Kidz at Sea started its underwater mapping activities.
PHILIPSBURG--SXM Coastal Clean-Up Project from Kidz at Sea has started its underwater mapping activities funded by the Resources for Community Resilience-R4CR Grant Scheme. The project focuses on debris from Hurricane Irma, which still litters the coastline of St. Maarten.
The first half of this project focused on training residents of St. Maarten in the dive courses needed to execute an underwater clean-up of garbage found along the coastline in the marine environment. With their training completed, divers have begun the work to collect and catalogue data on the debris from Hurricane Irma.
Throughout the first part of the SXM Coastal Clean-Up project several residents were given the opportunity to receive introductory and more specialized dive training in order to safely map and remove debris from the coastline.
Two coastal areas are being mapped to show type of debris, corals, and native seagrass beds.
Plastic is littering the coastline.
SXM Coastal Clean-Up Project from Kidz at Sea has started its underwater mapping activities. The mapping dives will be used to consult Nature Foundation. Story on page .
Specialty dive courses focused on proper buoyancy underwater.
Participants have become certified scuba divers.
Both Ocean Explorers Dive Centre and Aqua Mania Watersports worked hard to train divers extensively prior to mapping activities. During these courses, divers learned the skills necessary to execute the second half of the project safely and accurately.
Specialty dive courses that focused on proper buoyancy underwater and accurate search patterns were a key to the tangible results of the project. Many participants hope to use their extensive dive training in the future.
“These past few weeks have been some of the greatest learning experiences in my life. All thanks to Kidz at Sea and R4CR. I am a certified scuba diver and that is important living on the island,” said participant Nelly Blaise. “I am truly inspired to be an environmental ambassador on my island and promote a more sustainable lifestyle. I want to influence my people to become more aware of the environment and various habitats on the island. Some of us do not see the immediate consequences of our actions on the environment, and that makes me sad. However, being educated about coral reefs, aquatic animals and diving, gives me the confidence to change the mindset of my community to promote a more sustainable lifestyle.”
Along with one underwater clean-up event that will take place in a bay area of the island, two other coastal areas are currently being mapped to show type of debris, corals, and native seagrass beds. “The mapping dives will be used to consult Nature Foundation about safeguarding any marine life in the areas we hope to clean-up,” said Project Coordinator Leslie Hickerson. “The maps and the data collected with them will be used to ensure we don’t remove debris with protected coral growth or cause any damage to the marine environment.”
After the mapping is complete, Nature Foundation will give advice on which area is best suited for debris removal and any special considerations that need to be put in place. The project will execute an underwater clean-up with all participants in early December. During this event the garbage removed from the water will be weighed and recorded in order to complete a full report of the current state of St. Maarten’s coastal areas.
The SXM Coastal Clean-Up Project is part of the Kids at Sea Programmes and is supported and funded by Resources for Community Resilience. Resources 4 Community Resilience (R4CR), a programme implemented by VNG International and funded by the World Bank Trust Fund for St Maarten, which was created to aid the island after devastating Hurricane Irma in 2017. Kidz at Sea has used the assistance of R4CR to expand its maritime training to include this programme and the first dive certifications for their participants.
