Assessment of Mangrove Degradation and Community Livelihood Impacts in Bonny, Rivers State

This study assesses the extent of mangrove forest degradation and its impacts on community livelihoods in Bonny Island, Rivers State, South South Nigeria. Bonny's mangrove ecosystem has been subjected to decades of crude oil spills, dredging for LNG terminal access channels, waste disposal, and fuelwood extraction, reducing the ecological functions these forests provide to fishing communities. Remote sensing using Sentinel-2 imagery from 2019 and 2023 mapped mangrove extent and canopy density change, with field verification at twenty sites across the island's coastal fringe. Livelihood impact assessment was conducted through structured interviews with 120 fishing and mangrove-dependent households, documenting changes in fish catch, crustacean collection, and fuelwood access. Results confirm a 14.2 percent reduction in mangrove canopy cover over the four-year period, with the highest loss rates adjacent to oil industry infrastructure and urban settlement areas. Fishing households report catch declines averaging 38 percent over the preceding five years, attributed to habitat loss, water contamination, and reduced nursery function of degraded mangroves. Crab collection by women, a significant household income source, has declined in parallel with mangrove loss in 70 percent of surveyed households. Fuelwood scarcity has increased average collection distances from 1.2 to 3.4 kilometres among households still dependent on this source. The study argues that mangrove degradation represents a compound environmental and livelihood management failure. Recommendations include a community-managed mangrove restoration programme with compensation for livelihood losses. Keywords: mangrove degradation, livelihood impact, Bonny, Rivers State, coastal management.