A disappearing coral treasure

Concerns have been raised by certain quarters in our sister isle about the fast-pace disappearance of our much touted, local beauty, the Buccoo Reef marine park. Environmentalists say at the rate this is going, we may not have a coral reef to boast about in the next ten years. This will be the situation, unless we do something about it through preservation, education and public awareness, they warned. The disappearance of the Buccoo Reef is being blamed on a number of factors but foremost on the minds of environmentalists, is the sewage waste water plant, located in Bon Accord. An urgent call is being made to central government to put legislation in place and laws to be enforced to protect our environment.

Desperate to save what is left of the coral reef and to address an immediate restoration, some organisations have even considered a temporary closure of the marine park. But the idea of a closure, temporary or permanent, is  of great concern to those who use the facilities for tourism and earn their living therefrom. Research Officer of the Buccoo Reef Trust, Barry Lovelace spoke about the impact of the sewage waste water treament plant. “Not only the waste from the sewage plant but other factors as well, including waste from hotels, the throwing of anchors, reef walking and tour operations are all contributing to killing the reef,” he said. Lovelace pointed out that even the clearness of the water, both at the reef and the Nylon Pool has deteriorated, giving the surface of the water a cloudy appearance.

As one official from the Institute of Marine Affairs described it: “If you went to the Buccoo Reef a few years ago, it was entirely different. The sandy floor is now overtaken by seagrass and the surface of the water is cloudy.” Lovelace explained that this is because of algae formation and the seagrass, which are now competing with the coral for light. The research officer noted also that for years, the reef was under attack as people visiting the marine park, even some tour operators, are breaking off the coral as keep-sakes. “What they don’t understand is that this contributes and has been contributing to the deterioration over the years,” said Lovelace. He said people really aren’t supposed to be in close contact with the corals in the first place. “Now we only have a set of dead corals,” he lamented. The organisation feels the only thing to do now is lobby to stop the tour operators from going so close to the reefs and a more manageable approach to saving the reef. President of the TT Hotel and Tourism Association, Rene Seepersadsingh, supports a temporary closure of the reef.

He said even though he knows the reef is one of the attractions of which the island depends on for tourism, it might be profitable to give temporary access to the marine park or close it down for restoration. “At the rate we are going, there will be no reef left at all,” he said. Lovelace said the corals have lost their bright colours and have become grey, which is a clear sign that they are damaged or dead. Seepersadsingh and Lovelace said they are both aware of the problems this will have on the tour operators since they depend on the reef for a livelihood. “We have been meeting with them and they say they understand the dangers their trade is putting on the reefs,” said Lovelace, “and they have agreed to try and work out some possible solutions.” He lamented that there was no legislation in place to enforce manageability and enforcement of regulations. The Buccoo Reef Trust said it met with several stakeholders including the Ministry of Environ-ment and the Inter-American Development Bank early in Febru-ary this year for a workshop on waste water treatment.

Lovelace explained that because of the problems associated with waste water on the island and the adverse effects on Tobago’s environment, Thames Water Interna-tional, a foreign consulting firm, had proposed that a sewage treatment plant be constructed to deal with waste discharge being dumped offshore. Located on the South American Continental Shelf, Tobago is washed from the south by the turbulent Guyana Current from the open Atlantic to the east by the North Equatorial Current. According to the Buccoo Reef Trust, the mixing of these currents, combined with periodic pulses of nutrient-rich water from the Orinoco River in the rainy season (June-December), generates an abundance of plankton. This plankton is the base for the unusually abundant and varied life found on Tobago’s reefs. The numerous fringing coral reefs surrounding Tobago are characteristically rich in filter-feeding animals, such as sponges and soft corals. The Buccoo Reef is the largest coral reef in Tobago and was designated a marine park in 1973, but tragically, the Buccoo Reef is a shadow of what it once was, said the Buccoo Reef Trust. “When a fringing coral reef dies, the beaches eventually disappear.”

These are the findings of the Buccoo Reef Trust, an environmental organisation in Tobago, established by the Tobago House of Assembly, specifically with the aim of protecting what is left of the reef and its eventual and hopeful restoration. The organisation said land-based runoff, which includes pollution from sewage and agricultural activities, is recognised as the greatest and fastest growing threat to Caribbean coral reefs and especially the Buccoo Reef. “Of particular concern is the increasing level of nitrates and phosphates from poorly treated sewage and grey-water, from domestic or commercial outfalls,” said Lovelace, “at present, sewage is the dominant factor causing degradation of the Buccoo Reef.” This situation is common to many Caribbean countries where coral reefs are threatened by the elevated nutrification of coastal waters resulting from inadequate or sometimes non-existent sewage treatment, he said. Most coastal dwellings in the Buccoo Bay catchment area have “soak-away septic systems, built in the coralline limestone. The porous nature of this rock allows nutrients to gradually seep into the water table and eventually enter the coastal waters. “The impact of elevated nutrient levels is now felt throughout the entire Buccoo Reef area, where reef-building hard corals are gradually replaced by opportunistic species of algae and soft coral,” the organisation explained. It said in most cases, sewage treatment will only go as far as the primary level, which is the removal/settlement of solids or occasionally secondary level (reduction of biological oxygen demand or BOD).

Tertiary treatment focuses on nutrient removal, but is often prohibitively expensive for small communities or islands, said Lovelace. So how exactly does the sewage and soil runoff affect the coral? Both these substances are sources of ammonia and nitrates. Ammonia has the effect of reducing calcification in the corals, hindering its growth and provides the ideal environment for algae or seaweed to flourish, but at the expense of the hard corals or hermatypic (reef building) corals. Additionally, microscopic plants known as phytoplankton compete for oxygen and sunlight, making the once crystal clear waters cloudy. This is further aggravated by other human activities such as throwing of anchors, sand mining and breaking off corals during under-sea diving, said Lovelace. The Buccoo Reef Trust is currently undertaking, in collaboration with the THA, a study entitled Integrated Water Quality and Coral Reef Monitoring in Tobago. This study includes a variety of reef sites around Tobago and measurements of ultra-low concentrations of water column dissolved inorganic nitrogen, phosphorous and chlorophyll-a. It also includes a digital video monitoring of benthic reef communities in order to quantify cover of  hard corals, octocorals, macroalgae, turf algae, coralline algae and sponges. It is also initiating a Buccoo Reef Restoration Programme, which will include consultations and workshops with the stakeholders and relevant agnecies, which will form the basis of a large-scale project proposal for the long-term management and restoration of Buccoo Reef. Part of this proposal will focus on alternative and cost-effective engineering solutions for the collection, treatment and disposal of sewage and contaminated run-off  in southwest Tobago. Part of this project will also examine the best organisational structures that are required for the long-term management and monitoring of Buccoo Reef and its watershed.