Blue Carbon in the Coastal

Ecosystems of Bangladesh

IUCN Bangladesh Country Office

Embassy of Denmark

BLUE CARBON IN THE COASTAL ECOSYSTEMS

OF BANGLADESH
Sayedur Rahman Chowdhury1
M. Shahadat Hossain2
S.M. Sharifuzzaman3
Subrata Sarker4

1. INTRODUCTION
Coastal environments, such as mangrove forests,
intertidal saltmarshes and seagrass beds, capture
and store large amounts of carbon, often referred to
as blue carbon (Nellemann et al. 2009). These types
of ecosystem and vegetation may have potential for
carbon dioxide (CO2) sequestration/mitigation in the
range 300-900 metric tonnes CO2 equivalent per year
(Murray et al. 2010). This is comparable with 7-20% of
the annual emissions resulting from global deforestation
and degradation of forests (van der Werf et al. 2009),
although blue carbon ecosystems only covering 1-2%
of the global forest cover (Murray et al. 2011). Unlike
terrestrial forests where higher percentage of carbon is
stored in the above-ground biomass, in coastal habitats,
the largest carbon pool is found in the soil. For example,
the total carbon stock stored in the soil is about 95-99%
for saltmarsh and seagrass ecosystems, and 50-90% for
mangroves (Donato et al. 2011). Mangroves, in particular,
are among the most carbon-rich biomes and on average
contain 3,750 tonnes CO2 equivalents per hectare (Donato
et al. 2011).
Anthropogenic, i.e. human-induced climate change
is caused - (i) by the burning of fossil fuels that release
greenhouse gases such as CO2, (brown carbon) and
dust particles (part of black carbon) in the atmosphere, (ii)
by emissions from clearing natural vegetation, forest fires

and agricultural emissions, including those from livestock,

and (iii) by the reduced ability of natural ecosystems to
bind carbon through photosynthesis and store it the
so called green carbon (Trumper et al. 2009). The uptake
of CO2 into a reservoir over long time scales (i.e. several
decades or centuries), whether natural or artificial, is
called carbon sequestration (Trumper et al. 2009).
Incidentally, plankton in marine ecosystem produces
more organic material than it is needed to maintain the
food chain. The excess carbon slowly accumulates on
the seabed over geological time (i.e. biological pump)
(Longhurst 1991; Siegenthaler and Sarmiento 1993;
Raven and Falkowski 1999). With that process, sediment
and fossilized carbonate plankton have been changing
the coastal geomorphology.
One of the most promising ideas to reduce atmospheric
CO2 and curb global climate change is to conserve
mangroves, seagrass and saltmarsh ecosystems, and use
them in sustainable ways. Such coastal vegetation, dubbed
blue carbon, sequesters carbon far more effectively (up
to 100 times faster) and permanently than the terrestrial
forests. Carbon is stored in peat below coastal vegetation
habitats as they accrete vertically. Because the sediment
beneath these habitats is typically anoxic, organic carbon
is not broken down and subsequently released by the

Sayedur Rahman Chowdhury is Professor at the Institute of Marine Sciences and Fisheries, University of Chittagong, Bangladesh. He is involved in teaching and
research in oceanography, coastal geomorphology, and coastal environmental changes.
M. Shahadat Hossain is Professor at the Institute of Marine Sciences and Fisheries, University of Chittagong, Bangladesh. He is involved in teaching and research in
coastal zone management, climate change challenges, fisheries management, and coastal resilience modelling.
3
S.M. Sharifuzzaman is Associate Professor at the Institute of Marine Sciences and Fisheries, University of Chittagong, Bangladesh. He is involved in teaching and
research in coastal aquaculture, marine biology, and climate change adaptation.
4
Subrata Sarker is working as a PhD researcher at the Alfred-Wegener-Institut, Helmholtz-Zentrum fr Polar-und Meeresforschung, Germany. He is involved in
research in stochasticity modelling of marine environment.
1

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microbes. Coastal vegetation also continues to sequester

carbon for thousands of years in contrast to forest, where
soils can become carbon-saturated relatively quickly.
Furthermore, there would be enormous ad-on benefits
to fisheries, tourism and in controlling coastal erosion
from the conservation of blue carbon habitats. It does
not remain stored for decades or centuries (for example
rainforests), but rather for millennia. With acidification,
warming, reduced circulation and mixing, there has been
a significant change in plankton productivity in the ocean,
reducing the portion of the carbon budget that would be
carried down to the deep seafloor and stored in sediments
(Table 1). More than 36.5 Gt of CO2 is captured each year
by planktonic algae through photosynthesis in the oceans
(Gonzlez et al. 2008). Zooplankton dynamics are a
major controlling factor in the sedimentation of particulate
carbon in open oceans (Bishop and Wood 2009). Of the
captured CO2, an estimated 0.5 GtC per year is stored at
the seabed (Seiter et al. 2005).
Table 1. Carbon reservoir with their capacity at different
compartments of the environment
Carbon sink
(storage pool)
Atmosphere

750

Terrestrial biosphere

610

Soil
Oil and gas
Coal
Ocean deep water
Ocean surface water
Dissolved organic carbon
Marine biosphere

Reservoir
GtCa

GtC added/
year
0.105-0.202

1,580
300

Figure 1. Different forms of carbon

2. OBJECTIVES
The objective of this study is to identify and quantify the
vegetated coastal habitats of Bangladesh in order to
estimate the potential blue carbon stocks.

3. CURRENT STATE OF KNOWLEDGE

3,000
38,100
1,020

2.45

650
3

Deep ocean sediments

150

Blue carbon sediments

85

0.2
0.235-0.450

Nelleman et. al. (2009); bLaffoley and Grimsditch (2009)

The colours of carbon: Brown, Black,

Blue and Green
The anthropogenic CO2 emissions from fossil
fuels, biofuels, wood burning and industry in the
atmosphere refer to as Brown carbon and Black
carbon resulting from impure combustion, such
as soot and dust. Green carbon is removed by
photosynthesis and stored in the plants and soil
of terrestrial ecosystems, whereas Blue carbon
is the sole carbon concentration present in the
worlds oceans and coastal ecosystems (Figure 1).

Atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations are rising

due to burning of fossil fuels, emission from clearing
natural vegetation, forest fire and agricultural emissions,
and decreased natural ecosystems to bind necessary
carbon through photosynthesis. This huge carbon from
anthropogenic source is captured by the worlds ocean
ecosystem (mangroves, seagrass and saltmarsh) which
is known as blue carbon and this represents more than
55% of the green carbon. These ecosystems store
carbon within their underlying sediments, within living
biomass aboveground (leaves, stems, branches) and
belowground (roots), and within non-living biomass (e.g.
litter and dead wood). Blue carbon is sequestered over
the short term (decennial) in biomass and over longer
time scales (millennial) in sediments (Duarte et al. 2005;
Lo Iacono et al. 2008). The blue carbon sequestration
process in the coastal ecosystems is shown in Figure 2.

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Blue carbon is biologically fixed by

marine vegetation and photosynthetic
microorganisms and sequestered
by burial in seafloor sediments. This
parallels the geological processes
which formed oil, gas and coal. If left
undisturbed, blue carbon repositories
are secure for millennia.

Figure 2. Blue carbon sequestration process in the coastal ecosystems

4. STUDY AREA
The study area was located in the coastal zone of
Bangladesh, between latitude 2045'N and 2300'N and
longitude 8845'E and 9215'E (Figure 3). A total of 7
scenes of Landsat images of path 135, row 46; path 136,
row 44 45; path 137, row 44 45 and path 138, row
44 45 were digitally analyzed to acquire necessary data.

5. BLUE CARBON ESTIMATION METHOD

The distinction between carbon sequestration and
storage concepts is critical. Sequestration is typically
measured on an annual basis as the amount of carbon
taken up and converted to biomass or organic matter (i.e.
grams of carbon per year per unit area). Carbon storage
or stock, on the other hand, is the amount of carbon that
has accumulated over hundreds or thousands of years
in an ecosystem, in plant biomass and in sediments (i.e.
grams of carbon per m2). To estimate total carbon stock
in sediments, one has to account for depth of sediments
and density of carbon at different depths as well. Total
carbon stored in biomass and sediments of mangrove,
seagrass and saltmarsh provide the estimation on total
blue carbon in coastal habitats.
Bangladesh is blessed with diverse coastal habitats, such
as mangrove forests, saltmarsh and seagrass beds, and
the exact amount of carbon stored by these ecosystems
is still an active area of research. The country lacks a welldeveloped database system on anthropogenic carbon
emission and currently, there is no information on the
blue carbon sequestration by coastal habitats. However,
the estimation of blue carbon in coastal ecosystem is
a systematic scientific approach, as shown in Figure 4.
On top, toward better valuation and management of the
carbon services provided by coastal habitats, we need to
be able to answer these questions:
a.
Where are blue carbon ecosystems (i.e.
mangrove, seagrass and saltmarsh habitats)
currently located?
b. How much area these habitats do cover?
c. What amount of carbon could be stored
(sequestered) in these habitats?
A detailed description of the method of digital interpretation
of satellite image for assessing the extent of mangrove
forests and saltmarshes is suggested by Hasan et al.
(2013), Figure 5. Generally, estuarine ecosystem and
coastal shallow waters (<5m depth) are favourable
habitats for tidal marsh and seagrass growth.

Figure 3. Geographical location of the coastal zone of Bangladesh

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Saltmarshes
Saltmarshes or tidal marshes, such as herbs, grasses
and low shrubs, occur in the zone between low and high
tide marks. They are predominantly distributed along the
low-energy coasts as well as in estuaries, covering an
area of 111,585 ha (Hasan et al. 2013), Figure 6.

Figure 4. Approach to estimate blue carbon in the coastal system

Figure 6. Geographic distribution of mangrove and saltmarsh habitats in

the coastal zone of Bangladesh (source: Hasan et al. 2013)

Seagrasses
Seagrasses occur in sheltered areas and grow extensively
in soft substrates like sand or mud. They are mainly found
in estuaries and coastal waters from the middle intertidal
to shallow depth zones. Therefore, the river-estuarine
ecosystem of 660,048 ha and the coastal waters
of 886,523 ha, down to depths of <5 meters, can be
considered as suitable habitats for seagrasses (Figure 7).
But, this initial estimate should be validated and for this
purpose, it is required to survey the seagrass beds and
quantify their extent and distribution.

Figure 5. A hybrid interpretation method of satellite imagery for mapping

of vegetated coastal habitat (source: Hasan et al. 2013)

6. RESULT
Mangrove forest
Mangroves are salt-tolerant forest ecosystems and occur
on the coastal belt and intertidal flats. The area of mangrove
forests is 441,455 ha (Hasan et al. 2013), Figure 6.
Figure 7. A bathymetry of the coastal waters of Bangladesh

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Table 2: Estimates of carbon sequestration in vegetated

estuaries and coastal habitats of Bangladesh
Habitat

Area (ha)

Tonnes CO2-eq./
ha/yr

Total CO2eq./ yr
(tonnes)

Mangroves

441,455

4.73a

2,088,082

Saltmarshes

111,585

10.16b

1,133,704

Seagrass beds
River-estuary*
Coastal water*
<5m depth

660,048
886,523

10.26
10.26c

Unknownd
Unknownd

a
Cebrian 2002; bChmura et al. 2003; cDuarte et al. 2010; ddue to lack of data on
seagrass beds

*The river-estuary and coastal shallow water systems are suitable habitats for
searasses, but it is required to identify the seagrass beds and quantify their extent/
distribution in order to obtain the exact estimates of seagrass CO2 sequestration
per unit area.

7. DISCUSSIONS
Mangrove stores carbon in the woody biomass and in
the anaerobic sediments as organic matter. The organic
carbon stored in mangrove soils doesnt decompose
to atmospheric CO2, but once soils are exposed to air,
decomposition and production of CO2 begins (van der
Werf et al. 2009). Saltmarsh ecosystems store carbon
in root (below ground), shoots (above ground) and
anaerobic sediments where it is not oxidized to CO2 and
therefore, is not released to the atmosphere. Intertidal
ecosystems, such as saltmarshes, are dependent on
sediment accretion and rising elevation to compensate
for sea level rise. As the anaerobic sediments beneath
saltmarshes accumulate, so too does the total amount of
carbon stored in them. Freshwater wetlands tend to be
sources of methane, CH4 (Waycott et al. 2009), which is
a greenhouse gas 25 times more potent than CO2. But,
the saline environment of saltmarshes inhibits the natural
production of CH4, thus releasing lower CH4 in these
habitats. The result is that saltmarshes have a much
greater capacity for carbon storage than freshwater
wetlands. Seagrass are submerged aquatic vegetation
found in the coastal waters of all continents except the
Antarctica. Seagrass stores relatively small amounts of
carbon in above ground biomass. However, below ground
biomass, in the form of large long-lived root structures,
stores the majority of carbon (Duarte and Chiscano 1999)
through the formation of mattes in sediments.
Coastal ecosystems can store carbon at rates estimated
to be up to four times higher than mature tropical
forests. In addition to providing a measure of resistance
and resilience to coastal communities, the mangroves,
saltmarsh and seagrass ecosystems are very effective at
sequestering and storing carbon. About 95 99% of total

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carbon stocks of saltmarsh and seagrass ecosystems

are stored in the soils beneath them, while in mangrove
systems this accounts for 50 90% and the remaining
portion is stored in living biomass. The rates of carbon
sequestered in the soils annually by mangroves, saltmarsh
and seagrass are quite similar, but can vary greatly
according to habitat types (Figure 9). Both mangroves
and saltmarsh average between 6 and 8 tonnes CO2eq./ha/yr, whereas seagrass are estimated at a rate of
around 4 tonnes CO2-eq./ha/yr. These rates are about
two to four times greater than global rates observed in
mature tropical forests (1.8 2.7 tonnes CO2 equivalent/
ha/yr). The amount of carbon held in living biomass of
coastal ecosystems is much more variable among
different habitat (Table 3). Mangroves have the largest
above ground biomass as they can grow up to 40 meters
tall in some locations.

Figure 8. Global averages for carbon pools of focal coastal habitats

(Murray et al. 2010)

Table 3: Geographic variation in carbon sequestration

rate by the mangroves, seagrass beds and saltmarshes
Location
Mangroves

Tonnes CO2-eq./
ha/yr

Australia

0.19a

Puerto Rico

1.61a

Micronesia

3.41b

China

3.75a

South Africa

4.73a

FL Keyes

5.24c

Mexico

5.35c

Malaysia

5.51a

Australia

11.00c

Mexico

11.29c

Australia

12.32c

Location
Seagrasses

Tonnes CO2-eq./
ha/yr

South Africa

13.39a

Spain

1.74a

Spain

4.15a

Netherlands

1.87a

Gulf of Mexico

Saltmarshes

53.54d

Greece

4.35d

Greece

10.26d

Germany

1.21d

Portugal

3.20d

California

1.43e

Europe

10.16c

Florida

3.56f

France

5.90c

Hong Kong

2.95a

Lousiana

4.99c

New England

4.82a

Texas

6.53c

Cebrian 2002; Fujimoto et al. 1999; Chmura et al. 2003; Duarte et al. 2010;
Brevik and Homburg 2004; fCraft and Richardson 1998

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Citation: Chowdhury, S. R., Hossain, M. S., Sharifuzzaman, S. M., Sarker, S. 2015. Blue Carbon
in the Coastal Ecosystems of Bangladesh. Project Document, Support to Bangladesh on Climate
Change Negotiation and Knowledge Management on Various Streams of UNFCCC Process
Project, funded by DFID and Danida, implemented by IUCN Bangladesh Country Office.
Acknowledgement: Printing of this research paper has been made possible under the project
titled Support to Bangladesh on Climate Change Negotiation and Knowledge Management on
Various Streams of UNFCCC Process of Ministry of Environment and Forest, funded by DFID and
Danida and implemented by IUCN Bangladesh Country Office.

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