It was a sunny February afternoon at the height of high season on the Caribbean island of Curaçao, and my partner Arlen and I were relaxing on the white sand beach, snorkeling over a coral reef, and strolling through the Easter Forest. There was nothing I could do about it. – The egg-colored buildings of Willemstad, Curacao's capital and a UNESCO World Heritage Site – a typical activity for travelers to this former Dutch colony.
Instead, on a kayak tour with guide Cerron St. Jago of Curacao's Rif Mangrove Park, we learn about the country's mangrove restoration and how mangrove habitats help shoreline resilience, marine species and birds. We learned about the important role played in protecting and fighting against species. Impact of climate change.
St. Jago says Curaçao is free of venomous snakes, crocodiles and large predators, a reassuring tidbit as we paddle toward the no-go wall of mangroves that line Piscadera Bay. He did it for me. When I looked closer, the trees were beautiful and full of energy. Colorful birds roosted on the intertwined branches and trunks, and small paths beneath the green and sometimes yellow leaves invited us to explore. As we beached our kayaks, Mr. St. Jago pointed out fiddler crabs and mussels and explained the differences between the local mangrove species (red, white, and black) and how they fit where water and land meet. Explained how they are adapted to live and reproduce.
“There’s a lot of life here,” he said with contagious enthusiasm.
We were the only tourists on the water, but we hope to get more tourists like us interested in the mangroves, and perhaps even convince them to replant the important trees themselves, as Curaçao recently did. It has become a priority for scientists, activists, park rangers and tourism operators. Year.
This initiative is not limited to this island. Similar efforts focused on mangrove forests have begun around the world, including in Indonesia, Australia, Belize, and Florida. Vulnerable destinations need to balance tourism growth with natural resource conservation and recovery. Attract visitors.
“Coral reefs get all the attention, but mangroves are probably even more important,” said Gabby Amadia, World Wildlife Fund's vice president of marine programs and responsible for international expansion of the foundation's mangrove science and restoration program. said. “My favorite analogy about mangroves is that mangroves are a Swiss Army knife, because they provide so many benefits and can do so many different things.”
These forests are somewhat removed from the sights and activities that traditionally draw tourists to the sea, but changing perceptions may be difficult. Due to environmental protection, mangrove kayak tours, like most snorkel, fishing, and bird watching tours offered in other destinations, may have limited numbers and visitors must first be interested. not. Given summer reading, beach toys, family traditions, and limited vacation time, most tourists may simply agree with the old adage that “life is better at the beach.”
foundation of life
The mangrove's winding branches, trunk, and distinctive above-ground roots clearly and intricately contradict how children's drawings depict trees in general. Roots may arch up, shoot out from the water surface like spikes, or form supports above and below the water surface. Adapted to oxygen-poor soils, high salinity, and intertidal ebbs and flows, coastal mangroves thrive where other trees and shrubs die. The leaves are green if not yellow, and some have a salty taste when licked.
Mangrove forests can appear impenetrable, muddy, smelly, and swampy. For centuries, they have been logged for firewood, agricultural land, urban development, aquaculture, and tourism. In Curacao, mangroves are currently found on only 0.012% of the island. More than half of the world's mangrove forests have been logged or destroyed in the past 50 years. Although the pace of deforestation has slowed in recent years, it has not stopped, while rising sea levels and increased storm activity are causing further damage.
But coastal mangroves, of which there are about 60 species around the world, are the basis of life above and below water. It has a complex root system and acts as a nursery for young fish and other marine life. Mangrove branches and trunks provide safe feeding and nesting sites for yellow warblers, tricolored herons, other birds, reptiles such as iguanas, and many insects.
These tightly anchored roots protect against flooding, erosion, and storm surge by slowing the speed of seawater and trapping mud and debris. More importantly, mangrove forests are exceptional at reducing the effects of global warming by absorbing and storing carbon annually at 10 times the rate of rainforests. According to conservation groups, mangroves, like other coastal wetlands, “sequester enough carbon to offset the burning of more than 1 billion barrels of oil each year.”
The beginning of a secret
Ryan De Jong, a 53-year-old activist and tour guide from Curacao, is a living embodiment of regenerative tourism. He is an important reason we found Piscadera Bay's rich and thriving ecosystem and shows how one person can make a difference.
De Jong grew up swimming in the bay and watched the area's mangroves be cleared for fuel and construction. In 2006, he secretly planted his first mangrove tree. One seedling grows in about 15 years and can lead to a whole bush. And now more than 100,000 trees are growing, he said. He secretly planted trees in other coves and bays as well, becoming a local hero in the process.
De Jong runs his own kayak tours and is currently working on an extensive government-sanctioned restoration project.
His goal is to eventually plant 1.3 million trees on the island. “We literally have to make the desert green again,” he said.
Curaçao's interior certainly looks like a desert, with arid, dusty landscapes thick with cacti and other succulents. Curaçao, like its closest neighbors Aruba and Bonaire, lies outside the Caribbean hurricane belt and receives minimal rainfall. People on the island drink desalinated seawater.
Trade winds lower temperatures. In the 16th century, Europeans arrived, enslaved and expelled the indigenous people, and turned Curaçao into a slave port. Settlers also planted oranges, sugar cane, and other exotic species, and with varying degrees of success developed huge salt pans for export, but it was not until 1918 that they finally brought widespread employment. of oil refineries and the growth of tourism. The refinery closed in 2019 – nine years after Curaçao voted to become a semi-autonomous state from the Netherlands – an event that underscores the importance of tourism to Curaçao's economy It was just something to do. Last year, the island, just 40 miles long, welcomed 1.3 million visitors.
Arlen and I were willing to do our part to help the economy. In Willemstad, that meant eating at Plaza View, an old market where individual stalls prepare and sell local cuisine. We argued over fried wahoo and arepa di pampuna (pumpkin pancakes), but were warned against the cactus soup. “I live here and I don't eat that kind of food,” said another customer. Like many other visitors, we took photos as we crossed the floating Queen Emma Bridge and watched it open and close for maritime traffic.
We waited an hour in a line filled with locals at De Visserij Piscadera Seafood restaurant (“slaughter and fillet” since 2017). There, customers choose and purchase their fish fillets before taking their seats. I drank oregano punch for the first time (it reminds me of mint iced tea, but oregano is very refreshing and delicious). And we inhaled grilled shrimp and raw fresh tuna.
Further north, we ate a Williburger (goat burger) at Marfa's Good Hangout in Sint Willibrordus. It overlooks an old salt pan, and unfortunately the flamingos that live there were not there that day, so I was overjoyed to find a coral nursery while scuba diving nearby. Crowded Kokomo Beach.
Coral reefs are critical to Curaçao's tourism and fishing industry and are worth more than $445 million annually, according to a 2016 economic assessment released by the nonprofit Waite Institute. And coral reefs, which support approximately 25 percent of all marine life, are enduring mass bleaching and disease caused or exacerbated by climate change.
Over the past decade, scientists have come to better understand the symbiosis between coral reefs and mangroves. Coral reefs and mangroves do not need each other to exist, but their proximity benefits both ecosystems.
“When you work in this conservation field, you may find that you enter through one entrance and everything is connected,” says WWF's Ahmadia. Mangroves, because they're all really connected. And, of course, they are also connected to the human environment. ”
One morning, Arlen and I walked through the 30-acre Curacao Rif Mangrove Park, a short walk from downtown Willemstad and a short walk from the island's cruise ship terminal. The park, which opened in 2022, offers guided and audio tours, an elevated boardwalk, programs for local schoolchildren, and a tiered admission system for residents and international visitors (guilders and US dollars are accepted). ) is provided. Approximately 17,766 people will come to Japan in 2023, an increase of 14,687 people from 2022.
Manfred van Wegel is the new chairman of the Caribbean Biodiversity Research and Management Foundation, which oversees the mangrove park and five other national parks. Dr. Van Wegel worked with the Curaçao government, local travel companies, and activists like Mr. de Jong to achieve goals such as expanding access to the park, building a viaduct, and adding a visitor center. It is being raised. This initiative is part of his desire to transform Curaçao into a more nature-based tourist destination.
“Last year we set a record, and they are trying to increase it even more,” Dr. Van Wegel said of Curaçao's annual visitor numbers. Still, he said the beaches are filling up. “So you need to do activities other than going to the beach. Mangrove parks are a great activity.”
Mark Spalding is a senior marine scientist at the Nature Conservancy and lead scientist for the Mapping Ocean Wealth initiative, an online tool that applies economic value to coastal ecosystems.
Dr. Spalding says the appeal of mangrove activities such as boating and hiking is that “you can very quickly and very quickly gain a sense of nature and experience and peace and tranquility without having to trek for hours through the Amazon.” ” he said. simply. “
“It may only be two hours of your entire vacation, but it's what you take home – the story you tell,” he said.
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