this loss today.

“Humans have caused the area of the valuable mangroves to decrease from about 50,000 hectares in the middle of last century to less than 15,000 hectares at present…” (From “Seaweed bed a plus from survey”, The China Daily, Dec. 31, 2002, p. 3)

“The destruction of mangroves in Leizhou for shrimp and fish farming still continues, in spite of the laws and the regulations, the project and forestry bureau’s activities, or even the status of national reserve or Ramsar…”
(Edwin Teunissen, International Team Leader of the Sino-Dutch Integrated Mangrove Management and Coastal Protection Project, Zhanjiang, China, Nov. 2002)

Introduction:

The Leizhou Peninsula is located in the southernmost part of SE China, and forms the stepping-stone to Hainan Island. Leizhou’s 1,500 km coastline and 12,500 km2 land area is sub-tropical, containing many bays and estuaries where long stretches of diverse mangrove forests and mudflats are found. There are 24 recorded species of mangrove found there, and approximately 3,300 ha total area of actual mangrove forest scattered along various isolated stretches of coastlines. This makes it very difficult to effectively monitor and conserve the mangrove areas. Today on Leizhou Peninsula, China’s largest mangrove forest regions struggle for survival at the northern growth limits for mangrove species in Asia.

“Current aquaculture and poultry farming practices threaten the integrity of the Zhanjiang National Mangrove Reserve. The precise effects are not known, but effluent discharge and high intensity "grazing" levels of ducks on the mud flats are a particular source of concern. The introduction of alternative forms of duck rearing and aqua production (fish and shrimp) which are more environmentally benign, and at least as beneficial to the local population, is one way to support the objective of mangrove and mud-flat conservation. Short-term strategies need to be explored to reduce grazing levels if these are found to represent a significant threat to the protected areas.” (From: "E.J.C. Teunissen)

Rough Roads Ahead for China’s Ramsar Sites:

The road to Zhanjiang Mangrove Nature Reserve runs passed scattered rows of small cement houses painted in light pastel colors and closely confined amid stretches of rice paddies and wide swaths of sugar cane fields and extensive eucalyptus plantations. The recently harvested sugar cane was bundled, loaded and waiting for transport on long columns of stout lorries filled high with the harvested cane stalks.

As we approached the coast of the Leizhou Peninsula, fish and shrimp ponds became more prevalent, and the road narrowed and curved, passing through small towns and more sparsely populated rural communities. Here, many small local farmers sat by the roadside tending their recently harvested sedge grasses, placing these in loose bundles on the road itself, thus allowing the grasses to dry in the sun and be pressed by the passing tires of autos, trucks, ox carts and even bicycles. These passing vehicles inadvertently do the thrashing and softening of the long grasses in preparation for weaving of traditional hats, mats and baskets. These would be sold to help supplement the farmers’ meager $200- $600 annual incomes earned from their rice fields.

Dr. Han Wei-Dong, Associate Professor of Botany at Zhanjiang Ocean University, was our gracious host and our guide in China’s mangrove regions. His university is located in the bustling port city of Zhanjiang on the Leizhou Peninsula. Dr. Han is a friendly and loquacious local mangrove expert, having a great love for mangrove forests and Chinese banquets. He studied the coastal wetland forests of Leizhou for several years, working on his doctorate on mangrove leaf litter under the tutorage of the Forest Bureau and Zhanjiang Ocean University itself.

We had just come from Hong Kong’s famous Mai Po Mangrove and Wildlife Reserve, which is managed by WWF, Hong Kong, where abundant populations of migratory shorebirds had settled in for winter feeding on the plentiful bounty of fish, shrimp, shellfish and sea worms found among the mangroves and upon the mudflats that border Mai Po itself. Innumerable egrets, herons, whistling ducks and spoonbills were among this tumultuous multitude of avian migration, inspirationally impressive to witness firsthand.

“At least 325 species of birds, 400 species of insects, 90 species of marine invertebrates and over 50 species of butterflies have been recorded at Mai Po. Otters, Leopard Cats and other mammals can also be found there. Every winter, well over 50,000 water birds visit Deep Bay, including endangered species…Mai Po is the winter home for 25% of the world population (of black-faced Spoonbills)….” (From Explore Mai Po by Hong Kong Telecom Green Fund and World Wildlife Fund, Hong Kong)

These fantastic sights and sounds of flocks of migratory shorebirds that we personally witnessed at Mai Po are disturbingly absent now on China’s mainland at Guangdong Province, located on SE China’s Leizhou Peninsula. Where before, perhaps many thousands of shorebirds stopped to rest and refuel along the rich mudflats and mangrove wetlands, today few birds can be found.

While we were in Zhanjiang, two visiting WWF, Hong Kong staff conducted a special five day workshop for local government wildlife managers, attempting to train them in the art of shorebird conservation and identification. The workshop participants did well throughout the workshop, enthusiastic to learn. However, when the scheduled field trip took place in the Zhanjiang Mangrove National Nature Reserve (ZMNNR) to try out firsthand bird counting techniques quick, but accurate, population estimates, to the chagrin of both experienced instructors and novice students, there were hardly any birds there to count--one egret here, a whistling duck there. With winter migrations already underway, these wetland sites that were once well known as wintering feeding grounds for migratory waterfowl, should be teeming with bird life. Where have they all gone—this question haunts us still?

On the 11th of January, 2002, Zhanjiang Mangrove National Nature Reserve (ZMNNR) was listed among 13 other Chinese wetlands as a Ramsar Wetland Of International Importance, especially designated as a waterfowl habitat of major interest to the Ramsar Convention. These sites are to be managed in China by the State Forest Administration. Unfortunately, major problems exist in properly monitoring and conserving these vital coastal wetland areas putting at serious risk both mangroves and the habitat for thousands of migrating waterfowl.

A day prior to this road trip and field visit to the mangrove sites of the ZMNNR, we had met with Edwin Teunissen, the International Team Leader of the Sino-Dutch Integrated Mangrove Management and Coastal Protection project which was partnering with the Chinese Government in setting up a so-called “Management Plan” for managing the ZMNNR itself via an Integrated Mangrove Management and Coastal Protection plan involving education, co-management, restoration and conservation. Both Dr. Han and Mr. Teunissen had lamented the fact that the Ramsar sites on Leizhou Peninsula were being rapidly degraded, while both flora and fauna, including mangroves and shorebirds, were being lost to mismanagement, expanding shrimp farms and over-exploitation, combined with a lack of proper monitoring, enforcement and long range managing capabilities. The Master Plan for managing the Ramsar sites was meant to correct these otherwise overwhelming problems.

The total area of the ZMNNR is approximately 20, 300 ha comprised of 12,400 ha of mangroves and 7,900 ha of inter-tidal mudflats. Most of this area is not contiguous mangrove cover, but is composed of large and small patches of mangroves scattered along 1,500 km of the peninsula’s coastline. The mudflats themselves serve a vital function as the resting sites and feeding grounds for migratory shorebirds.

According to Teunissen’s report:

“The Leizhou Peninsula is an important stopover and wintering site for birds in the East Asian-Australasian Flyway. Passage migrants rely on the forage resources of Leizhou mudflats to replenish fat reserves required for continued long-distance flight. Winter residents migrate to the South China coast in autumn and remain here until the following spring when they return to breeding grounds in northeast Asia. Availability of forage resources in the intertidal zone of Leizhou Peninsula is critically important to birds whose bi-annual migration spans over 12,000 km. Between Siberia and Indonesia or Australia/ New Zealand. Like Hong Kong’s Mai Po Marshes, ZMNNR is located approximately in the middle of the long migration route, and is probably the only refueling stop made by many species….”

So, the mudflats themselves are quite important for migratory birds that feed on the abundant life found within and upon these fertile grounds. As well, the mangrove forests play an important role in preserving the health and integrity of these coastal zones. Again, according to Teunissen’s report:

“Summing all measured goods and services, the total (annual) economic value of intact mangroves exceeded that of shrimp farming by around 70% (US$60,400 compared with US$16,700 per ha.), according to a study of Thailand mangrove areas)”

This assessment is based upon many practical contributions that mangroves make to wild fisheries, wood products for building, fuel wood, shoreline protection against erosion, water filtration, and medicinal and dietary values of mangroves for local populations.

“During storms and typhoons the mangals absorb much of the wave energy, thereby protecting landward seawalls and dykes. Research by the Tropical Forestry Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has shown that mangrove forests in Zhanjiang can absorb up to 80% of the wave energy during storm events.”

Since 1950 when the mangrove area of Zhanjiang was estimated at 17,500 ha, it has since declined under heavy development pressures to 12,400 ha. According to Dr. Han, the recent rapid expansion of shrimp aquaculture within the Ramsar sites has caused much loss of mangrove forest cover. This loss in mangrove and mudflat area to shrimp farming, agriculture and urban expansion has caused a decline in both shorebird populations and near shore wild fisheries.

“The result of declining population of fish and shellfish and the loss of mature, intact mangals, “ reports Teunissen, “is that local communities are impoverished…”

This loss of sustainable natural resources has led to a convoluting increase in demand for remaining natural resources among local communities to help offset declining incomes from reduced wild fisheries. The wheel of misfortune seems to turn faster with each subsequent misfortune. Clearly, something has to be done to reverse this dangerous trend that so obviously threatens to overwhelm the remnant coastal wetland areas of Leizhou Peninsula.

Encountering More Problems Than Solutions:

Our first stop was at the office of the Forestry Bureau in GaoQiao Town not too far from the main city of Zhanjiang, on the Leizhou Peninsula, where we met with the General Administrator of the Zhanjiang National Mangrove Reserve (ZNMR), Mr. Cheng Zhengtao, and his chiefs of staff. After brief introductions, we were given an overview of the current mangrove conservation efforts that appear to consist largely of planting exotic species of Sonneratia apetala introduced originally from Bangladesh.

Because the Sonneratia have rapid growth and high survival rates, they became strong candidates in the eyes of the Forestry Bureau to protect threatened sea dykes and coastal villages from typhoons and storm seas. The Forestry Bureau had decided to plant their mangrove of choice, the non-native species, along the mudflats as a way to ensure an expedient buffer. However, the serious effect this widespread official practice was having on native species of fauna and flora was not known, and could only be assumed.

At Mai Po Mangrove Reserve, Dr. Lew Young, Mai Po’s director and Reserve Manager stated his annoyance with the planting of exotic mangrove species such as Sonneratia apetala, that he and his team had to regularly eradicate by hand to prevent their large-scale establishment by incoming tides on or near the Mai Po reserve site. Even though the Sonneratia was planted on the other side of the water from Hong Kong, seedlings were floating across Deep Bay, establishing footholds on the mudflat adjacent to Mai Po.

The Forestry Bureau has ambitious, but questionable, plans to plant mangroves, including Sonneratia, on 3,800 ha of mudflat and replanting mangroves on approximately an equal number of hectares of degraded mangrove areas along the Leizhou Peninsula. Meanwhile, we learned that little was being done to conserve the remaining mangrove forests and mudflat areas, thus causing serious concern for these important coastal ecosystems and the great biodiversity and vital functions they support. More Forestry personnel are needed, including reserve police to halt the mounting violations including illegal harvest of both trees and wildlife within the Ramsar sites. Countless shorebirds were being caught in mist nets, snares, or shot to end up as food on the hunter’s table, or sold on the open market stalls in towns all along the Peninsula. Little or no controls were really in place.

Again, the Draft Management Plan states that “Wu-shi-bao & Ke Ya-yong (2000) reported that 20 species of waterbirds were subject to poaching pressure on Leizhou Peninsula, and… some one million birds were illegally taken annually…” (p. 24)

As we drove up to one replanted mangrove site, half a dozen women went running from the site towards the outlying mudflat zone carrying their baskets that they had been filling illegally from the “no-take zone” of the replanted forest. Too often, these forays into the replanted zones damage the young trees, further adding to the problem. As well, the unregulated harvests of shellfish, crustaceans and sandworms are depleting the very food source the migratory birds need for their safe passage. These accumulative problems are now raising many alarms, as fewer and fewer migratory birds can be seen, mangrove forests are fast diminishing and local community residents are facing a growing uncertain future with vastly diminishing resources to fall back upon in times of need.

A first step in the healing process was the establishment of the Zhanjiang Mangrove National Nature Reserve itself in 1997. With the creation of the ZMNNR, the order came to restore degraded mangrove areas and plant the mudflats. Mangrove tree nurseries were established, and small-scale replanting efforts undertaken with more ambitious plans to come. The problem is that these plans largely include planting of the non-native mangrove species,
Sonneratia apetala, and planting these exotics en masse mainly in
important mudflat zones.

Soon after the ZMNNR was established, steps were taken to assist in the Ramsar nomination, which was already initiated. In an attempt to address these troublesome issues, ZMNNR became the site for implementing the Integrated Mangrove Management and Coastal Protection Project sponsored jointly by the governments of China and The Netherlands. The five-year project began in 2001, aiming to alleviate poverty, improve the socio-economic conditions for the coastal communities and protect the region from typhoon damage.

We stopped that same day at an extensive mangrove tree nursery. The nursery itself was impressive to view, but the main saplings being produced are non-native Sonneratia, which is troublesome in itself.

One knowledgeable source foresaw a great disaster when the next major typhoon hits the Leizhou Peninsula, predicting that the planted Sonneratia will be ripped out from their muddy moorings precisely because they are planted in mudflats and are tall, vulnerable targets for the strong wind forces. He believes the shorter, native mangrove species are better adapted to withstand strong wind forces.

The Integrated Mangrove Management and Coastal Protection project would get a big boost once the Management Plan is endorsed. However, the process may be a long and laborious one, as strong foundation must still be laid, including within the plan extensive, ongoing work in raising the awareness of both the regulatory officials and the local community members.

(Note: There are actually two plans:-- the Master Plan which is required by SFA, and is foremost a plan for buildings, roads, and personnel. The second plan is the (practical) Management Plan, which provide logical, easy to follow, management steps and guidelines (including aspects from the Master Plan)).

Of course, the will to effectively monitor and enforce the laws is imperative, as is the need to train and allow the local community members to participate in the co-management process.

Because shrimp aquaculture is now perceived as quite a lucrative industry, China will be greatly expanding both its production and exports of shrimp to foreign markets, beginning to compete with, and potentially overcoming, their rival shrimp producers in Asia and Latin America. Because of low labor and materials costs, China may soon out compete its toughest rival, Thailand which is currently the world’s top producer of shrimp, but rapidly losing ground to rising tough competition. One hope for mangrove areas now threatened by shrimp farm expansion is that the world consumer market may soon become so saturated that prices will fall, causing a slowdown in shrimp farm expansion and a decrease in production, till the speculative investment in the industry is discouraged.

Again, from the Draft Management Plan:

“The backshore and large areas of former mangals have been converted to fish and prawn ponds and saltpans. The total area of lost habitat has not been calculated, but prawn ponds cover the largest area…”

Up Against the Great Wall of Poverty:

We saw ample evidence of newly established shrimp ponds along the coast as we drove to the GaoQiao P & M Station where we met Mr. Lin, the site administrator. We were directed to the GaoQiao reserve forest area where a replica Great Wall ran along the dyke that served as part of the reserve boundary. An interesting walkway fashioned from old automobile tires filled with concrete had been laid through the periphery of the reserve’s mangrove forest. The mangrove forest appeared lush and healthy, but illegal harvesting of shellfish and shrimp could be identified by marks of the digging tools in the disturbed mud base—further evidence of lack of effective controls within the protected areas.

Adjacent to this mangrove reserve was a large shrimp farm that was at that moment in process of expanding its operations.

Next, we drove westwards towards the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region where the local government seemed quite committed to conserve the mangrove forest there. In 1990, an 8,000 ha coastal area containing 730 ha of intact mangrove forest was established as the Shankou Mangrove National Nature Reserve near the city of Beihai. The Beihai city government enacted legislation that created a more effective system to manage the coastal reserve and investigate any damage done to the area’s mangrove forests. In 2000, the Shankou Mangrove Reserve joined UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere network. Then in 2002, it was listed as a Ramsar site, along with the Zhanjiang Mangrove Reserve.

Shankou was most impressive among the mangrove reserves we visited in Mainland China. Shankou is inter-connected by long stretches of boardwalks that pass through the mangrove reserve and well placed rest areas where one can sit quietly in the cooling shade of decorative arched pagodas. The managers of the Shankou Reserve are attempting to assist the local population via providing some of the fishermen part-time jobs running eco-tours on the estuary utilizing their own fishing boats converted to tourist boats in the process. Unfortunately, there appeared to be a glut of these tourist boats idle and crowding the dock the day we visited.

Still the mangrove forest within the Shankou Reserve is impressive, and the Reserve could serve a significant purpose as an education center. There, however, is a need for more signage to explain the ecology of the mangroves, and to point out those unique and interesting features that characterize the mangrove wetlands. As it stands now, the Shankou Reserve is nearly barren of signage, and there seems to be great potential for training those out of work local fishermen to serve as nature guides for the many visitors that come to the Center.

There are 20,000 yearly paying visitors to this site, but this lack of educational component is unfortunately a wasted opportunity-- especially considering that it is a both a MAB and RAMSAR site. With a concerted effort to provide more education materials, such as brochures and proper signage, Shankou could really stand out as an important learning center in China. When we visited the Center, the Station Director, Mr. Peng Fu-peng, went hurriedly into his back office to retrieve their last printed brochure about the Shankou Reserve. He presented this to us, as a special parting gift for his visitors

Suggestions for the Uncertain Future:

In view of the information we gathered during our short visit to the Leizhou Peninsula, we can make the following recommendations for those who are managing the mangrove forest sites there:

1) Officially endorse and pass the “Draft Management Plan” as the “Master Plan” for the Leizhou Peninsula.

2) Hire and train sufficient additional staff to monitor the Ramsar sites and strictly enforce prescribed management principles.

3) Involve local community members in awareness raising workshops and improve their resource management skills so that these local communities play a major role in the resource management decision process.

4) Halt further planting of non-native mangrove varieties, and remove those Sonneratia already planted.

5) Take stronger action to protect migratory shore birds and their coastal habitat, including the mangroves and the associated mudflats.

6) Introduce into the primary and secondary schools of the Leizhou Peninsula a mangrove curriculum (MAP’s existing Mangrove Curriculum could be adapted for this purpose.)

7) Provide training and interchange visits to other successfully managed sites, such as Mai Po Reserve, for mangrove resource managers, training selected local community members, so at least half the site managers are from the nearby local communities.

8) Link the various Ramsar sites more effectively with one another, as well as with international sites, so that valuable information and skills sharing takes place.

9) If real conservation is not put in place-- including effective monitoring and enforcement—on those designated Ramsar sites, then the sites should be placed on the “Montreux Record”.

10) There is a great need for more alternative livelihood options for the communities already established within the coastal zone to take pressure off the coastal resources.

11) Finally, more awareness needs to be raised in China concerning the destructive nature of industrial shrimp aquaculture that may bring only a short term economic boost, while having a long-term, net, negative impact on both the environment and the coastal communities.