Urbanization and deforestation threaten Karachi’s mangrove cover

Mangrove forests that protect Karachi’s coastline from cyclones, high winds, floods and other climate change-induced disasters are under serious threat of destruction amid the city’s growing concrete jungle.

Several locations along the Karachi coast where significant areas of mangrove have been cleared for housing, commercial and industrial projects were identified by WWF-Pakistan in a recent report. The report also highlighted areas where mangrove landscapes continued to be threatened by massive deforestation.

The WWF report suggested that to stop the destruction of mangroves along the Karachi coastline, it is essential to implement strict enforcement of laws and encourage reforestation and natural regeneration programs. It warned that if preventive measures are not taken in time, existing mangrove areas may be removed or destroyed in the near future.

Using Earth Observation Satellites, Remote Sensing and GIS tools, geospatial experts at the Richard Garstang Conservation Lab at WWF-Pakistan recorded data on mangrove cover in Karachi over the past two decades. They found that land reclamation and cutting of mangroves for housing and development projects have led to a rapid decline in mangrove cover in Karachi.

Based on this report, WWF-Pakistan stressed the need to prevent further destruction of mangrove forests along the Karachi coastline through better planning, effective implementation strategies and coordinated actions by relevant organizations and departments.

The Sindh Forest Department (SFD) has made significant progress in the conservation and management of mangrove forests in the province. The department planted mangroves on 55,555 hectares along the Sindh coastline, mainly in the Indus Delta, through their ambitious projects between 2020 and 2024.

They have also initiated several mangrove reforestation and management programs in collaboration with WWF-Pakistan and the International Union for Conservation of Nature Pakistan (IUCN). As a result of these efforts, Pakistan’s mangrove forest cover has increased from 1,338.16 km2 in 2016 to 1,573.57 km2 in 2020.

Despite these efforts by the department and the mangrove plantations of conservation organizations, the Pakistan Navy and local communities living in the coastal belt, mangrove forests in Karachi are facing significant threats. According to the SFD, approximately 200 hectares of mangrove forests along the Karachi coastline have been lost between 2010 and 2022. This worrying trend is mainly caused by land grabbing, housing schemes and development projects.

Satellite data of mangrove destruction along the Karachi coast, provided by WWF-Pakistan’s GIS lab, indicated that large tracts of mangrove forests, marked by the red lines in the 2000 and 2024 images, have been completely cleared and converted into housing projects.

The yellow outlined areas are those where mangrove logging is still occurring at an alarming rate. The blue outlined areas represent mangrove habitats that have been degraded or are currently threatened for residential, recreational or industrial use.

A common pattern of mangrove clearing is the gradual cutting of trees adjacent to existing homes, leading to the encroachment of entire neighborhoods and eventually the development of homes, markets, parks, and industries.

Commenting on the report, Hammad Naqi Khan, Director General of WWF-Pakistan, said these important mangrove forests are under serious threat from rampant urbanisation, illegal logging, pollution and inadequate enforcement of conservation laws.

He said the loss of mangrove cover along the coastline has not only increased the vulnerability of local communities to oceanic disasters, but has also removed other essential services including biodiversity support, urban cooling, air purification and carbon dioxide storage.

The destruction of Karachi’s mangrove forests not only endangers the environment, but also the city’s sustainability and resilience to climate change. Khan suggested that given the ecological, economic and social benefits of mangrove forests, relevant stakeholders should work together to conserve and manage this important natural resource.

This work concluded that land reclamation is one of the major causes of mangrove destruction in Karachi. As the city grows due to increasing urbanization, mangrove areas are being cleared to make way for residential, commercial and industrial development projects. Illegal land allocations have further exacerbated the situation, with large tracts of mangrove forests being allocated for construction, sometimes through a nexus between powerful individuals and land mafias.

These plots are sold at high prices, leading to further destruction of the mangrove ecosystem. This relentless development is driven by short-term financial gains, ignoring the long-term costs of environmental impacts.

It was also revealed that besides land reclamation, cutting down mangroves for commercial use was posing a significant challenge to the mangrove ecology. Mangrove loggers are cutting down mature trees near Port Qasim, which is having a severe impact on the entire ecosystem.