Reef water quality check

l CAIRNS | Nick Dalton FITZROY Island Resort guests are being offered a unique experience to help care for injured turtles as well as assisting with monitoring the Great Barrier Reef as part of a new citizen science program.

Resort chief executive Glen Macdonald said the launch of the Fitzroy Island Resort Marine Conservation Program coincided with the property’s recent Eco Certification with Ecotourism Australia.

“Fitzroy Island Resort master reef guide and marine biologist Azri Saparwan has created the program as part of the resort’s ongoing support for the two not-for-profit organisations that undertake conservation activities on Fitzroy Island,” he said.

“This full-day tour is the first opportunity for guests to go behind the scenes at the Cairns Turtle Rehabilitation Centre to help care for the sea turtles and to assist with the Reef Restoration Foundation’s coral restoration work.”

Mr Saparwan said guests would get involved by cutting up seafood to feed the turtles and cleaning the tanks at the centre.

“They will assist with the centre’s research into the local sea turtle population by identifying the turtles they see when they are snorkelling at the front of the resort in Welcome Bay,” he said.

“If someone discovers a new turtle they will have the honour of naming it.

“Participants will then be taught how to identify and remove the coraleating Drupella snail before snorkelling over the sites where the Reef Restoration Foundation has planted corals grown in Australia’s first offshore coral nursery at Fitzroy Island.

“They will also undertake an Eye on the Reef survey identifying the corals and marine life seen while snorkelling to inform the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority.”

The Marine Conservation Program operates on Mondays from 9am to 4pm for 16 years and older. The $199 fee includes lunch, refreshments, snorkel gear and a donation to the Cairns Turtle Rehabilitation Centre. The program is part of the Federal Government’s Tourism Industry Activation and Reef Protection initiative.

Children can do a half-day tour with a marine biologist through the junior marine biologist program. There are wet sessions on Sundays and dry sessions on Saturdays.