The Virgin Islands will be joining various organisations from across the Caribbean to share scientific best practices and techniques for mangrove restoration in a virtual Regional Mangrove Symposium.
The symposium started yesterday and will go on until March 3. It is expected to promote and accelerate the uptake, resourcing and implementation of mangrove restoration and build new partnerships among national, regional and global players.
The symposium is just one of the many moves the territory is making as the government tries to ramp up climate change initiatives to protect and preserve the Virgin Islands.
First line of defence
Minister of Natural Resources Vincent Wheatley said he is looking forward to the ideas that will be shared and the potential partnerships that will be made tol ultimately benefit everyone involved going forward.
“The territory’s mangroves are vital in the face of global climate change. They are our first line of defence in the form of prevention of coastal erosion, protection from wave energy and storm surges, carbon storage, water filtration, and key nursery habitat for many local and commercial fisheries,” Wheatley said.
He added that after hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017, the territory suffered substantial damage — estimated at £3.1 million — to a large portion of its key coastal ecosystems like coral reefs, mangroves, beaches, seagrass beds and other environmental infrastructure assets.
“The Ministry of Natural Resources and its partners have been working since then to sustainably manage and restore those key ecosystems by natural means as much as possible. This symposium is needed so that we can continue our work using the best methods available to us going forward,” Wheatley added.
Meanwhile, Marine Biologist Mervin Hastings commented on the importance of the mangrove symposium as it relates to capacity building in the territory.