A view from the hill: The impacts of sedimentation on the coastal environment
If you have the opportunity to go to San Fernando Hill or the Lady Young Road in Port of Spain, you can have an unobstructed panoramic view of the Gulf of Paria and its environs. Viewing the coast from these vantage points gives you another perspective of human impacts on the coastal environment. Our impact is very evident after heavy rainfall when you look out only to see a large brown plume of sediment moving across the blue waters. Sediment is washed down from hillsides and plains into drains and rivers, eventually reaching the sea. The magnitude of these plumes is unknown for the...
Monitoring our biodiversity: Tracking Sea Turtles Worldwide
The month of May celebrates two auspicious days, World Biodiversity Day under its theme “Building a shared future for all life” on May 22nd and World Turtle Day, which is observed globally on May 23rd. Biodiversity describes the variety of all living organisms across all types of environments, land, rivers, lakes, and oceans, and extends to the complex interactions between life and the ecosystems in which they are found. These interactions provide for ecological functions which include the provision of oxygen, water, food, protection from flooding and storm surges, recreation, livelihoods, and economic well-being. According to a 2001 publication by the United Nations Convention...
SEA, SAND AND A TERRIBLE STING
What are fire corals and stonefish? Can you identify them? Do you know that these marine creatures, which wash up on our shores every year during Easter time can inflict severe pain should you get stung?...