Reef Alliance

Thursday April 22nd marked the 2010 international celebration of Earth Day. In support of Earth Day, conservation program Reef Alliance and its sponsor companies, Snuba International and Sub Sea Systems, hosted its second annual “Reef Alliance Day.” International Reef Alliance members participated in the “Kids Care Project” –– involving 5th grade school children and a conservation awareness poster contest. Members visited local classrooms and talked to kids about the importance of keeping our oceans, beaches and reefs clean; with an emphasis on the impact of trash and debris on marine life. Students were then invited to participate in a poster contest, highlighting ways to keep our beaches and oceans clean.

Here are some photos from our participants!

     Last year Reef Alliance members participated in local reef and beach clean up projects. Members all over the world collected several thousand pounds of trash and enlisted the help of hundreds of volunteers. This year Reef Alliance is at it again and we need your help! The 2010 Reef Alliance Day project will once again fall during the week of International Earth Day –– April 22, 2010. Reef Alliance members will be involved in the “Kids Care Project.” We are inviting local classrooms to participate in a conservation awareness poster contest. Reef Alliance members will seek the help of local classrooms, kids ages 10-12, and request that they work as a class to create a poster about local beach and reef conservation.

     The poster can highlight ways to remove trash, recycle, avoid pollution, etc. This is a great way to educate students about the pollution that threatens our beaches and oceans. Reef Alliance members will select the classroom with the best poster and award the class as the winner of the local “Kids Care Project.” Winning posters will be displayed at the Reef Alliance member’s dive site or place of business. Posters will also be submitted to the Reef Alliance headquarters and may be selected to display on the Reef Alliance website (www.reefalliance.com). Classrooms may also receive a special reward as determined by the local Reef Alliance member. (ie. T-shirts, Reef Alliance bracelets, Snuba tours, etc.)

     Members are encouraged to go to local classrooms and present the project in person. Reef Alliance will be supplying a “fact sheet” about the plight of the world’s oceans and beaches that can be used during the presentation. Members can also invite classes to their dive site for the project presentation and poster contest. It is your project... be creative and get involved! Reef Alliance members that put forth the
greatest effort will be considered for the annual Reef Alliance Award! The winner will receive a custom engraved glass award, framed certificate and complimentary press release services from Snuba International, Inc. and Sub Sea Systems, Inc.

     This month marks the Ocean Conservancy’s International Coastal Clean-up, the largest volunteer effort dedicated to cleaning our oceans and beaches. Organizations and individuals across the globe joined efforts in an attempt to rid our beaches and waterways of trash and debris. Volunteers also worked to identify trash origins,
hoping to stop the problem at its source.
    
     The results of this year’s clean-up are still being calculated, but the top three trash culprits of 2008 were cigarette butts, plastic bags,
and food/storage containers. Reef Alliance and the Ocean Conservancy
recommend that individuals pick up and collect trash, engage in community efforts and simply recycle, reduce, reuse, be responsible.

     This year our Snuba operator in St. Thomas represented Reef Alliance by hosting their own clean-up to support the Ocean Conservancy’s International Clean-up. Together with their volunteers they collected roughly 25 lbs. of garbage per dive - recovering cans, bottles, monofilament line, old buckets, and 13 boat batteries! Reef Alliance is proud to support organizations and efforts worldwide to promote the longevity and health of our oceans.

      Garbage and debris pose a great threat to coral reefs, coral growth and the overall health of our marine ecosystems. Plastic bags, bottles and trash can cover coral, blocking out sunlight and suffocating polyps. Reef animals can also become entangled in loose debris or mistakenly ingest trash for food. To help protect the health of our reefs and its inhabitants, divers are encouraged to carry mesh bags for trash collection.  
      Carrying a simple mesh bag while diving and guiding Snuba tours makes collecting garbage an easy way to protect our reefs and promote reef conservation. Mesh diving bags are inexpensive (starting as low as $3.99) and come in a variety of sizes, styles and colors. Reef Alliance encourages all of its members to promote the use of mesh dive bags at their Snuba Recreational Centers.
      For our 1st Annual World Snuba Day, a Hawaii based operator, So.
Pacific Snuba, took a twist on the beach cleanup and sponsored garbage collecting contests during Snuba tours. Prizes were awarded to the participants who collected the most garbage during the tour.