Abstract

Coral reefs around the world are disappearing due to climate change, pollution and poor water quality. Mustique is a private island in St. Vincent and the Grenadines and in 2015, the Mustique Company Limited established a coral restoration program through The Coral Restoration Foundation, to improve the health of their surrounding reefs in line with stewardship goals driven by their environment committee. They installed two coral nurseries and started growing three different species of coral- Elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata), Staghorn coral (Acropora cervicornis) and Fire coral (Millepora). To date, the company has out planted over 7,500 fragments of harvested coral around the North and West coast of the island and has collected data to include out plant locations, genotypes and survival rates. Sustainable Grenadines (SusGren) is a trans-boundary Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) committed to the conservation of the coastal and marine environment between Grenada and St. Vincent and the Grenadines. The Mustique Company Limited has worked alongside SusGren and governments from both countries to share best practices since the coral restoration program has been established. Through hosted knowledge exchanges where coral restoration practitioners visit the nurseries and out plant sites, they see where restoration has worked and where it needs to be improved. On a local level, the Environmental Manager as well as visiting restoration consultants engage guests and residents to increase education and participation through tours, maintenance of the nurseries and out planting. Having sustainable financing through The Mustique Company Limited allows for public private partnership between these stakeholders which further encourages restoration programs around the region.

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