Coral World Ocean And Reef Initiative Inc

NEW AWARD - PROJECT ABSTRACT SUMMARY: PROJECT TITLE: CORAL REEF RESTORATION AT VIRGIN ISLANDS NATIONAL PARK AND VIRGIN ISLANDS CORAL REEF NATIONAL MONUMENT WITH CORAL WORLD OCEAN AND REEF INITIATIVE INC. (CWORI)AWARD PURPOSE: THE RESTORATION GOAL OF THIS PROJECT IS TO COLLECT, REAR, AND OUTPLANT CORALS FOR NPS PARK UNITS ON ST. JOHN, USVI. ACTIVITIES TO BE PERFORMED: THE PROJECT HAS 3 GENERAL GOALS: 1) RESTORATION OF CORAL AND OTHER INVERTEBRATES 2) TREATMENT OF DISEASED CORALS AND 3) RESEARCH TO IMPROVE RESTORATION, DISEASE TREATMENT AND OVERALL CORAL REEF HEALTH. DELIVERABLES AND OR EXPECTED OUTCOMES: CORAL COLLECTION AND NURSERY MAINTENANCE, MONITORING, DOCUMENTING AND REPORTING, OUTREACH AND EDUCATION, OUT PLANTING.

CORAL PROPAGATION AND OUTPLANTING AT ST. JOHN

THIS PROJECT WILL ESTABLISH THE CORAL WORLD OCEAN AND REEF INITIATIVE CORAL GENETIC RESCUE AND PROPAGATION ARK TO PRESERVE THE EXISTING DIVERSITY OF SPECIES AT RISK OF LOCAL EXTIRPATION AND TO ASSIST FUTURE RESTORATION EFFORTS IN THE US VIRGIN ISLANDS. CORAL WORLD OCEAN AND REEF INITIATIVE WILL OPERATE THE CORAL GENETIC RESCUE AND PROPAGATION ARK FOR PURPOSES OF CORAL RESCUE AND REHABILITATION IN THE FACE OF THE ONGOING STONY CORAL TISSUE LOSS DISEASE OUTBREAK IN THE US VIRGIN ISLANDS AND OTHER CLIMATE CHANGE-INDUCED STRESSORS. IN ADDITION, THESE FACILITIES WILL SERVE AS VITAL TOOLS FOR ENGAGING THE PUBLIC REGARDING CRITICAL ECOSYSTEMS.

SARGASSUM INUNDATION AND IMPACTS ON ST. THOMAS, USVI CORAL WORLD OCEAN AND REEF INITIATIVE, INC. (CWORI) LEAD-PI: DR. SAMUEL J. ELIADES, CO-PI: MS. JESSICA MICHAEL TOTAL PROPOSED COST: $438,000 BUDGET PERIOD: 09/1/202409/31/2025 SARGASSUM IS A LARGE, HOLOPELAGIC BROWN SEAWEED THAT FLOATS IN ISLAND-LIKE MASSES CREATING CRITICAL HABITAT FOR PELAGIC SPECIES IN THE OPEN OCEAN. ONCE SARGASSUM REACHES SHORELINES AROUND THE ATLANTIC HOWEVER, IT NO LONGER SUPPORTS MANY OF THOSE PELAGIC SPECIES AND CAN BE DAMAGING TO COASTAL ENVIRONMENTS AND HUMAN HEALTH. SARGASSUM INUNDATION HAS BEEN SHOWN TO NEGATIVELY IMPACT NEARSHORE MARINE SPECIES INCLUDING ENDANGERED CORALS AND SEA TURTLES AND MAY EVEN BE RESPONSIBLE FOR LARGE FISH DIE-OFFS. ALTHOUGH SARGASSUM IS HARMLESS TO HUMANS IN WATER, ON LAND IT DECOMPOSES AND RELEASES HYDROGEN SULFIDE GAS AND AMMONIA WHICH ARE TOXIC TO HUMANS. THE USVI HAS BEEN HEAVILY IMPACTED BY SARGASSUM ANNUALLY SINCE 2011 WITH SOME YEARS RESULTING IN MATS OF SEAWEED STRETCHING OVER 100 FEET FROM SHORE IN BAYS AROUND ST. THOMAS. IN JULY 2022, GOVERNOR BRYAN DECLARED A STATE OF EMERGENCY DUE TO THE IMPACTS OF SARGASSUM INUNDATION ON A DESALINIZATION PLANT ON ST. CROIX, TRIGGERING A RESPONSE BY THE U.S. FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY. DESPITE CLEAR PROBLEMS WITH NEARSHORE SARGASSUM IN THE TERRITORY, DETAILED ENVIRONMENTAL, ECONOMIC, AND HEALTH IMPACTS ARE UNDER-DOCUMENTED LOCALLY. FOR INSTANCE, IT IS LARGELY UNKNOWN WHEN EXACTLY SARGASSUM SHIFTS FROM CRITICAL HABITAT FOR PELAGIC SPECIES TO EMPTY RAFTS OF ALGAE SMOTHERING INSHORE HABITATS. MONITORING COASTAL ZONES BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER SARGASSUM INFLUX IN THE USVI IS NEEDED TO UNDERSTAND THE IMPACT SARGASSUM HAS ON TERRITORIAL ECOSYSTEMS, THE MANY ENDANGERED, THREATENED, AND NEAR-THREATENED SPECIES FOUND LOCALLY, AND THE RESIDENTS THAT LIVE IN THE TERRITORY. THIS PROJECT AIMS TO BETTER UNDERSTAND AND ADDRESS LOCAL SARGASSUM INFLUX IN THE USVI THROUGH THREE PRIMARY OBJECTIVES: 1) QUANTIFYING THE VOLUME OF SARGASSUM ARRIVING AT POPULAR BAYS AND BEACHES THROUGHOUT A YEAR, 2) ASSESSING THE IMPACT OF SARGASSUM INUNDATION ON NEARSHORE HABITATS, PARTICULARLY CORAL REEFS, AND 3) STUDYING POINTS AT WHICH SARGASSUM MATS SHIFT FROM CRITICAL HABITAT TO NUISANCE MACROALGAE. TO CALCULATE THE AMOUNT OF SARGASSUM ARRIVING IN THE USVI, AERIAL DRONES WILL BE USED TO COLLECT PHOTOS AND VIDEOS OF RAFTS AND APPROXIMATE SIZES WILL BE DETERMINED USING MULTIPLE IMAGE IDENTIFICATION SOFTWARE PACKAGES. IN ASSESSING THE IMPACTS OF SARGASSUM ON LOCAL MARINE HABITATS, EXPERIMENTAL PLOTS WILL BE ESTABLISHED ON REEFS COMMONLY AFFECTED BY SARGASSUM. THESE SITES WILL BE MONITORED REGULARLY VIA DIVERS ON SCUBA TO QUANTIFY CORAL COVER AND DIVERSITY BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER SARGASSUM MAT ARRIVAL USING ORTHOMOSAIC SOFTWARE. FINALLY, KEY TRANSITIONAL POINTS AT WHICH SARGASSUM RAFTS BECOME NUISANCES WILL BE DETERMINED WITH VISUAL AND DIGITAL SURVEYS TO DOCUMENT SPECIES DIVERSITY PRESENCE AND SHIFTS AS RAFTS APPROACH LOCAL BEACHES. WHILE DOING THIS, ENDANGERED AND THREATENED SPECIES LIKE STONY CORALS AND SEA TURTLES ASSOCIATED WITH SARGASSUM MATS WILL BE MONITORED CLOSELY AND LOCAL AND FEDERAL REGULATORY BODIES WILL BE CONSULTED TO DETERMINE IF WILDLIFE RESCUE OR RELOCATION ACTIONS MAY BE APPROPRIATE. ADDRESSING THESE GOALS WILL PROVIDE NECESSARY BASELINES TO FURTHER IMPROVE THE USVI RESPONSE TO NEARSHORE SARGASSUM INFLUXES IMMEDIATELY AND INTO THE FUTURE.

TO DETERMINE IF NEARSHORE IN-WATER SARGASSUM REMOVAL IS A VIABLE OPTION, FURTHER RESEARCH IS NEEDED TO ENSURE THAT METHODS ARE ECOLOGICALLY SUSTAINABLE. THE OPERATIONAL LOGISTICS SHOULD BE WEIGHED AGAINST THE COST AND EFFORT IT TAKES TO EXECUTE IN-WATER REMOVAL. ONCE DETERMINED, THIS WILL CORROBORATE THE EFFICACY AND LONGEVITY OF IN-WATER REMOVAL AS A MITIGATION STRATEGY FOR SARGASSUM INUNDATION EVENTS (SEIS).