Don't forget! ACE hearing is tomorrow.

Great Hearing!
The room was full to capacity and then some:
See: http://stthomassource.com/content/news/local-news/2014/09/26/hearing-brings-crowd-opposition-dolphinarium

This is a letter I just wrote to the Daily News. Whether they will pint it or not remains to be seen.

This is what Coral World said at the 2012 CZM meeting: "Coral World representatives cited the 90 percent survival rate of worldwide coral transplants in larger coral heads and the minimal shading that would potentially affect the sea grass in the area. The coral heads in question are estimated to be of softball size or less, according to testimony provided during the 2013 hearing."

This is complete fabrication on their part. In fact, 95% of corals translocated do not survive to thrive and there are some coral heads the size of boulders there. Having Coral World actually be the responsible party for moving corals from one location to another is like having the fox guard the hen house. These are the endangered and threatened corals on NOAA's list which are actually within and surrounding the footprint of the Dolphin holding pen plans. If they move them, they'll likely kill them and then they can say, "Opps! Sorry we were wrong!" but by then the ultimate damage has been done and we will have lost those corals that take decades to centuries to grow. When asked by Adrian Poe, (who actually has experience with transplanting corals) if anyone in the audience had experience with doing so, not a single Coral World employee raised their hands including their curator of Coral World, Mr. Keller. What does this tell us?

Water Bay has endangered and threatened corals. That is fact.

Dendrogyra is within the impact zone of the Coral World project, as is the already-listed Acropora palmata, so a Section 7 consultation will be necessary. The main coral to be impacted, Montastrea annularis (boulder coral), which is actually within the footprint of the project and will need to be translocated, now called Orbicella complex of corals is also on NOAA's new list.

These corals are presently healthy and thriving in Water Bay due in part to the fact that there has been considerably less human made impact in this area due to the Renaissance Grand being closed for so many years.

Now these endangered Corals are being threatened on 2 fronts.

The rebuilding of the new Margaritaville in place of the old structures presently there and Coral World's proposed dolphinarium.

These corals have managed to thrive and survive in spite of epic runoff conditions due to heavy rains that occur throughout the year which completely floods the Pineapple Villages parking lot and the old Renaissance Grand buildings at ground level. This also occurs during storms and near brushes with hurricanes.This highly pollutant run-off water from surrounding hillsides runs right into Water Bay like a river.

However, we will find our endangered corals challenged even more to continue to thrive with the building of Coral World's dolphin pen directly impacting those corals that lay within the actual foot print of the pen, not to mention those in the surrounding areas. These corals will not survive the translocation that Coral World wishes to do. There is a 95% mortality rate for relocated corals.

There is a reason they and the sea grass beds are where they are and presently as healthy as they are. Moving them will likely kill them. The conch, sea turtles and other sea creatures depend on these sea grass beds and corals.

We will have additional impacts on these endangered corals from human activities once Margaritaville is up and running as well as from Coral World.

These include humans wearing sunscreen while swimming in the water of the bays, increased boating activities with wave runners, jet skis, charter and fishing boats, dinghies coming and going, people peeing in the water and dumping all kinds of things,waste water from these complexes in addition to the increased nutrients and pollutants from waste from a minimum of 6 dolphins, not to mention the 6 additional ones they wish to import. Then they shall proceed to breed even more since we know a birthing pen is prominent in their plans. Who knows how many dolphins they will actually end up with all of their fecal matter and food wastes impacting a once clean bay and thriving corals, should any remain, from the construction of the pen and ill advised relocation. This is dangerous for both humans and dolphins.

We shall have increased traffic both at Margaritaville and Coral World which will likely increase the contaminants from car exhausts and dripping vehicular fluids on the roads and parking areas that will end up in the bay after any rain, in addition to heavy pesticide and septic waste laden runoff waters from heavy rains and storm occurrences. We also have Pt. Pleasant on the other side of the bay so we could call this a triple threat to Water Bay's natural sea life from all the increased human and the proposed Dolphin activity. Can we continue to befoul our waters and threaten the very thing that brings tourists to our islands?

Coral World refuses to realize that public opinion has changed regarding the ethics of keeping large marine mammals in captivity thanks in large part to documentaries such as “Blackfish” and “The Cove” as well as the many scientists and organizations that have spoken out and educated the public, worldwide. and continue to do so regarding the stark realities of the deprived and sterile lives these intelligent and sentient creatures must endure in captivity.

SeaWorld continues to lose profits while parks that do not have captive marine mammals on display doing entertainment tricks for food are making money. "SeaWorld Entertainment’s stock fell 33 percent on August 13, in response to the company’s announcement of fewer ticket sales and lower second-quarter earnings, an indication that the controversies surrounding recent trainer deaths, profiled in the “Blackfish,” were scaring investors. SeaWorld’s shares are currently trading at their lowest price since it went public last year."

This downward trend continues and Coral World is way behind the times in believing tourists and locals will support this endeavor.

We do not need Coral World's Dolphinarium to enhance our tourism product. What we need is to protect the fragile marine ecology, our reefs and our environment while we still can and produce a safe, clean and affordable product for both tourists and locals alike.

Lisa Hamilton mentioned that we get the most competition from St. Maarten. Well, guess what? St. Maarten does not have a dolphinarium and they obviously don't need one. St. Thomas once had a thriving downtown nightlife. Now, it's a ghost town after dark. That's because people are afraid to venture there after dark due to the fear of becoming a victim of crime. Tourist's aren't going to flock to our islands because we have a dolphinarium. They come for the enjoyment of the natural beauty of our beaches, waters and reefs and a safe environment in which to do so. It's time to protect these vital resources.

The majority of those, with a few exceptions, speaking on behalf and in favor of Coral World with "feel good" descriptions were Coral World employees whose jobs depend on touting the party line. Not to mention the majority of those employees are young, white, stateside transplants. If you work for Coral World and are against the proposed dolphinarium, can you speak out without fear of losing your job? Doubt it!

Here is a great link for a study conducted on our very own Virgin Islands corals by the U.S.Geological Survey:

"Coral reefs make up the most complex marine ecosystem on earth, essential to literally millions of plant and animal species. Over the past three decades, coral reefs in the western North Atlantic, including those in Virgin Islands National Park, have been damaged by diseases, storms, coral predators, high water temperatures, and a multitude of direct and indirect human activities. To date, there has been little to no recovery on damaged reefs. Diseases, storms and high seawater temperatures have played a major role. Degradation from human impacts continues to escalate simply because there are more and more people living near or dependent on the sea. A damaged coral reef cannot be restored to its original condition. True recovery of a reef could take decades to centuries, making damage prevention the priority management strategy. Nonetheless, with the increased incidence of damage and the continuing lack of recovery on Caribbean reefs, interest in rehabilitation and enhancement of reefs has heightened, specifically in transplantation of coral colonies to reefs of importance to local communities or in protected areas."

"If reef enhancement or rehabilitation is to be undertaken, two questions must be answered:
1.What is the best source for transplanted colonies?(degrading one reef to restore another is not an option)
2.Do the survival and growth rates warrant the cost and time required to transplant coral colonies (will it work)?

Results
1.Survival rates for all species were low and were similar for transplant and reference colonies. Only 9% of colonies were alive after 12 years: no staghorn; 3% of elkhorn transplants and 18% of reference colonies; and 13% of finger coral transplants and 7% of reference colonies.
2.One in three colonies died in place (disease, bleaching, predators, or other causes) whereas more than half of all colonies were lost as a result of physical displacement.
3.Storm-generated fragments were shown to be a plentiful and non-destructive source of healthy coral fragments for transplantation.
4.The shallow reef environment was found to be highly dynamic, with corals recruiting to the reef, growing and dying.
5.Nylon cable ties were effective at attaching fragments, inexpensive and easy to use.
6.The method was found to be simple, inexpensive and easily conducted by community volunteers and/or resource managers wishing to enhance or repair a reef. (e.g., damage from boat groundings)."

Read More:
http://coastal.er.usgs.gov/coral-transplant/
Please note that many of the mentioned corals in the above study are the same species of corals that are endangered located within and surrounding the Dolphin pen architectural plans.
These are what Coral World wishes to relocate.
This was a study conducted here in the VI by USGS.

Seriously, if Coral World can fabricate information given to CZM regarding successful relocation of corals when this study which was easily obtained says otherwise, what else are they willing to fabricate to get their way?

Please! Just say “NO!” to any further permitting of Coral World's proposed Dolphinarium.

"The Humane Society International and the World Society for the Protection of Animals have stated that they believe that "the entire captive experience for marine mammals is so sterile and contrary to even the most basic elements of compassion and humanity that it should be rejected outright."

Thank You,