Uprooting the Acacias mangium at the Maison de la Nature at Sinnamary

The Maison de la Nature at Sinnamary, owned by the Conservatoire du Littoral and situated on the coast of French Guiana in what is known as ’savannah country’, has agreed this year to work in conjunction with GEPOG as a trial site in the fight against the invasive plant Acacia mangium.

Both Acacia mangium and Acacia crassicarpa can be found around the parking lot, along the roadsides and at the entrances to the forest on the coastal sand-strip, and have started to invade the savannahs themselves!

An initial survey and a day’s visit to the site with the company ’Elaguyane’ and the three organisations which look after the area (association SEPANGUY, Mairie de Sinnamary and Conservatoire du littoral) has allowed a strategy of management to be drawn up.

So, on 16th October, GEPOG, SEPANGUY and the coastguards from the Mairie de Sinnamary started to pull up all the young acacias that had been located during the survey. The score: 96 trees!

Uprooting the Acacias mangium at the Maison de la Nature at Sinnamary

The next stage takes place on 24th October, when Elaguyane will start chopping down the mature trees!

Anna Stier
Project Leader, Life+ Cap DOM