The Spurlino Foundation Nearshore Reef Rehabilitation Project
The Spurlino Foundation provided a grant to the Reef Ball Foundation to help restore nearshore coral reef habitats after the hurricane. The funds were used to create a nearshore reef off the 7 mile beach area known as Cemetary Reef as it is only a few hundred feet offshore of a cemetary with public beach access. The Reef Balls were placed inside of a marine protected area where fishing is not allowed. Not only were the reefs installed with the funding, but the DOE was provided with 6 Reef Ball molds and training to continue building onto this reef over time using community volunteers and DOE staff. The Reef will also provide an opportunity for volunteer groups interested in coral propagation and planting activities. A 2005 project on the same site with 4 test Reef Balls provides a benchmark to gauge volunteer effort sucess in this work.
The Reef Ball Foundation, using funds from the Spurlino Foundation, provided 6 Reef Ball molds in 4 different sizes to the Department of Environment for the on going building of reef ball reefs around the Cayman Islands with a primary focus on Cemetary Reef and other nearshore enviroments to help with nearshore habitat rehabilitaiton after the hurricane. 22 Reef Balls were built and deployed during the training visit.
On Sunday, Nov 26, 2006 the first Reef Balls made by the Reef Ball Training Team were deployed. Even though sea conditions were rough, the deployment went off perfectly. The Department of Environment (DOE) used their internal boat resources to perform the deployment. The largest sized Reef Balls were deployed to test the equipment capabilities. Over time, the DOE will continue to be able to use the molds for reef rehabilitation efforts as needed by the department.
Volunteers on the project came from around the US, Cayman Islands, Belgium, South Africa and more. Here are some pictures of the volunteers that assisted in this project.
Due to an important and timely contribution that helped to create Cemetary Reef Ball Reef the Reef Ball Foundation cast a plaquard for the Spurlino Foundation and deployed it in their honor.
A few shots of the waves hitting the 7 mile beach area during the first week of the training trip that delayed deployment activities for several days.
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