Project Description

With the success of the first certified Blue Carbon project in Mexico under Climate Action Reserve (discover more about the project here), ClimateSeed and San Crisanto Foundation have started working with two additional mangrove communities in the Gulf of Mexico, Tabasco. Since project implementation in September 2023, some of the work that has been carried out includes defining project areas, community capacity building activities, and baseline estimation through site samplings. Both projects are community-owned mangrove forests under the Ejido system that are following the Mexico Forest Protocol 3.0 under Climate Action Reserve.

Crucial, but vulnerable ecosystems in Mexico, mangroves have the potential to capture 4 times more carbon dioxide than terrestrial forest. These ecosystems benefit the local biodiversity, including migratory birds, such as the kingfisher and herons. However, some of the threats in the region include land-use changes, illegal deforestation, and fires within the mangrove forests.

The projects aim to preserve, conserve, and restore the mangrove forests within two communities. The program is owned and led by the local community, employing its youth, men and women equally. It will share the revenues with community members to have a positive impact on the local economy.

Deep-dive into the Project

Mangroves in Mexico

Mexico is home to 6% of the world’s mangrove forest cover and can be found in 17 coastal states. Mexico has the fourth largest mangrove area in the world (after Indonesia, Australia, Brazil), covering more than 900,000 hectares. Only about half of these are located in Natural Protected Areas. Mangroves are vital as they serve as natural barriers against climate disasters for local communities and contribute to the local economy and biodiversity. However, livestock farming is one of the main causes of mangrove forest loss, especially in Veracruz, Campeche, and Tabasco Mexico.

For an in-depth look at the series of visits to various Blue Carbon projects, read about Alessandra Souroujon's journey in our blog post, "Mexico Visit: 3 Ecosystems, 12 Communities & 10 Days."

Sources: Biodiversidad Mexicana // CONAFOR // WRI // CONAFOR // IUCN

What are Ejidos?

An Ejido is unique to Mexico and it’s a system of communal land tenure. Ejidos were created as a result of the Mexican Revolution (1910-1920), where initially Ejidos were awarded as communal land to communities of indigenous or small farmers, as a means to stem social unrest. Today about 50.8% of the national territory is either Ejido or communal land. There are 29,709 Ejidos and 2,393 communities.

All decisions made within an Ejido are subject to the rules and regulations of the Ejido Assembly. The General Assembly is the governing body of all Ejidatarios (Ejido members). Individual Ejidos establish internal rules for ejido land governance and rights.

As a result, all decisions pertaining to the carbon project (such Social Safeguards including, Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC)) need to be approved by majority vote (both men and women can vote equally) by the Ejido through their General Assembly.

1,152 ha

of mangrove forest combined

89

community members total

8,047 tCO₂e

expected total annual carbon sequestration

200

sampling sites completed per project

Doña Antonia Ramìrez Segura
Community Leader

“I am very grateful to God, to ClimateSeed and the San Crisanto Foundation for the opportunity to participate in this noble project. We are very grateful for the financial support to carry out the certification studies and certify our mangrove project.

I hope first to make people aware of the importance of taking care of our mangroves and continuing to reforest each time the heat gets stronger. I want each Ejidatario who is already old to receive a financial resource for having respected and cared for their mangroves.

Unfortunately, our mangroves have been victims of illegal logging and forest fires and require continuous work and monitoring from the community to ensure they are conserved and protected.”

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Yeni Selván
MSc Environmental Science and Specialist in Mangrove Ecosystems

“Working with people from an Ejido, or community, is something that I always cherish because the learning I get from them is incomparable. They open up to me by sharing their customs, traditions and experiences in the mangrove ecosystem, and their area of studies. Something that I highly valued when carrying out the work in the communities was the participation and engagement of the ladies during the sampling sites. It is also worth recognizing the learning capacity of the older people who participated in the different trainings. The attention they paid to the detail to ensure and avoid errors when recording field data is something worth admiring. Their hard-work, commitment, and hospitality really struck me."

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Tabasco, Mexico (Gulf of Mexico)

is the location

Mangrove species found:

Rhizophora mangle (red mangrove), Avicennia germinans (black mangrove) and Laguncularia racemosa (white mangrove)

2

communities

Other species found:

fish, eagles, ducks, lizards, crabs, snakes, butterflies, icotea turtles, and migratory birds, such as; the kingfisher and heron

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Project Description