NOAA awards $3 m. to protect Laolao coral: DEQ wins Recovery Act monies
Jul 1, 2009
News Release
July 1, 2009
NOAA awards $3 m.to protect Laolao coral
DEQ wins Recovery Act monies
Saipan, MP – The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced in Washington on Tuesday that the CNMI Division of Environmental Quality will receive a grant of $2,990,919 for work around Laolao Bay to protect coral reefs there. DEQ was one of only 50 applicants to win some of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act money that NOAA awarded. Over 800 local agencies nationwide competed for the grant funds.
“We can all be very proud and grateful for the exceptional work that Director Frank Rabauliman, Frances Castro, Kathleen Herrmann, Brian Bearden, James Callier, and all the people of DEQ did to put together this proposal,” said NMI Congressman Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan.
“The Recovery Act we passed in Congress in February should bring approximately $90 million in formula grants to the Northern Mariana Islands. But, in addition, there is a huge potential for more money through competitive grants. And DEQ has proved that we have the ability to be very successful in going after those extra Recovery Act funds.
“The money that DEQ is bringing to the Northern Marianas will create jobs and provide immediate stimulus to our economy, and by protecting one of our most important natural resources also protect the future of our tourism industry 30 to 50 years from now.”
DEQ estimates the grant will create 75 jobs directly and another 32 jobs indirectly in the tourism industry.
DEQ will use the grant to upgrade roads and improve drainage around the Bay. This will reduce the sediment that now runs off into the water and smothers the living coral. One of NOAA’s top priorities for coral reef conservation and restoration is to address impacts from land-based sources of pollution, including reducing sediment from hillsides and nearby land.
Kacky Andrews, NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Manager, called Laolao Bay “one of the jewels of CNMI's coral reefs.”
Andrews said NOAA intends to work with the Northern Marianas “to ensure that this 5,000 year old reef can continue to grow - providing habitat for a diverse population of fish and marine life, and buffering the impacts of storms, as well as providing recreational opportunities for divers and fishers.”
Grant funds will also be used to replant hillside areas above Laolao where illegal burning has occurred. Together with the planned road improvements, this revegetation should prevent some 600,000 pounds of soil from eroding into the bay each year.
Erosion has caused major changes in Laolao over the last 30 years. The number of coral species dominating the area has been reduced from 15 to 5. Especially on the southern half of the bay coral and seagrasses have died and been replaced by algae, which is both unattractive and a poor habitat for fish.
These changes have a negative economic impact. Coral reefs are estimated to add $42 million annually to the NMI tourist economy. And Laolao is one of the most popular dive sites for visitors. According to an MVA study, from September 2008 through February 2009 18,260 people dove the bay. But the decline of the corals and the fish that inhabit the reefs in Laolao Bay threatens the current demand for 100-200 guided dives per day. The DEQ restoration project NOAA is funding will attempt to reverse that decline.
The road improvements are also expected to increase recreational opportunities and thenumber of visitors – and visitor dollars – that come to the bay. At present the poor condition of the road, which is often washed out by heavy rains, makes it impossible for buses to bring tourists to the Laolao beaches and makes it difficult for locals, too, without four-wheel drive.
The grant funds will pay for paving the road and allow tour buses to get down to the Laolao beaches. The DEQ grant application foresees that this development “will require tour guides, drivers, office logistics coordinators, and will increase the business of local tour companies. Additional Dive Instructors, Operators, and Refreshment Vendors will also be employed. Rough estimates of visitors to Laolao Bay are approximately 48,000 per year at the dive site alone. This does not include fishermen, picnickers, runners or general recreational users.”
Saipan, MP – The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration announced in Washington on Tuesday that the CNMI Division of Environmental Quality will receive a grant of $2,990,919 for work around Laolao Bay to protect coral reefs there. DEQ was one of only 50 applicants to win some of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act money that NOAA awarded. Over 800 local agencies nationwide competed for the grant funds.
“We can all be very proud and grateful for the exceptional work that Director Frank Rabauliman, Frances Castro, Kathleen Herrmann, Brian Bearden, James Callier, and all the people of DEQ did to put together this proposal,” said NMI Congressman Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan.
“The Recovery Act we passed in Congress in February should bring approximately $90 million in formula grants to the Northern Mariana Islands. But, in addition, there is a huge potential for more money through competitive grants. And DEQ has proved that we have the ability to be very successful in going after those extra Recovery Act funds.
“The money that DEQ is bringing to the Northern Marianas will create jobs and provide immediate stimulus to our economy, and by protecting one of our most important natural resources also protect the future of our tourism industry 30 to 50 years from now.”
DEQ estimates the grant will create 75 jobs directly and another 32 jobs indirectly in the tourism industry.
DEQ will use the grant to upgrade roads and improve drainage around the Bay. This will reduce the sediment that now runs off into the water and smothers the living coral. One of NOAA’s top priorities for coral reef conservation and restoration is to address impacts from land-based sources of pollution, including reducing sediment from hillsides and nearby land.
Kacky Andrews, NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Manager, called Laolao Bay “one of the jewels of CNMI's coral reefs.”
Andrews said NOAA intends to work with the Northern Marianas “to ensure that this 5,000 year old reef can continue to grow - providing habitat for a diverse population of fish and marine life, and buffering the impacts of storms, as well as providing recreational opportunities for divers and fishers.”
Grant funds will also be used to replant hillside areas above Laolao where illegal burning has occurred. Together with the planned road improvements, this revegetation should prevent some 600,000 pounds of soil from eroding into the bay each year.
Erosion has caused major changes in Laolao over the last 30 years. The number of coral species dominating the area has been reduced from 15 to 5. Especially on the southern half of the bay coral and seagrasses have died and been replaced by algae, which is both unattractive and a poor habitat for fish.
These changes have a negative economic impact. Coral reefs are estimated to add $42 million annually to the NMI tourist economy. And Laolao is one of the most popular dive sites for visitors. According to an MVA study, from September 2008 through February 2009 18,260 people dove the bay. But the decline of the corals and the fish that inhabit the reefs in Laolao Bay threatens the current demand for 100-200 guided dives per day. The DEQ restoration project NOAA is funding will attempt to reverse that decline.
The road improvements are also expected to increase recreational opportunities and thenumber of visitors – and visitor dollars – that come to the bay. At present the poor condition of the road, which is often washed out by heavy rains, makes it impossible for buses to bring tourists to the Laolao beaches and makes it difficult for locals, too, without four-wheel drive.
The grant funds will pay for paving the road and allow tour buses to get down to the Laolao beaches. The DEQ grant application foresees that this development “will require tour guides, drivers, office logistics coordinators, and will increase the business of local tour companies. Additional Dive Instructors, Operators, and Refreshment Vendors will also be employed. Rough estimates of visitors to Laolao Bay are approximately 48,000 per year at the dive site alone. This does not include fishermen, picnickers, runners or general recreational users.”
