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Loss of fishing boats to Hurricane Beryl affecting demand for chicken in Barbados 11Oct2024

In Barbados Today, today: Officials say fish shortage driving increased demand for chicken. Some extracts: On Thursday, BEPPA board director Amir Juman said there were two main factors impacting the industry, which resulted in consumers being unable to source the … Continue reading

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Barbados unveils “the world’s first vehicle powered by renewable natural gas (RNG) from Sargassum seaweed, rum distillery wastewater and Blackbelly sheep manure” 18Sep2024

This story has been brewing for a while, perhaps since the first waves of Sargassum hit the coast of Barbados! Yesterday (Sep 17), in a post on its Facebook Page, the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus posted … Continue reading

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Sargassum Outlook 1Aug to 31Oct 2024 Severe

“Middle islands: Severe influxes and heavy coastal accumulations are expected over the next three months.” Read more in the Sargassum Sub-regional Outlook Bulletin by the Sargassum Team at The Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies (CERMES) at the Cave Hill Campus … Continue reading

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Sargassum outlook Jan 1, 2024 – Apr 1, 2024: “mild to moderate ” 5Jan2024

See also Coral Bleaching page, re: high water temperatures/ coral bleaching summer-fall 2023 ————— Extracts from the latest Sargassum Sub-regional Outlook Bulletin: “Synopsis: Sargassum abundance in the Central Atlantic is increasing and approaching the Caribbean region.” “General outlook: Interests in the Eastern … Continue reading

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“Making coral restoration Fun”: Barbados hosts an innovative approach to coral reef restoration 12 May2023

ReefVitalize is a new endeavour which, as I understand it from what I have read, seeks to help restore coral reefs while being self-sustaining economically and contributing to local well-being economically and socially. The main activity of ReefVitalize is the … Continue reading

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AGRRA confirms presence of Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease in Barbados 10May2023

UPDATE 30 May, 2023: McGill students release their final report: Occurrence of Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease on Vauxhall Reef and a Breakwater in the Folkstone Marine Protected Area of Barbados (28.7 MB) —————– “Stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD) is … Continue reading

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Causative agent for die-off of long-spined sea urchin in 2022 identified 2May2023

The long-spined sea urchin (Diadema antillarum) is an important herbivore on Caribbean reefs. In 2022, there was a mass die-off of this sea urchin all over the Caribbean, echoing a similar die-off in the early 1980s. A paper reporting on … Continue reading

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Sargassum blooms are here for the foreseeable future 15Mar2023

UPDATE May 3, 2023 Strange sighting among sargassum seaweed YouTube Video uploaded May 2, 2023. by Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation ——- ORIGINAL POST “A blob twice the width of the US is heading towards Florida’s coast”  So reads the title of … Continue reading

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Presumptive Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease on Vauxhall Reef & Environs (Barbados) 25Jan2023

UPDATE Feb 16, 2023: SCTLD or White Plague Disease? – we don’t yet know. Based on some discussion I had recently with an authority on this disease, it’s not clear right now whether SCTLD is present in Barbados or whether what … Continue reading

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Disturbing news about cruise ships’ damage to coral reefs 23May2021

From Barbados Today, for May 21, 2021

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