Coastal erosion and mangrove progradation of Southern Thailand

Approximately 60% of the southern Thai coastline used to be occupied by mangroves according to the first mangrove forest assessment in 1961. During the past three decades, these mangrove areas have been reduced to about 50% with less than 10% left on the east coast. Coastal erosion and accretion occur irregularly along the coast but an intensification of erosion has been noticed during the past decade. This study assessed the relationship between mangrove presence and changes in coastal area. Mangrove colonization rates were assessed using in situ transects and remote sensing time series. Both methods led to comparable estimates ranging between 5 and 40 m y