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CRAG working hard to help protect American Samoa’s coral reefs
In addition to their recently launched “Reef Watchers” program which includes volunteers who want to help protect the environment through community clean-up efforts, the Governor’s Coral Reef Advisory Group (CRAG) also has several other upcoming projects aimed at protecting American Samoa’s coral reefs.
The list of projects includes “International Year of the Reef” activities for the upcoming Festival of Pacific Arts, one of which includes the recently unveiled aiga bus painted with a mural of coral reefs and underwater sea life which will be used to transport people during the Festival next month.
(The International Year of the Reef was declared a decade ago in 1997. The first campaign was initiated in response to the increasing threats and loss of coral reefs and associated ecosystems, like mangroves and sea grasses).
Other upcoming CRAG projects include the development of the Territorial Marine Science Center, conducting a Population Pressure Summit, territorial wide coastal clean ups, socio-economic monitoring training, a recycling campaign, community based fisheries management program capacity building workshops, a marine protected area network and a bio-geographic assessment to support it, and legislation to protect locally rare large marine fish species like sharks and humphead wrasse.
CRAG is a collaboration of five different agencies which include the Department of Marine and Wildlife Resources, the Department of Commerce, the American Samoa Environmental Protection Agency, the American Samoa Community College, and the National Park of American Samoa.
Member agencies work together by mutual consensus to manage coral reefs in the territory, and the group plans and implements strategies to address various areas of coral reef protection in American Samoa, from education and outreach to scientific studies and monitoring.
CRAG has identified four main threats to American Samoa’s coral reefs as land based source of pollution, fishing pressure, global climate change, and population pressure.
These threats, according to CRAG, are mitigated by local action strategies, which is a targeted set of multi-agency interventions and actions aimed at protecting local coral reefs. According to CRAG, each strategy is the result of a continuing process incorporation input from territorial agencies, non-profit groups, stakeholders, and federal agency partners.
Strategies continue to evolve and develop as new information arises.
CRAG has accomplished a lot since its formation. Over the years, CRAG has supported legislation to ban plastic bags in the territory, in addition to the island wide motor oil recycling program.
Several weeks ago, the group even coordinated the painting of a coral reef themed mural on the Executive Office Building in Utulei by world renowned marine life artist, Wyland.
CRAG members have participated in meetings to coordinate the environmental efforts of a Samoan archipelago Marine Protected Area Network, in addition to facilitating discussions between local government agencies and recycling providers to expand recycling opportunities and services.
American Samoa’s Coral Reef Initiative is simple: Protect and conserve coral reefs for the benefit of the people of American Samoa, the United States, and the rest of the world.
More information about CRAG and their work can be obtained by calling 633-5155 or logging on to: http://doc.asg.as/CRAG
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