A Quest for Desert Forests from Eritrean to Mauritanian Mangroves

ABSTRACT

The “Manzanar Project,” initiated in the 1980s by late Dr. Gordon Hisashi Sato, brought new approaches to restoring ecosystem services in coastal regions. Although initially controversial, these innovative practices culminated with the planting of approximately 700,000 mangrove trees on the muddy coast of Eritrea and helped restore mangrove ecosystems on the Mauritanian side of the Senegal River Delta. Moreover, it formulated the daring proposal in early 2011 that irrigating the deserts with seawater and growing mangroves trees and Spartina grasses could be a giant step in combating hunger and poverty in many parts of the world. Subsequent field work at Nouakchott Autonomous Seaport, Mauritania, suggested the truthfulness of the proposal. Through trial and error at an inland sabkha (supratidal mudflat or generally flat salt-encrusted desert) in Nouakchott, we learned to grow mangrove trees on a sabkha without any irrigation water inputs. Moreover, we grew other halophyte species in the desert (Sesuvium portulacastrum, Nitraria retusa, Spartina maritima), and demonstrated that deserts can be converted into mangrove forests and grassy meadows. Based on the success of these projects, we believe large desert areas can be afforested using simple technology with a minimum carbon footprint. This paves the way for new initiatives to curb climate change and could constitute a major solution for providing key ecosystem services such as carbon storage, soil erosion control, water conservation, and wood production in desert areas.