7.2 Methodology
7.2.1 Study Site
The coastal region of Guinea spans an area of approximately 1 Mha, which stretches
300 km between Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone (Rue and Fontana 1995). Many
rivers originating from the Fouta Djallon highland traverse this area from east to
west. These rivers create an estuary covered by an extensive mangrove swamp
forest, which covers a large portion of the coastal region. These forests are dominated by Rhizophoracea and Avicenniaceae plant species (RoG 2009) and play a
crucial role for the livelihoods of local communities (Ellison 1997; Naylor and Drew
1998; Dahdouh-Guebas et al. 2000) (Sect. 7.1). The region consists of three broad
zones with very different ecological features: (a) a coastal plateau; (b) a tidal marsh
and (c) a coastal-marine area.
First, the coastal plateau is about 20 km wide and lies in the eastern parts of the
coastal region, adjacent to the foothills of the Fouta Djallon highland. This area
contains most of the road network and settlements and is covered by highly degraded
and infertile sandy soils. The area contains areas of upland forest, which are
increasingly degraded, particularly through timber extraction and agriculture.
Slash-and-burn agriculture is practiced extensively in the region for many crops,
such as upland rice, peanuts, fonio and oil palm.
Second, the tidal marsh area extends over 400,000 ha in an alluvial estuary that
contains a highly biodiverse mangrove forest. The mangrove forest occupies a total
area of approximately 270,000 ha and is roughly subdivided into three landscapes
types: (a) the upper estuary, (b) the middle estuary, and (c) the waterfront (c). The
mangrove upper estuary is located along the riverbanks and extends in the lowland
coastal plateau for over 120,000 ha. The waterfront extends parallel to the shore for
over 38,000 ha and is crossed by barrier beaches. The middle estuary is located
between the upper estuary and the waterfront. It covers roughly 180,000 ha and is
characterized by many channels and complex hydrological circulation patterns.
Many human activities affect the tidal marsh areas such as timber extraction,
agriculture, salt production, livestock farming, oyster gathering, fishing and fish
smoking (see below). Mangrove forests are cleared extensively throughout the tidal
marsh area in order to establish rice fields on its fertile soils, with coastal mangrove
rice fields spanning an estimated 80,000 ha.
Third, the coastal-marine area extends over the large estuary formed by the
mangrove head. It is characterized by the seaward extension of coastal mudflats
that have an average width of 20 km. At its limits, the water depth is around
15–20 m. The area hosts intense fishing activities, both by artisanal fishers operating
from approximately 100 docks and by large-scale industrial operators.
Mangrove forests in the region have experienced significant degradation in the
past decades. The main pressures come from the increasing population and “informal” industrialization (e.g. logging, fish smoking, salt production from small-scale
enterprises), agriculture and mining (Valiela et al. 2001; Wilkie and Fortuna 2003;
7 Linking Rural Livelihoods and Fuelwood Demand from Mangroves and Upland. . .
225
7.2.1 Study Site
The coastal region of Guinea spans an area of approximately 1 Mha, which stretches
300 km between Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone (Rue and Fontana 1995). Many
rivers originating from the Fouta Djallon highland traverse this area from east to
west. These rivers create an estuary covered by an extensive mangrove swamp
forest, which covers a large portion of the coastal region. These forests are dominated by Rhizophoracea and Avicenniaceae plant species (RoG 2009) and play a
crucial role for the livelihoods of local communities (Ellison 1997; Naylor and Drew
1998; Dahdouh-Guebas et al. 2000) (Sect. 7.1). The region consists of three broad
zones with very different ecological features: (a) a coastal plateau; (b) a tidal marsh
and (c) a coastal-marine area.
First, the coastal plateau is about 20 km wide and lies in the eastern parts of the
coastal region, adjacent to the foothills of the Fouta Djallon highland. This area
contains most of the road network and settlements and is covered by highly degraded
and infertile sandy soils. The area contains areas of upland forest, which are
increasingly degraded, particularly through timber extraction and agriculture.
Slash-and-burn agriculture is practiced extensively in the region for many crops,
such as upland rice, peanuts, fonio and oil palm.
Second, the tidal marsh area extends over 400,000 ha in an alluvial estuary that
contains a highly biodiverse mangrove forest. The mangrove forest occupies a total
area of approximately 270,000 ha and is roughly subdivided into three landscapes
types: (a) the upper estuary, (b) the middle estuary, and (c) the waterfront (c). The
mangrove upper estuary is located along the riverbanks and extends in the lowland
coastal plateau for over 120,000 ha. The waterfront extends parallel to the shore for
over 38,000 ha and is crossed by barrier beaches. The middle estuary is located
between the upper estuary and the waterfront. It covers roughly 180,000 ha and is
characterized by many channels and complex hydrological circulation patterns.
Many human activities affect the tidal marsh areas such as timber extraction,
agriculture, salt production, livestock farming, oyster gathering, fishing and fish
smoking (see below). Mangrove forests are cleared extensively throughout the tidal
marsh area in order to establish rice fields on its fertile soils, with coastal mangrove
rice fields spanning an estimated 80,000 ha.
Third, the coastal-marine area extends over the large estuary formed by the
mangrove head. It is characterized by the seaward extension of coastal mudflats
that have an average width of 20 km. At its limits, the water depth is around
15–20 m. The area hosts intense fishing activities, both by artisanal fishers operating
from approximately 100 docks and by large-scale industrial operators.
Mangrove forests in the region have experienced significant degradation in the
past decades. The main pressures come from the increasing population and “informal” industrialization (e.g. logging, fish smoking, salt production from small-scale
enterprises), agriculture and mining (Valiela et al. 2001; Wilkie and Fortuna 2003;
7 Linking Rural Livelihoods and Fuelwood Demand from Mangroves and Upland. . .
225