Coral reefs in the Dutch Caribbean. (Kühnast photo)
PHILIPSBURG--Ocean conservation organisation Blue Marine Foundation awarded US $90,000 in funding to support marine conservation in the Dutch Caribbean. The funding is the first step in a longer-term partnership to support the islands and help secure sustainable financing through the Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance (DCNA) trust fund.
The $90,000 will be divided among protected area management organisations in Aruba, Curaçao, St. Maarten and the BES-islands Bonaire, St. Eustatius and Saba, with each to receive $15,000 in funding.
The new partnership is an important development in the successful management of marine conservation parks in the Dutch Caribbean. The UK-based charity has established a small-grants fund to provide rapid access to support for critical conservation projects run by marine parks.
To improve ocean governance, Blue Marine uses a combination of top-down intervention and bottom-up project delivery to help local communities at the front line of conservation. It will work together with the DCNA to help marine park organisations protect the unique and threatened biodiversity of the Dutch Caribbean.
In Aruba, Blue Marine Foundation is involved in monitoring water quality in the marine protected area (MPA) and wetlands, in conjunction with Fundacion Parke Nacional Aruba (FPNA).
In Curaçao, Blue Marine helps to establish a bus transport marine education programme and youth marine ranger programme, in conjunction with Caribbean Research and Management of Biodiversity (CARMABI).
Stichting Nationale Parken Bonaire (STINAPA Bonaire) can count on help with assessing losses of stony corals (Acroporids; e.g. staghorn and elkhorn coral), and their potential future recovery.
Blue Marine Foundation supports Nature Foundation St. Maarten in monitoring marine habits and helps Sint Eustatius in assessing the health of coral, the abundance of fish life and the diversity of reefs, in conjunction with St. Eustatius National Parks Foundation (STENAPA).
In Saba, Blue Marina encourages provision of a climate control room for the new marine field station, in conjunction with Saba Conservation Foundation (SCF).
The islands of the Dutch Caribbean are home to important “blue carbon” habitats – ocean ecosystems such as seagrasses, mangroves and other marine plants that suck up and lock away carbon from the earth’s atmosphere. The management and protection of these blue carbon habitats is vital in the fight against climate change.
Blue Marine’s Senior Project Manager Jude Brown commented: “Having recently visited two of the islands, I witnessed first-hand how special this region is. Diving the waters off Saba I saw huge tarpon swimming amongst shoals of blue tang, and hawksbill turtles feeding on the seagrass beds.
“I also witnessed the challenges these islands are facing, from coral disease to issues with coastal development. It is an exciting opportunity to work in the Dutch Caribbean, bringing expertise and funding from Blue Marine to join with the wealth of knowledge already on the islands, to work together to protect the important marine life around these islands.”
Nature in the Dutch Caribbean contains the richest biodiversity in the Kingdom of the Netherlands, DCNA Director Tadzio Bervoets said. “The diverse ecosystems are a magnet for tourism and at the same time the most important source of income for residents of the Dutch Caribbean. Nature on the islands is unique and important, but it is also fragile. The coming week we will be in the Netherlands to present a Climate Action Plan for the Dutch Caribbean to emphasise the urgent need for a climate-smart future for our islands.”
