GoKawiilAs urban expansion in Maputo threatens to destroy mangrove forests, marine biologist Célia Macamo is studying how to save them.
The peat that oozes out of the sampling device is dark and sticky. Collecting soil from the mangrove forest near Maputo is a grubby job, but ecological assessments like this one help Célia Macamo — a marine biologist at Eduardo Mondlane University in Maputo — to estimate how much carbon is stored in the soil.
The clues she finds in the soil help to produce carbon credits — certificates generated by projects that calculate how much carbon these ecosystems store. One carbon credit is usually equivalent to one tonne of carbon dioxide removed from the atmosphere. Companies buy carbon credits to offset their greenhouse-gas emissions and landowners are financially rewarded for protecting their local area. This creates a way to protect habitats and to prevent the land from being cleared for development or aquaculture.