The Niger Delta wetlands: threats to ecosystem services, their importance to dependent communities and possible management measures

Abstract

The Niger Delta wetlands are changing rapidly, raising concern for the wetlands' health and for communities relying upon its ecosystem services. Knowledge on ecosystem service provision is important for effective ecosystem and livelihoods management, but is currently lacking for the Niger Delta. We synthesised literature and used the 'Drivers-pressure-state-impact-response' (DPSIR) framework to structure information on changes in the wetlands' ecosystem services and implications for dependent communities. The wetlands' ecosystem services are being eroded through oil and gas exploration, dredging, invasive plant infestation and wetland reclamation. This is exacerbated by rising demand for oil, population growth and weak governance. Mass fish migration, water pollution and reduction of wetland area are also evident, impacting ecosystem services and traditional livelihood systems. This has caused poverty; people have to buy goods that previously could be obtained from the wetlands. Effective wetland management will be aided by: recognition of ecosystem services' contributions to community well-being; understanding how benefits are distributed over time, space, stakeholder; and how these changes in response to pressures. Since key pressures in the wetland are anthropogenic, understanding the role of institutions in relation to the Niger Delta's ecosystem services is imperative.

Ecosystem Service Changes and Livelihood Impacts in the Maguri-Motapung Wetlands of Assam, India

“…Inadequate institutional arrangements are often regarded as drivers of environmental change [55]. Our results support those studies emphasizing the political and institutional factors involved in the degradation of ecosystems, [13,43]. A holistic management plan for the wetlands with participatory options and approaches and multisectoral investment might help communities to reduce their high dependency on wetland resources, which ultimately should result in increases in the flow of ecosystem services.…”

Inequality and ecosystem services: The value and social distribution of Niger Delta wetland services

“…We did not value provisioning service such as the water supply potentials of the Niger Delta wetlands because water does not generally have a market value in this society. The Niger Delta wetlands provide an array of provisioning, regulating, cultural and supporting services which are of global importance, but more importantly rural livelihoods (Adekola and Mitchell 2011). Like previous studies of African wetlands, we confirmed the high importance of provisioning ecosystem services in households.…”

“…The main consequences of local community activities include changes in soil productivity and decline in forest cover (Adekola and Mitchell 2011). It has not been possible to estimate this cost because of a lack of reliable data.…”

Implications of land cover change on ecosystems services and people’s dependency: A case study from the Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve, Nepal

“…In this regard, the supply of services by specific or mosaic of land covers must be taken into account (Burkhard et al, 2010) for planning and management of the areas of concern. However, information on land covers, its capacity to supply services and the consequences of land cover change on ecosystem services at a local scale is largely absent (Adekola and Mitchell, 2011). Information on people's dependency on natural resources at local scale is also limited though half of the world's rural population is estimated to depend on natural resources for subsistence products or cash income generation (Angelsen and Wunder, 2003).…”