Contribution of Coconut Trees (Cocos Nucifera) in Biomass and Carbon Store and its’ Role in Improving Livelihood of Small Scale Farmers of Coastal Areas of Tanzania

Abstract

Global warming and climate change are growing environmental concerns that are resulting from the accumulation of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere as a result of human anthropogenic activities. The CO2 concentration in atmosphere increased from 280 ppm at the beginning of the industrial revolution to 368 ppm by the year 2000 and is projected to increase to 540 ppm by 2100. Land-use change and deforestation is responsible for about 25% of all greenhouse emissions. As international agreements over greenhouse gas emissions and global warming are negotiated, there is growing interest in the possibility of reducing the increase in the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere through forest-based carbon sequestration project. Forests sequester and store more carbon than any other terrestrial ecosystem and are important climate change mitigation. Carbon sequestration has been globally emerged as a potential profitable business, which is oriented to socioeconomic development and environmental amelioration. However in East Africa including Tanzania, this carbon sequestration business considered some categories of forests, trees farming and trees species. There is a growing concern of some homestead forestry which grown for food and income purposes but have variety of outputs that have both production and service values including aesthetic and ecological benefits. This study concentrates on contribution of coconut trees (Cocos nucifera) in biomass and carbon store and its role in improving livelihood of small scale farmers in coastal areas of Tanzania through carbon market. Archive data was analysed to get the intended output. Results indicates coconut trees to have biomass stocks of 10, 818, 072.1 tons and 2, 466, 520.5 tons equivalent to 101, 689.9 tons and 23, 185.29 tons of carbon stocks producing accrued profit amounted amount of US$ 406, 759.5 and US$ 92, 741.17 if adapted REDD+ strategies in coastal areas of mainland Tanzania and Zanzibar islands respectively. The study concludes that coconut trees have both ecological and socio-economic benefits. It is suggested that, production, productivity and sustainable utilisation of coconut trees should be emphasized.