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Some Wonders of the Ocean

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In the last frontier on Earth, Dr Anjani Ganase discusses some anomalies and discoveries in a warming ocean. Storm-chasing petrels In tracking the Desertas petrels, scientists were amazed to find them following hurricanes for thousands of miles across the Atlantic Ocean. Desertas petrels nest on Bugio Island, Portugal off the west coast of Africa where hurricanes are born. Scientists found a strong correlation between the storm winds and the foraging behaviour of these birds. Petrels typically forage for fauna that occur hundreds of metres below the ocean surface. How do they do this? They wait for the creatures to surface at night and feed in the nutrient rich waters. However, researchers have found them foraging in areas where winds generated large wave action (up to 8m in height) resulting in the mixing of the water column and the upward movement of the deeper cooler and richer water from the deep to the surface. As a result, deeper dwelling organisms come u
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The State of the Ocean 2024

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Dr Anjani Ganase presents the high points of the recent report released by the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO. The report collects the observations and data of some 150 member states for the benefit of a world linked by one ocean. (First published in Trinidad and Tobago Newsday, July 11, 2024)   The years 2021 to 2030 have been designated the Ocean Decade by the UN. The up-to-date report on the state of the oceans released this week in Paris by UNESCO provides alarming evidence of a growing ocean crisis. However, there is hope in action as technologies and international collaborations allow developing countries to move closer to sustainable management and conservation of their ocean resources.   Icebergs drift from Western Antarctica. Photo by Anjani Ganase A CLEAN OCEAN The report focused on worsening ocean pollution from two main sources:   nutrient and plastics.   Nutrient pollution - what runs off the land into our drains or is
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Hurricanes and Climate Change

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Anjani Ganase reflects on the effects of devastating hurricanes on human communities and wonders if we can adapt before catastrophes force change   “I remember Flora. I was 12 years old. Schools were dismissed early. But my father still was not able to pick us up until the usual time. We went from Port of Spain through Maraval and into Santa Cruz on roads without traffic – everyone was home already.   The sky was gray and the streets slippery with driving rain. It was my earliest remembered experience of howling wind and bending trees. This impression of powerful nature has never left me; and Trinidad was on the periphery of Flora. I learned of the devastation to Tobago, the destruction of the cocoa plantations and the people who died only after I was old enough to find out.”    My mother’s memory of Flora is vivid and forceful.   I have lived in proximity to hurricanes all my life, though I have never felt the full force. I’ve only heard of the eye of the hu
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Protecting the Shoreline

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Managing and conserving marine life around our shores is as important as regulating development on the land. Dr Anjani Ganase speaks for life in the ocean and advocates planning that extends to the ocean beyond the coastline. Marine spatial planning is the responsibility of everyone who enjoys an ocean activity.   As islanders we see our ocean backyard as vast and endless. The science tells us different. Historically, islands of the Caribbean have recorded overreach of ocean resources. Fisheries and industries have expanded from coasts to deep sea areas that have never been explored before. Coastal communities are washed by pollutants in the form of oil and plastics from neighbouring islands which choke beaches, mangroves and coastlines. Sensitive areas are encroached upon and degraded by industry and development.    Coastal erosion along Pigeon Point will get worse with sea-level rise. Photo by Anjani Ganase   Pigeon Point beach area marked off with buoys. Photo by Anjani Gana
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Life finds a way on Buccoo Reef

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Endlessly exploited and damaged, the Buccoo Reef ecosystem is a remarkable national resource that is demonstrating resilience even in the face of climate change. Shivonne Peters-McPherson writes about the life on Buccoo Reef and our need to treasure what remains and what is coming back.   Buccoo Reef is not dead! They say that the only thing that remains of this once thriving ecosystem is an extensive seagrass community. That’s not true. While many may remember the Buccoo Reef circa the 1980s and 1990’s, a time when areas such as Coral Gardens were vibrant and full of pristine corals and an abundance of reef fish, life on the Reef changes and is persistent. There is no doubt that Buccoo Reef has been heavily degraded. Scientific studies show a decline in coral cover, especially at shallower depths. There is   an overgrowth of macroalgae, which often smothers corals and results in coral mortality. The average person who visited the reef decades ago will indeed see
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Speaking for the Ocean

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From the frontline of research on coral reefs around Tobago, Dr Anjani Ganase is seeing how human activities on shore affect life in the ocean. Here, she makes an appeal to consider five gifts for a healthy ocean. All photos by Anjani Ganase   World Oceans Day (June 8) was last Saturday, but maybe we should start thinking of our ocean every day, or at least for the month of June. Here are my five wishes for the ocean around Trinidad and Tobago. These confront the five main challenges that our marine ecosystems face. Here are some things that we can do as individuals, communities and a country to protect our piece of the ocean.   By becoming familiar with all our ocean ecosystems - like these seagrass beds in Bon Accord lagoon -  our children learn to love the ocean. Photo by Anjani Ganase Protect our marine biodiversity by law: Trinidad and Tobago is home to eleven environmental sensitive species, including five species of marine turtles, and three environmen
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Climate Change Adaptations

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  Dr Anjani Ganase reports from the front lines of science looking for solutions to our rapidly warming ocean.   Coastal defences are better when nature is involved.   In Trinidad and Tobago, a common solution to any flooding or erosion event is the installation of a box drain or retention wall. Pouring concrete or straightening a riverbed ignores the downstream negative impacts, the loss of ecological systems and the prevention of any future adaptation. Box drains, concrete walls and such permanent constructs do not respond to climate impacts and require high-cost maintenance in the long run. This is a common problem worldwide with 40 % of Japan’s coastlines hardened by coastal defences. These engineered solutions are referred to as hard defences – directly referring to the hardening of the coastline or the riverbed.   In contrast, soft - also known as ecosystem-based - solutions aim to mimic natural ecosystem functions - mangroves, back beach habitats
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