Submerged tree planting
Rotary members and Rotaractors in the Bahamas are taking Rotary President’s Ian H.S. Riseley’s tree planting challenge to the sea. In December, the group planted 50 red mangroves seedlings at Bonefish Pond National Park on the southern coast of New Providence Island. The tropical plants have roots that form a tangle that protects the shoreline against storm surges by trapping sediment the wave carries in. Members also dug a channel so the tidewater can flow to the plants.
“When the sea levels go down, you’ll see our work,” says Adrian White of the Rotary Club of East Nassau. “When the sea levels go up, our will still be there, protecting our country.”
The club is planting more mangroves this month.
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The tangled roots of red mangrove build soil that protects the shoreline against storm surges. Rotarians are working with the Bahamas National Trust to rejuvenate the mangrove ecosystem at Bonefish Pond National Park, on the southern coast of New Providence Island.
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In addition to protecting the shoreline, red mangroves serve as the habitat for fish species that support the country’s fishing industry. Rotary President-elect Barry Rassin, in yellow, helps a group of Rotarians and Rotaractors plant trees in December, 2017.
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Rotarians planted 50 mangrove seedlings during the planting day. “This is our version of planting one tree per member of each club,” says Adrian White, a member of the Rotary Club of East Nassau. “When the sea levels go down, you’ll see our work. When sea levels go up our work will still be there, protecting our country.”
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Rechea Delancy of the Rotaract Club of Nassau East, often drives by the park but had never visited before the project. “I think this is a good initiative for Rotaractors and Rotarians to lend a hand and protect their environment,” she says.
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Rotary volunteers planted mangroves at various stages of growth. The Caribbean is home to four of the 50 mangrove species found worldwide.
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Rotary President-elect Barry Rassin, center, works alongside two of his club members to dig trenches that will bring water from the bay to the newly planted red mangroves.
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A green ribbon tied around newly planted mangroves trees by Rotary and Bahamas National Trust volunteers signifies the new growing area at Bonefish Pond National Park.
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“We used to think we needed to get rid of mangroves, and we put in sea walls,” says Shelley Cant-Woodside, director of science and policy for the Bahamas National Trust. “Now we know that’s the worst thing you can do.”
