More than $300,000 from the federal government will help establish a marine park system in the territory.
The Department of Planning and Natural Resources will use the $313,000 to, among other things, conserve coral reefs and other marine resources. The money comes from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Department of Interior.
DPNR Commissioner Dean Plaskett said $88,000 will be used to establish baseline conditions before establishing marine reserves or restricting fishing in critical spawning areas. Some information will be gathered by video cameras.
"Intensive, long-term monitoring of coral reef ecosystems has only been conducted at a few sites in the USVI," said Plaskett. "This project expands monitoring coverage to additional reef systems . . . that focus on quantitative annual assessments of living coral cover and cover by other key reef organisms using videography."
Dr. Barbara Kojis, director of the department's Division of Fish and Wildlife, said that before any management decisions are made public hearings will be held, particularly to hear from commercial and recreational fishermen, tour operators and dive operators.
In addition to establishing parks, the program will protect critical fish spawning areas that commercial fishermen rely on.
"Marine parks would assist our tourism product and assist fishermen so fishing is in good shape for the future," Kojis said.
Some of the questions remaining center on future funding for the management of any marine parks that are established.
Plaskett said sites to be studied will be selected from areas designated by DPNR as Areas of Particular Concern off all three of the territory’s main islands.
