Resilient Responses to Urban Wetland Loss: Experiences from Port Harcourt Municipality

Abstract

Wetlands globally contribute to valuable ecosystem services to both natural species habitat and human tourist attractions in any location including those found in Port Harcourt Municipality. Wetlands are also beneficial and significant serving as breeding regions for wildlife and safe spaces for sea creatures, support a diversity of species and provide some climate restraining components, characteristic of any natural habitat. This study highlights some resilient responses residents put up in the aftermath of wetland reclamation and conversion in neighbourhoods. The study aims to ascertain the environmental and physical challenges of wetland loss on the wetland dwellers and subsequently identify resilient paradigms adopted to cope with such associated stress. Forty-one wetland settlements were identified within the Port Harcourt municipality and three out of those settlements were chosen purposively. A total of 293 questionnaires were distributed and SPSS was used to analyse the data. ERDAS Imagine 2014 version was used to show spatial changes between the years 1986 to 2000, and 2000 to 2016. The study shows that from 1986 to 2000, Port Harcourt municipality lost a total of 1,255,500m2. This translates to a 5% loss with an average rate of 89,678.57m2 per annum. Between 2000 and 2016, the rate of loss was 108,956.25m2 per annum, and approximately 7.69% of wetlands totalling 1,743,300m2 were lost to urbanisation and other activities. The result indicates that some of the challenges of wetland loss include flooding, poor refuse disposal system, and unplanned settlements. Indigenous knowledge, social capital and symbolic power are some of the resilient responses displayed by the vulnerable population to build resilience capacities. The study recommends periodic mapping of all wetlands and an effective development control framework to monitor incursions into existing wetlands.