How remote sensing supports mangrove ecosystem service valuation: A case study in Ca Mau province, Vietnam

This paper highlights the importance of using household survey and remote sensing data for the assessment of mangrove ecosystem services (fisheries and timber related products, carbon sequestration, storm protection) in Ca Mau Province, Vietnam. The results indicate that remote sensing plays an important role in ecosystem service valuation in the large areas where mangroves and aquaculture are mixed. We estimated the value of mangrove ecosystem services using market price and replacement cost approaches to determine an initial assessment of the overall contribution of mangroves to human well-being. The total estimated value was US$ 600 million/year for 187,533 ha (approximately US$ 3000/ha/year), which is slightly smaller than the gross domestic product (GDP) of the province (US$ 0.69 billion in 2010). However, this is only a partial estimate that does not consider other services (tourism, biodiversity, cultural and social values), due to the absence of primary data. The main contribution of this study is that it is the first to combine the approaches of remote sensing and household survey for the quantification of mangrove ecosystem services in the mangrove-shrimp integrated system. Our findings indicate that the continued expansion of aquaculture has reduced the benefits to local communities provided by the mangrove ecosystem.