Page 32 - ARUBA TODAY

A32 FEATURE
Friday 13 September 2019
Crew with seeds, corals restore environment in Puerto Rico

By DANICA COTO, Associ- toration ecologist with the
ated Press U.S. National Oceanic and
FAJARDO, Puerto Rico (AP) Atmospheric Administra-
— As crews re-string electric tion. “There are still tens of
lines and clear debris from thousands of corals out
Hurricane Maria, a small there that are upside down
group of Puerto Rican and or even just on their side
international conservation- that we can get out there
ists is working on rebuilding and save.”
natural wonders destroyed Similar restoration efforts
by the strongest storm to hit are taking place on land
the island in nearly a cen- miles away from the divers.
tury. At a greenhouse run by the
Environmental groups and nonprofit group Para La
volunteers are gathering Naturaleza in the capital of
native seeds to replant for- San Juan, volunteers and
ests across the U.S. territory workers tend to thousands
and grafting broken coral of budding plants that will
back onto shattered reefs grow into trees as they’re
to help repair damage in planted across the island.
the largest-ever effort of its They have planted nearly
kind for Puerto Rico. 1,900 trees since January,
The Category 4 storm dam- with a goal of 750,000 in the
aged 1.2 billion trees and In this March 2, 2019 photo, Manuel Sepulveda, a nursery management coordinator with Para la next seven years, said Luisa
snapped hundreds of thou- Naturaleza, a non-profit organization, transplants several small native oak tree seedlings, in one Rosado, the group’s habi-
sands of corals off reefs of its nurseries in the in Rio Piedras Botanical Garden, in San Juan, Puerto Rico. tat manager.
around the island when Associated Press “This is a project where we
it hit on Sept. 20. Despite a grapefruit to a car. animals,” said Jim Ritterhoff, 100 and 300 corals a day in really won’t see the results,”
the widespread destruc- Armed with buckets of ce- executive director of Force Puerto Rico for two months. she said. “The results will be
tion, a lack of funding and ment, divers pick up the Blue, a nonprofit organiza- They are focusing on the from now to 100 years.”
pressing human needs kept broken pieces and swim to tion made up of retired U.S. island’s northeast region, It’s also a labor-inten-
pushing back long-term reefs that have been iden- Special Operations veter- where swaths of mostly elk- sive project where crews
plans to replant trees and tified as healthy despite the ans working on coral reef horn and staghorn corals have to return every three
rebuild corals. battering they received conservation projects. received the brunt of large months to the site where
Now that Puerto Rico is from the storm. The divers The group is participating in swells generated during the the trees are planted to
slowly regaining its footing brush away any algae that a nearly $1.5 million project hurricane. If further funding monitor their progress dur-
after the storm and initial have built up and push the largely funded by the U.S. is available, divers will tar- ing the first year, then every
funding has been secured, pieces down into the fresh- government with help from get other areas as well. four months in the second
conservationists are fan- ly laid cement. the U.S. nonprofit organiza- “The sooner we get out year. Rosado said more
ning out across the island “If you think about what tion Ocean Conservancy there, the better,” said volunteers are needed, es-
and into its waters to repair you’re seeing, it’s broken to help restore between Sean Griffin, coral reef res- pecially because the non-
and restore what’s left of profit is tied up visiting plac-
the island’s flora. es around the island trying
“The damage is huge,” to find seeds for native and
said Nilda Jimenez, marine endemic species.
ecology director for the is- Sometimes they get lucky
land’s Department of Natu- and people call them, say-
ral Resources. ing they uncovered seeds
Helping nature recover has amid hurricane debris.
environmental and eco- A man from the western
nomic importance: Puerto mountain town of Lares re-
Rico’s natural beauty is one cently brought in a 4-foot-
of its biggest tourist draws. tall bag filled with branches
Experts also note that reefs and leaves but also a tiny
protect coasts from heavy black seed known as aceit-
swells and serve as habi- illo, which is now a rare spe-
tat for many species con- cies.
sumed on the island, in- The find drew a big smile
cluding red snappers, lob- from Manuel Sepulveda,
sters and octopi. greenhouse managing co-
Last week, a group of div- ordinator for Para La Natu-
ers assembled on a dock in raleza.
the northeast coastal town “There are very few seed
of Fajardo, a popular des- banks in Puerto Rico and
tination for tourists eager the Caribbean,” he said.
to explore reefs that once “We need millions of
boasted bright colors and seeds.” The efforts also
a multitude of fish. Now, have a deeper meaning
hundreds of broken corals In this In Feb. 28, 2019, photo, diver and Force Blue Co-Founder Rudy Reyes handles a crate full of for Rosado.
that are still alive lay scat- coral to replace corals ripped off the reef during Hurricane Maria, as part of a nearly $1.5 million “This is a way for us to recu-
tered across the turquoise coral reef restoration effort largely funded by the federal government, off the coast of Fajardo, perate together,” she said.
waters, ranging in size from Puerto Rico. Associated Press “To recover the island.”q