TY - BOOK ID - 700495 TI - The Land/Ocean Interactions in the Coastal Zone of West and Central Africa AU - Diop, Salif. AU - Barusseau, Jean-Paul. AU - Descamps, Cyr. PY - 2014 SN - 331906388X 3319063871 1322135363 PB - Cham : Springer International Publishing : Imprint: Springer, DB - UniCat KW - Estuaries KW - Estuarine ecology KW - Brackish water ecology KW - Branching bays KW - Drowned river mouths KW - Firths KW - River estuaries KW - Coasts KW - Rivers KW - Ecology KW - Environmental management. KW - Marine Sciences. KW - Nature Conservation. KW - Environmental Management. KW - Marine & Freshwater Sciences. KW - Conservation of nature KW - Nature KW - Nature protection KW - Protection of nature KW - Conservation of natural resources KW - Applied ecology KW - Conservation biology KW - Endangered ecosystems KW - Natural areas KW - Ocean sciences KW - Aquatic sciences KW - Environmental stewardship KW - Stewardship, Environmental KW - Environmental sciences KW - Management KW - Conservation KW - Marine sciences. KW - Freshwater. KW - Nature conservation. KW - Fresh waters KW - Freshwater KW - Freshwaters KW - Inland water KW - Inland waters KW - Water UR - https://www.unicat.be/uniCat?func=search&query=sysid:700495 AB - Although the main focus of this book is on the estuaries, its scope goes well beyond this particular coastal feature. Indeed, the estuary can only be considered as part of the life cycle of the entire river and the marine area it feeds into: an area particularly subject to human and natural pressures. The main estuaries and deltas of West and Central Africa region provide a variety of goods and services to its coastal population. The most important of them are related to critical fish habitat, wood and charcoal from mangroves, as well as space for agriculture, aquaculture, urban development, tourism and transport. Particular emphasis has been made in this book on mangroves that play a significant role in terms of flood control, groundwater replenishment, coastline stabilization and protection against storms. They also retain sediments and nutrients, purify water, and provide critical carbon storage. Such hydrological and ecological functions explain the focus on serving mangrove ecosystems and the nearby communities, which draw significant income from fishing, rice production, tourism, salt extraction and other activities such as harvesting honey and medicinal plants, hence the need for preserving mangrove ecosystems to ensure sustainability of the estuaries and deltas of West and Central Africa region. The book has a foreword by Mr. Achim Steiner, United Nations Under-Secretary General and Executive Director of UNEP who is stating that credible and up-to-date information is essential for the public at large but more specifically for scientists, researchers, managers, decision-makers all working together in order to safeguard, protect and sustainably manage estuaries, deltas and lagoons, and the coastal and ocean waters of Western and Central Africa. ER -