Restore Corals for 400 Fisherfolks in Wasini

The team re-establishing the Wasini coral reef, composed of volunteers from the Wasini village and Africa Nature Organization, had two monitoring missions in the last three months. The first monitoring mission was on 25th April 2022 to establish how many of the corals planted in March 2022 had survived. Only two divers from the community were involved in this exercise. The team established that all the corals planted in March 2022 had survived.

The second mission was on 15th July 2022 which included three men divers, one woman, all from the Wasini village, and an officer from Africa Nature Organization. The team was tasked to monitor and report on the progress of the coral planted in March 2022 and the general health of the corals at the reef. The team reported back that all the corals planted in March 2022 had survived and were in good health. In addition, the reef in general had healthy corals and bursting with marine life. But the coral reef revival is yet able to support a huge number of fishermen on the island.

The target for the year was to rehabilitate at least a quarter of an acre before the end of 2022. The acreage so far planted, however, is below an eighth of an acre. Interestingly, the number of volunteers ready to support the coral planting and monitoring activity has significantly risen from 4 to 9. These volunteers are currently unable to provide full support to the Wasini reef rehabilitation activity due to inadequate resources such as cement, sand, and sometimes fuel for patrol.

The generous contribution from dedicated donors has kept this activity going. We are very grateful for their continued support.

Links:

• https://web.facebook.com/watch/?v=277617441245820
• Re-establishing the Wasini Coral Reef - Pictures

The process of re-building the Wasini coral reef started in earnest on 12th March 2022 when five community members (three men and two women) built 9 coral blocks and established an existing coral nursery. The process of establishing the coral nursery involved developing a wire mesh cage, sourcing healthy corals as planting materials, and creating 48 discs. The healthy coral cuttings were glued on the discs using cement and placed in the nursery cage. The coral seeds were left at the nursery to grow for a period of about two weeks.

The cured blocks, made of a mixture of sand, ballast, and cement, were transferred to the reef restoration area on 17th March 2022, in readiness for the coral transplant activity. The nine blocks established a cluster on which corals would be transplanted in the process of restoring the reef.

On Tuesday 29th March 2022, the five-member team at Wasini was joined by Mr. Mohamed from the Africa Nature Organization in undertaking the coral transplant activity. As is the tradition, the coral transplant exercise began with a word of prayer led by Mr. Abubakar. The divers then descended to the coral nursery and detached the discs and placed them in a basin of water. Placing the discs in the basin with water reduces stress on the corals. The corals were then cleaned to remove any unwanted materials.

Small balls made from a mixture of sand and waterproof cement were made and placed on the blocks at the restoration site. It is on these balls that the discs with the coral seedlings would be mounted. Out of the 48 discs that were made, 42 survived and were transplanted successfully.

The coral transplant exercise was closed by a word of prayer.

After transplanting, the team will monitor the growth of the corals at the site at least weekly in the first month.

We thank you for your continued support as we rebuild the Wasini reef one block at a time. Our prayer is that you and many of your family members, colleagues, and friends will have time to go through our coral reef restoration album we have created using the link below, and help us raise more funds for this activity.

Links:

• Wasini Coral Garden - Re-establishing the Reef