Trees for All is committed to restoring the lost mangrove forest in Los Tuxtlas, Mexico. Together with our partner SENDAS and the local community, we are planting new forest to strengthen the unique biodiversity and protect the region from storms and hurricanes.
trees being planted
hectares of soil restored
people benefit from the project
planting period
Photo 1: The planting location in Los Tuxtlas. Photos 2 and 3: Mangrove forest in Los Tuxtlas that is still intact.
In Los Tuxtlas is zo’n 100 hectare mangrovebos verloren gegaan door een grote bosbrand. Wat over is, zijn stukken grond waar alleen nog planten woekeren die het natuurlijke bosherstel belemmeren. Daarom brengen we het bosherstel handmatig weer op gang:
We are replanting more than 300,000 new mangrove trees on burnt land. These are all native mangrove species that belong in Los Tuxtlas: white, red and black mangroves. In this way, we accelerate forest restoration and natural processes.
A local team is restoring the water network in the region. People dig canals that link up to the sea, ensuring a good balance between the inflow and outflow of fresh and salt water. Then the mangrove forest can grow optimally, and endangered creatures like turtles and fish can return to the area.
The impact of the forest restoration is monitored extensively by SENDAS, using innovative monitoring technology. SENDAS is also providing education to children and their families about the importance of mangroves, which contributes to awareness and motivates the local population to restore and maintain the mangrove forests.
The local team in Mexico plants the trees, maintains the planting sites and digs water channels in the area. In addition, children go on excursions through the mangrove to learn more about the importance of these forests.
The first 320,000 trees have now be planted. The local team has dug several new water channels in the area and improved existing channels. The effects are visible already, as the mangrove seeds can spread throughout the area, carried by the water. This stimulates natural regeneration, whereby the seeds grow into new mangrove forests.
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We are carrying out this project with our partner SENDAS A.C., a Mexican NGO that has been working on nature conservation in Los Tuxtlas since 1999.
SENDAS has close ties with local organisations and universities, and the inhabitants of Los Tuxtlas. For example, SENDAS works with a ‘brigade’ set up by a local community. The brigade includes local fishermen who have dedicated themselves to restoring the mangroves for years already. Their responsibilities include planting trees, managing the water channels and maintaining the mangrove forests.
A variety of creatures benefit from the mangrove restoration, such as fish, herons, green kingfishers and turtles.
The mangrove forest restoration is taking place in Los Tuxtlas, in the state of Veracruz in the Gulf of Mexico. Los Tuxtlas is known for its gigantic natural diversity, which includes cloud forests, volcanoes, coral reefs, coastal areas and mangrove forests.
Since 2006, Los Tuxtlas has been a designated ‘UNESCO Biosphere Reserve’: a protected natural area where agriculture, livestock farming and fishing are permitted with restrictions. The National Commission of Protected Natural Areas (CONANP) is responsible for managing the biosphere reserve.
As in our other projects, in Mexico, too, we’re taking an integral approach to our work. This means that not only do we plant mangrove trees, but we also look at what else is necessary to restore the landscape. For this reason, we’re also supporting a second project further on in Los Tuxtlas, where we’re helping farmers to use their land sustainably. In addition, we’re planting trees around springs, in order to improve the water balance in the region. By taking an integral approach, we ensure that the various restoration activities reinforce one another.
