Environment Group Pleased With Efforts to Save Coral Reef

KINGSTOWN, St. Vincent – The St. Vincent and the Grenadines Environment Fund (SVGEF) says it is pleased with the response to plans to have “dead/ dying” coral at Indian Bay removed.

“While coral reefs only cover some 0.2 per cent of the ocean floor, they contain some 25 per cent of marine life species. Some 20 per cent of coral reefs in the Caribbean have died in the past few decades and another 20 per cent severely degraded.

“In this context, the SVGEF supports the restoration of coral reefs through coral nursery and re-planting programs,” it said in a statement.

Over the last 50 years,  80 per cent of the corals in the Caribbean have been lost due mainly coastal development and pollution. They now are also threatened by invasive species, global warming and the early effects of ocean acidification

Indian Bay has an elevation of 31 meters and is situated nearby to Villa, close to Dove Island. South of the capital, Kingstown, Indian Bay has golden sand but is slightly rocky and is very good for snorkeling

A petition seeking signatures to deny the removal of the coral from Indian Bay started after the Physical Planning and Development Board published an application by Raffique Dunbar in that regard.

Dunbar is seeking permission to extract a “dead/ dying” coral reef 350 feet along the coast and 50-60 feet outwards into the sea, a total area of 17,500 square feet. He is also proposing to place a new artificial reef at about 100-150 feet from the shore, using concrete blocks, the surface area of which will exceed that of the extracted coral.

Dunbar’s is also asking for permission to deposit imported sand in the area to increase beach width.

But his application has generated public discussion and opposition with the petition as so far collecting 4,163 signatures, including those from people overseas, the SVGEF added.

In its latest bulletin, the Caribbean Coral reef Watch noted that while heat stress in the southwest Caribbean basin has begun to increase, not as significantly as last year, most of the eastern and northern Caribbean are forecasted to not experience notable heat stress until August.

It said in comparison to 2020, the predictions for 2021 provide a more positive outlook of heat stress impacts.