Submarine company to get into regenerating coral

One of Barbados’ main attractions is entering its 35th year of operation with a commitment to preserving this country’s marine environment in a major way.

On Tuesday, General Manager of the Atlantis Submarines Barbados Roseanne Myers declared that the company, which for decades has showcased the best of this country’s underwater environment, would be launching a coral nursery.

Myers told journalists that the concept of replanting coral had not been contemplated in the past. However, recent science allows them to make good use of the coral that has broken away from the reefs.

“In Barbados, what we’ve seen is where there is going to be construction or anything that may affect coral reefs, that you could actually go and harvest that coral under the guidance of the Coastal Zone Management Unit and actually get it to regrow in another area,” said Myers.

“Obviously, our main attraction is the coral reef and over the years we’ve talked about pollution of the reef, we’ve talked about how we don’t have a west coast sewage system, the way it impacts the reef and so on.

“So we are going to establish a coral nursery with the help of Barbados Blue… to set up the coral nursery and look at how we can regenerate coral,” she added.

The senior tourism executive was addressing a special dive on the submarine attended by President Dame Sandra Mason and Minister of the Environment, National Beautification and the Blue Economy Adrian Forde, as part of the company’s anniversary celebrations.

In an interview with Barbados TODAY, Minister Forde lauded Atlantis for looking beyond the country’s tourism product and making tangible contributions to the sustainable development of the marine environment.

“It is scientifically known that if you have a rich reef supply, that rich reef and flora will cause the cooling of the sea bed and the cooling of the sea surface protects us from the creation of tsunamis and hurricanes and what not,” said Forde.

“We are positioned at the top of the Atlantic zone. So Barbados must be involved in every single effort to preserve our marine ecosystem and our biodiversity,” the minister declared.

But even as it launches the venture, Myers admitted that Atlantis is smack in the middle of recovery after surviving a trying two-year period of near dormancy, because of the pandemic.

Staff have been on the job continuously over the last two years, even when there was absolutely no economic activity occurring with the exception of some assistance from the Government.

“Even when we were shut down, we had to have maintenance people here taking care of that vessel. So through all the shutdowns we had a few emergency passes that allowed us to come down and take care of the submarine and last year we got our full recertification done, every system checked before we restarted and we have another big one coming,” Myers recalled.

Last August when they reopened to the public, all patrons were required to test before their tours, as the country battled the deadly COVID Delta variant. These days, there are no testing requirements for vaccinated travellers and with the latest announcements from the Government, the vessel can once again operate at full capacity.

“We have evolved with the times, but what I can say is that since starting in August, we have never had to close the business because of an outbreak of COVID.

“We’re not out of the woods yet at all, but with increased marketing and so on, we will fight back and we’re so pleased that Barbados has fought back in the way that it has,” said the GM.

Myers, who was the first Atlantis Barbados employee, revealed that over 20 per cent of the current staff complement were there when Atlantis started operating in 1986.

Lauding the company’s employee-first mentality, she added that already, there is a succession plan in place that involves a number of young people, who are expected to continue the iconic Atlantis legacy.
kareemsmith@barbadostoday.bb