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Katoomba Issue Brief

Payments for Ecosystem Services in Vietnam's Mangrove Forests

By Slayde Hawkins - Forest Trends
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Vietnam’s mangrove ecosystems are tremendously valuable, providing ecosystem services like carbon sequestration, protection from storms, floods, and erosion, provision of timber and non-timber forest products, processing of waste and nutrient pollution, aquaculture and agriculture support, and habitat for aquatic and terrestrial species. Yet, as in many other parts of the world, short-term development needs are undermining long-term mangrove health and survival. Fortunately, economic mechanisms have the potential to tip the balance toward restoration, maintenance, and protection of mangrove forests.
This issue brief summarizes research by the Katoomba Group’s Legal Initiative into key barriers to and opportunities for payments for ecosystem services in Vietnam’s mangrove forests, drawing from the December 2010 report “Roots in the Water: Legal Frameworks for Mangrove PES in Vietnam.”