AFTER six years of work the BULA reef — a coral nursery initiative — was unveiled in Malolo Waters near the Plantation Island Resort over the weekend.
The project is a collaboration between Corals for Conservation, UNESCO-endorsed Reefs of Hope program and Plantation Island Resort’s general manager, Alex Wilson. The BULA Reef is a 16 x 45-metre word, spelled out in elevated metal frame platforms and is host to more than a thousand colonies of rescued heat resistant corals, taken from areas of extreme heat stress, and transplanted by a joint team of resort marine biologists, and volunteers.
“These corals are living at the upper thermal limit for coral survival, and they are also at the physical limit of growth, as many of them have reached the water surface and sometimes stick out of the water at low tide,” said Dr Bowden-Kerby of Corals for Conservation.
“Coral reefs are the foundation of life in the South Pacific Islands, providing food security, economic wealth, tourism, and protection to shorelines and villages,” he said.
“BULA is our cry to action, to actively work with corals to keep them alive and well in spite of the stress. It is an invitation to all to join us in working to save the lives of corals on this most jeopardised ecosystem.”
BULA Reef is now the largest rescue reef of its kind in history and will also not become a free-for-all for visitations.
“Any public snorkelling will need to be carefully controlled and guided, given how vulnerable baby corals and coral colonies are,” said Lee Pearce, chief executive officer of Plantation Island Resort’s owning company, Raffe Hotels and Resorts.
“C4C (Corals for Conservation) is in discussions with the traditional leaders and government fisheries officers on best management practices, with the possible establishment of a no-fishing marine park on the wader reef.”
