Ministry of Environment Hosts Town Meeting on Creeks in Eleuthera
The Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (MENR) recently hosted the latest in a series of town meetings designed to inform the public on blocked creeks in their communities and receive feedback. Tidal creeks and mangrove wetlands are among the most important habitats in The Bahamas because of the important role they play as nurseries for marine life and habitats for wildlife. They are also critical in climate change mitigation, acting as carbon sinks that neutralize pollution, and buffers that absorb storm surge.
The series of town meetings are a part of a Blocked Creek. Research Project, designed to identify blocked creek systems for restoration on New Providence, Eleuthera and Andros Islands. Satellite imagery and published scientific data are being used to identify potentially blocked creek systems in need of restoration. A part of a long-term strategy to mitigate the pressures on these key ecosystems, restoration is needed in places of high human impact to return the creeks to functional and resilient states and to enhance their benefits to biodiversity and socioeconomic stability.
The Department of Forestry, MENR, the Perry Institute for Marine Science (PIMS), the Bahamas Sportfishing Conservation Association (BSCA), and the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) are working together to combine local traditional knowledge with scientific approaches to identify sites for management and interventions, such as restoration, and support climate-resilient mangrove ecosystems and fisheries.
Minister Vaughn P. Miller, MENR, expressed elation to be in Eleuthera, his home island, to work with residents on the Blocked Creeks Research Project.
“The mangroves are a critical resource for the Bahamas for a number of reasons, and from the scientific perspective, we can help with the restoration and planning for protecting mangroves throughout South Eleuthera and the Bahamas as a whole,” he said.
“We are the Ministry of the Environment and Natural Resources and our mangroves are a natural part of our resources. Particularly in this era of climate change, we know that mangroves are extremely valuable. It is a tremendous resource that we have. This is our country and it is up to us to take care of it. I believe in the model that when persons come in to do work in the community, we need to find persons in the communities who can do this work and use them. The resources have to go into the communities and benefit those communities.”
MENR’s Minister of State Zane Lightbourne, also a son of Eleuthera soil, noted that general development, such as creating roads and other private developments have, in some cases, ignored the effects of creeks being blocked, and fish being able to find proper breeding spaces to move back and forth thanks to the necessary flushing created through current in certain channels and creeks.
The project includes consulting bonefish guides and local stakeholders on New Providence, Eleuthera, and Andros to identify blocked creek systems. President of the BSCA Prescott Smith said for years, sports fishermen have been agitating for the restoration of creeks in The Bahamas.
“My vision is to see every creek in The Bahamas opened,” he said. “Fly Fishing brings in the most revenue in the entire Bahamas, in the Family Islands. There’s no angler who I know who would not attach an additional fund when they buy their license if it goes to restoring the nursery system. All we have to do is put the systems in place.”
Dr. Krista Sherman, PIMS, stated that for communities like Deep Creek along with the southern coast of Eleuthera that are really in close contact with the water, the project is vital.
“The creeks are very important for maintaining healthy environments, fish, habitat marine life as well as terrestrial species like birds and for subsistence fishing,” she said. “These are useful for trapping and absorbing a lot of good foods and nutrients. This project is about maintaining that flow and connectivity. So many of these creeks have been damaged, not allowing the connection and the necessary water flow.”
Craig Dahlgren, Executive Director and Chief Scientist, PIMS, also attended the town meeting, noting that residents have an important role to play in the project.
Local Government representative Shamtia Munnings said the community welcomes the project, noting that in addition to the environmental benefits, unblocking the creeks could mean employment of locals for the project.
Bradley Watson, Conservation Program Manager for Disney Cruise Lines in the Bahamas, added: “When we think about hurricane preparedness, we think about resources, like food resources from the fish. But we also think about tourism values, and we think about the preservation of cultural heritage.”
The Blocked Creek Research Project will also include collecting ecological observations including data on mangroves, fish, invertebrate and benthic communities, as well as environmental parameters. The project team will conduct community workshops to understand how stakeholders use and value mangroves and determine their priorities for restoration.
Source: Ministry of the Environment & Natural Resources
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