Global warming is an event which is taking a great toll on the natural environment of the whole world. From the polar icecaps to the saharan deserts, the negative impacts of global warming can be seen on a huge scale. Along with the rise in atmospheric temperature the oceanic temperatures also rose, and this had an extremely disastrous effect on the reefs of Maldives. In the year 1998 due to the increase in the oceanic temperatures, the reefs of Maldives encountered a devastatingly massive bleaching event. The reason for this is when the surrounding temperature increases corals expels the algae living in its tissues which give the corals its colors and thus the corals turn white. This event resulted in the drastic decline of coral cover percentage from 40% to over 1%.It is estimated that due to this event of sudden warming of the waters, 60% of the entire country’s reef have been annihilated. In 2016, again mass bleaching attack was encountered resulting in unparalleled and detrimental effects on the vulnerable ecosystem of the Maldives.
The Ukulhas reef also fell victim to this disastrous bleaching event, and encountered the same effect which the whole Maldives experienced during the bleaching attacks in 1998 and 2016.
Fortunately, the damages to the Ukulhas reef, caused by bleaching is on the recovery since2014. However, there still remains areas which are damaged and requires restoration. The Ukulhas coral restoration program has been a beacon of hope supporting and laying down the ground works to work towards the restoration and preservation of the Ukulhas reef.
The “Ukulhascoral restoration and Coral gardening Project” is a self-motivated initiative of Ali Zameer (Vaarey Villa, AA. Ukulhas), the event which triggered this Project was him meeting Torsten (Toddy) Krußk, who was the project founder for“Coral Doctors” in the Maldives. Coral Doctors is an NGO founded by a by a German couple in partnership with the German Oceanographic Museum Foundation. In this meeting they offered to conduct a research in Ukulhas for to find out feasibility, possibilities and an ideal location to proceed with the implementation of the Project.
In order to bring this talk in to fruition, Ali Zameer approached the Island Council and laid out a proposal requesting assistance in obtaining sponsors for the restoration project by providing accommodation, food, and other required materials for the project. Without further ado, the Island Council in collaboration with the Guesthouses of Ukulhas and other service providers took part in the project by providing everything required for the implementation of the program.
During the visit of scientists from Coral Doctors, surveys were carried out and Ali Zameer together with the team of scientists reached the decision of moving forward with implementation of the project in Ukulhas. Further as a pilot project tolearn and study the various methods of coral plantation and to gain other relevant information on Coral, Reef and marine environment, they planned tohold a workshop on Coral restoration.
The workshop on coral restoration and coral gardening conducted in Ukulhas was held from 18th March 2019 to 22nd March 2019, in association with the German OceanographicMuseum. The aim of this workshop was to transfer and share the knowledge, experiences and methodology of coral propagation and restoration in order to protect and preserve the underwater water environment of Ukulhas. Over the four days of the workshop, participants took part in practical sessions and activities along with discussions about the ecological importance of the coral reefs and effective methods for coral propagation along with successful strategies for restoration of reefs.
The first visit of Coral Doctors to Ukulhas was sponsored by Coral Speed, Beach Villa Ukulhas, While the transportation was sponsored by Coral speed, food and accommodation of the visiting team was arranged by Beach Villa Ukulhas. This team was made up of Dr. Nicole Kube, Scientific Project Leader from the German OceanographicMuseum, Mr. Pablo Montoto, a Scientist from Zoo Madrid and Mr. and Mrs. Torsten(Toddy) and Yamila Krussk the Project Founders and Managers. Currently theprogram is organized, run and monitored by Ali Zameer and is assisted by Coral Doctors, Ukulhas Council, and the Ukulhas Community. At present, the monitoring works of the program is assisted by Murakabey Maldives Dive School, a dive school which is operated and located in Ukulhas.
For the workshop while the accommodation was provided by Trip Villa and Beach Villa. Food for the participants was arranged by Celeste, Retro Royal and Sealavie Café. In addition, Anwar Sports fishing sponsored a special t-shirt made for the workshop participants. All the requisite materials for both the workshop and the project was provided by the Ukulhas council. It was this combined team effort of Ali Zameer, Coral Doctors, Local Business and the Island Council which led to the success and sustainable ongoing of the program. Further the support and commitment received shows the awareness and desire of the Ukulhas community towards protecting and preserving the environment.
Small pieces of living, broken coral fragments are collected from a living coral without causing much damage to the coral. After that these fragments are attached or planted to specially made frame known as coral table. These tables are situated in ‘nursery grounds’ found in two locations, and they are placed in waters 7metres deep. One nursery ground is to be found a few metres away from ‘Nalaveli’ Guesthouse, and the other one is located few meters from ‘Beachvilla’ Guesthouse. In these nursery grounds the coral would grow, reproduce and create a home for various fishes, invertebrates, and other living organisms.
Those who desire to be part of this wonderful initiative of nursing the Ukulhas reef back to health, can actively participate in the project and even contribute to the effort through donations. Those who take part in the project will be acknowledged and recorded as sponsor’s and contributors to the project. Further they will receive bi-annual updates on the progress of their corals up to 2 to5 years.
