The value of carbon sequestration and storage in coastal habitats areas in North West of Morocco

Abstract

Morocco, like the rest of the world, is experiencing a climate change that threatens a number of wetlands. Marine ecosystems contribute to the regulation of the Earth’s climate, but their degradation releases large quantities of greenhouse gases (GHGs) such as carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere. This paper aimed to map and model changes in carbon storage and sequestration for coastal habitats using the INVEST model, using the Sidi Moussa-Oualidia lagoon complex as a case study. To achieve this objective, several data were used, namely, land use and land cover maps between 2003 and 2020, as well as data on the amount of carbon stored in the three basins; biomass, sediment carbon (soil) and dead carbon (litter), and the annual rate of carbon accumulation in biomass and sediment. The results obtained in this work allowed us to compare the two former and current carbon stock and net sequestration scenarios and to evaluate the social cost of carbon in the study area. This study can facilitate the development of a coastal rehabilitation strategy to take advantage of the benefits of these wetlands and, at the same time, to conserve the ecosystem services provided by these environments, including the CBCS.