On September 7, Sean Paton hosted Commissioner Anthony Nicolaas on his Forum Antilles radio program to discuss the impending disaster for Bonaire's reefs if the sewage is not stopped immediately.

Commissioner Nicolaas is waiting to make a final decision until he hears from all us--Detlef, Captain Don, Tom Reynolds, Carole, etc.--on the recent proposed sewage plan this past August. PLEASE, PLEASE, take this opportunity to make your views and solutions known as soon as possible. The reefs can't wait much longer.

e-mail: anicolaas@bonairegov.com


Pauline Kayes, SOS Campaign To Save Bonaire's Reefs

(Sent via email)

Sir,

I am the USA Program Manager for the Light and Motion Sensor Progran (LMSP). I work at the USClab (University of Southern California, Biology Dept.) for Prof. Burt Jones. We work with the BNMP on Bonaire.

We would be happy to provide you input on the state of Bonair's reefs and the likely economic disruption should the reef degrade should you so desire. We are recognized experts in both areas and we have extensive knowledge of Bonaire through our LMSP efforts. (http://www.bmp.org/lightandmotion.html)

In summary, without immediate action there is a strong likelyhood that coral coverage will decrease by 50% in 3 years from about 47% (March 2008) to about 23% (March 2011). This degregdation will likely cause the demise of shore diving on Bonaire as we know it today. The Bonaire SCUBA industry would need to convert to a boat-based service much like the Red Sea or other Carribean islands. The estimate is that a boat-based service could only handle about 50% of the SCUBA visitors that Bonaire can handle now. The primary losers would be restaurants, resorts, rentals and other businesses that depend on the mobility of SCUBA visitors.

Regards,
Tom Reynolds
LMSP Program Manager (USA)

Pauline,

Done. Thanks for providing the link.

Blue

Email sent.

I sent one too. I don't know what to do to help, other than not contribute to the problem.

Thank you everyone so far. Please tell everyone you know who dives and snorkels Bonaire that the time is now to speak for the reefs and stop all the nitrogen poisoning them from the sewage coming from the waterfront resorts, hotels, rental properties, etc. Although sewage is leaching from septics all over the island, the priority at this moment is to stop the sewage spilling directly into the sea at the waterfront by insisting that all establishments have their sewage trucked and processed or make other immediate arrangements to develop their own sewage processing plants on-site.

The more folks Nicolaas hears from, the better. SOS Campaign To Save Bonaire's Reefs

Message sent

Message sent...hope it helps!!!

I received the following response to my e mail.
Wonder what they plan on doing?

"Thanks.
We will for sure do something with the reefs. I will keep you informed.
Greetings,
mr. A.T.C. NICOLAAS"

Please note: members of the SOS Campaign to Save the Reefs (which is anyone who cares and is writing officials and lobbying resorts) will be meeting with Nicolaas and Frank Von Slobbe on Thursday, Sep. 24 at 2 p.m. If any of you are on the island at that time and wish to join us and make your pleas in person for what must happen, please let me know so you can be included.

SOSBonaireReef@gmail.com

Sent ours also....

E mail sent

Pauline..If I could I would. At any rate please post a summary of your meeting on the board. I for one (and I'm sure many others) are interested in the results of same.

Dear Mr. Nicolaas:
I am a biologist who specializes in teaching reef fish identification in my daily class, Dive with the Naturalist, at Bonaire Dive and Adventure, which is near the old Den Leman restaurant. I received a Bonhata award for my reef educational activities in 2007, and my contribution to the tourism industry here on Bonaire. I have seen the slow death of our reefs since I first arrived here in 1994.
I fully applaud the efforts that you are making to remedy the situation, but I'm afraid that the measures that are proposed as the temporary solution until the treatment plant can be completed is too small in scope. Rather than trying to truck 100,000m3 of sewage we should be doubling it to 200,000m3 per year, and include the entire island.
If the proposed remedy covers, for example 50% of the current load of sewage that is going to the ocean, we will not see a 50% reduction in the algal growth on the reef, and therefor a 50% increase in the health of the reef. Any nutrients going to the reef will continue to nourish the existing reef with the continued destruction of the coral polyps because they are very sensitive to the site specific changes that the presence of alga pose and will continue to die. Death to coral allows more space for algae, which will continue the downfall of our reefs. WE MUST ELIMINATE ALL THE SEWAGE.
We must get ahead, and not continue to lag behind the algae build up.
September's full moon marks the time every year here on Bonaire when the coral reproduce by sending millions of gametes into the ocean over our reefs. These gametes, sperm and eggs, will unite, leading to tiny larvae coral that will, in time, settle on suitable substrate. If algae is covering all possible open spots for new coral polyps to land and start growing, we are not only losing the current adult crop of coral, but are killing off the chance that new coral will be able to live here.
I am watching young coral, such as Elkhorn Coral and Staghorn Coral, that started growing in front of our dive shop on Bari reef, begin to die of algae in just the past two years. These young coral found a suitable place to land and start a new coral head right after the surge from Hurricane Lenny in November, 1999. There were doing fine in the first years after Lenny, but this year all are dying. I can easily take people out on snorkel and fins and show them the dying young coral heads because they grow in shallow water. It is sad, very sad that we humans are not allowing other species to be healthy, grow, reproduce and continue their own species own this planet. It is SAD, very SAD!!. Jerry C Ligon Biologist and Dive Instructor/15 years on

Could someone please post the email addresses for Queen Beatrix and Dutch Minister in charge of transition.

I have pictures of the 5 Piet Boon houses on Punt Vierkant still underconstruction, that sadly show the entire construction site underwater and the blow holes from the reef that the contractor had filled with dirt and rocks, drain every bit of rich soil into the ocean last Thurs. And there are no septic tanks for these new houses. Stinapa can not help; this contractor has a permit for this "destruction" from the Bonaire goverment.
Please direct me to the Queen and others. Thanks.

Laura, Please see the thread here under Environmental Action under Queen Beatrix for both her contact information and Willem. Also advise contacting the Dutch minister in charge of transition, Ank Bijleveld-Schouten at 31 70 426 63 02.

E-mail sent.