- Successful mangrove restoration requires balancing ecological goals with social and economic realities, as exemplified by the community-led efforts of Tridibnagar.
- Large-scale projects often fail due to poor planning, lack of local engagement, and ignoring livelihood needs.
- Integrating decision science and structured methodologies could improve long-term success and resilience in mangrove restoration.
“Our lives are shaped by the havoc of cyclones, uncertainty, and constant struggles,” says Chandana Kayal, a resident of Tridibnagar in Jharkhali, a mid-estuarine island in West Bengal’s South 24 Parganas district. Jharkhali is one of the entry points to the Sundarbans, a biodiversity hotspot considered one of the most climate-vulnerable regions in the country.
Recurring cyclones are a harsh reality of the Sundarbans — it experiences five to six cyclones annually. Over the last 40 years, the Bay of Bengal region has experienced 255 cyclonic storms ranging from low to severe categories. Cyclone intensity has increased over the last 100 years. Between 2019 and 2020, three cyclones impacted the Sundarbans, leading to hundreds of casualties and billions in economic damage. The most severe in recent history, Cyclone Amphan in May 2020, reportedly the first category five cyclone to affect the Sundarbans in two decades, had a major impact on India and Bangladesh with a loss of 128 lives and more than $13 million in damage.
“When cyclones strike, we barely have time to save our belongings,” Kayal says. So, when an opportunity to create a buffer against cyclones was presented to them, hundreds of women joined forces to realise it. “We collected propagules that drifted to the coast and nurtured them in a mangrove nursery.”
The determined women of Tridibnagar secured two kilometres of mud embankment while conserving 40 acres of pre-existing mangroves.
“In our first attempt, we planted 2,000 saplings sourced from NGOs using standard spacing, following methods others had used, but none survived. We later realised most plantations were monotypic and ignored seasonal patterns, like planting in April, when the violent Kaal Bhaisakhi lash the Sundarbans. Also, the saplings provided were simply uprooted from the forest. So, we changed our approach,” says Mukut Biswas, founder and managing trustee of the Prameya Foundation, a non-profit organisation supporting the women’s restoration efforts.
Subsequently, the Prameya Mangrove Action Committee was formed in 2019 with 40 women from Tridibnagar and a few village elders. The saplings were planted in bare stretches where mangroves had vanished.
A mangrove buffer zone took shape. Two lakh (200,000) saplings were planted over five acres, based on traditional wisdom to mimic the diverse mangrove ecosystem, achieving a 95% survival rate. When Mongabay India visited Tridibnagar in January 2025, the Avicennia species had grown to six feet, and others to about five feet.
“Landholding in the Sundarbans is a complex issue, especially after Super Cyclone Aila of 2009, which reshaped the region’s geography. In Tridibnagar, the embankment broke, forcing the village inland and leaving vacant land which some farmers used for fisheries. When the village committee identified the area for restoration, they voluntarily relinquished these fisheries,” Mukut explains.
Yet the real challenge remained conserving both restored and pre-existing forests. Village policies were established to prevent cattle grazing, increasing population pressure, and political interference. Alongside, a temple for Bonbibi, the predominant goddess of the region, was built near the plantation site for protection.
“We started organising Bonbibi Pala — traditional theatrical performances reinforcing the sacred connection between the community and the mangroves. These drew large crowds,” Mukut shares.
The plantation evolved into a mass movement with 80% voluntary participation. Nearly every household today maintains a mangrove nursery, ensuring a steady supply of saplings for future restoration.
The project transformed into a ‘community-led’ initiative, serving as an example of effective application of restoration dynamics — driven by a deep understanding of local stakeholder needs and a commitment to addressing their concerns while making it economical.
Overlooking socio-economic dynamics
Tridibnagar’s story stands out as one of the few successful examples of mangrove restoration. The growing recognition of mangroves as effective natural climate solutions has generated significant global interest in their restoration. However, the track record remains fraught with costly failures. Data from the past 40 years indicate that 48.7% of restoration projects in South and Southeast Asian deltas have been unsuccessful, largely due to social, governance, and political constraints; biophysical limitations; and communication barriers.
Efforts often fail under unrealistic targets and political pressure, leading to ambitious but poorly planned projects. Land conflicts and resource constraints frequently force restoration into biophysically unsuitable areas, where improper site selection, inadequate planting techniques, and monoculture practices further hinder resilience. Additionally, limited knowledge-sharing, inconsistent guidelines, and the absence of standard monitoring frameworks make it difficult to improve restoration strategies over time.
The challenges are exemplified by the West Bengal government’s ambitious mangrove restoration drive in the Sundarbans. The programme exceeded its target of 50 million, planting 123.77 million mangroves (halophytes) and mangrove-associated species (glycophytes), covering 4,579 hectares.
However, an analysis by the School of Oceanographic Studies, Jadavpur University (JU), and other collaborators reveals unintended socio-economic consequences. Fences and nets installed to prevent damage limited grazing access and affected tourism due to fewer wildlife sightings, negatively impacting local livelihoods. Conversely, sites without fencing saw saplings suffer from wave exposure and predation by fish and snails.
The project significantly engaged the local community, especially forest-dependent populations and Self-Help Group members. Leveraging the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), it provided wages of about US $2.4 per day, but only for 100 days annually.
The research finds that with over 30% of households having at least one migrant, 83% of them men, many left for better-paying jobs once COVID-19 restrictions lifted. The absence of men forced women to juggle household responsibilities alongside plantation work. A major setback emerged as funding for MGNREGS stalled since March 2022, leading to non-payment of wages, which eroded the trust of local workers and undermined the initiative’s long-term sustainability.
Tuhin Ghosh, professor and director of the School of Oceanographic Studies, informs Mongabay India that there were no real mangrove conservation or restoration efforts underway — only plantations. “Priority should be given to conservation, especially as large-scale mangrove destruction continues. In areas of natural regeneration, existing patches should be left undisturbed. For this, local communities dependent on these ecosystems must be provided with alternative livelihoods and fair compensation to reduce overharvesting,” he says.
“For instance, in the Sundarbans, local fishermen place large nets called ‘char pata’ during high tide to trap fish, prawns, and crabs, pulling them back during low tide. This churns the sediment and uproots propagules and saplings, ultimately destroying the ecosystem.”
According to Ghosh, persistent monitoring and nurturing are crucial for the long-term survival of mangroves. “Financial incentives for planting alone won’t be enough. Locals should also be compensated for monitoring plantations and ensuring their long-term success. This will foster a sense of ownership and encourage active participation,” he highlights.
Decision science to the rescue
The solution may lie in “decision science”, according to a study published in the Ocean and Coastal Management journal. It advocates for a deeper integration of scientific and local knowledge, along with enhanced public awareness, to overcome social and governance barriers in mangrove restoration.
Decision science is an interdisciplinary field that applies structured methodologies to help make informed, defensible, and participatory decisions where multiple stakeholders’ visions compete, which is common in restoration contexts. It involves the use of decision support frameworks and tools, such as analysis of restoration manuals detailing past project successes and failures, spatial analysis, predictive modelling, and stakeholder consultations, to guide conservation and restoration efforts.
The study reviewed global research on mangrove restoration and noted a significant imbalance in restoration approaches. Ecological factors dominate the focus on restoration, while social dimensions such as community engagement, land tenure, and governance receive little attention. Economic considerations, such as cost-benefit analyses and market incentives for restoration, are largely neglected.
This ecological bias means that many projects fail to address critical human-related challenges. Without integrating social and economic factors, restoration efforts risk being unsustainable in the long run.
While tools like spatial data analysis and quantitative models are frequently used in mangrove restoration projects, a comprehensive, integrated decision-making approach is often absent. Few studies utilise structured methodologies like Systematic Conservation Planning (SCP), which balances ecological needs with stakeholder preferences to identify optimal restoration sites, or Marine Spatial Planning (MSP), which offers integrated coastal zone management.
Given the limited research on governance complexities and ecological relationships, methods such as governance mapping, institution mapping, and socio-ecological framework scoring — successfully used in marine and forest environments — could be further explored for mangrove restoration.
“Delivering actionable science is an integral aspect of good governance in conservation practice, management of natural resources, and environmental stewardship. Therefore, the production of accessible information and tools that mangrove restoration practitioners can easily apply in real decision-making contexts may help overcome the current barriers limiting the success of projects on the ground,” the study highlights.
“The government must take the initiative to earmark areas needing plantations and determine suitable species. Without proper frameworks, tracking sapling numbers and quality is often lacking, making it hard to assess success or failure. Every project should include a cost-benefit analysis,” says Ghosh, adding: “Remote sensing could improve monitoring, yet our proposals for its use have not found success. Without systematic tracking and accountability, these efforts risk becoming short-term and unsustainable.”
Read more: Understanding coastal risks with and without mangroves
Banner image: Mangroves restored by women in Tridibnagar. The solution to socioeconomic challenges to mangrove restoration may lie in decision science, which advocates for consideration of local knowledge and enhanced public awareness. Image by Mukut Biswas.
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