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Cruisers Contribute To Creation Of New Fiji Marine Reserve
Cruisers Contribute To Creation Of New Fiji Marine Reserve
Readers of AHOY may recall an article we shared in the March 2023 issue of AHOY that was written by Birgit and Christian of s.y Pitufa about Anchoring Around Coral. Birgit & Christian set out 12 years ago and have travelled via the Med, Atlantic and Caribbean to the Pacific aboard their S&S 41 Pitufa.
As self-described "green cruisers", Birgit & Christian rely only on alternative energy sources and try to minimise the impact they have on the environment. Living close to nature and the elements, they witness the changes and the adverse effects of cruisers and local populations on fragile ecosystems. Whenever they feel that something's gone awry in a place that they visit, they try to take positive action, which is evident in their most recent project, the creation of the Matuku Marine Reserve at Matuku Islands in the remote Lau Group of islands in Fiji.
As self-described "green cruisers", Birgit & Christian rely only on alternative energy sources and try to minimise the impact they have on the environment. Living close to nature and the elements, they witness the changes and the adverse effects of cruisers and local populations on fragile ecosystems. Whenever they feel that something's gone awry in a place that they visit, they try to take positive action, which is evident in their most recent project, the creation of the Matuku Marine Reserve at Matuku Islands in the remote Lau Group of islands in Fiji.
The Matuku Marine Reserve - How It Came To Be
Matuku was the first island in Fiji`s Lau group we visited back in July 2022.
The little island doesn’t see many yachts as it lies off the beaten track, and we were amazed by the hospitality the villagers showed us and the wonderful underwater landscapes that we found just off our anchorage.
During our second visit to Matuku, we started raising awareness for sustainability among the villagers, starting with the kids, drawing colourful parrot fishies and talking about their role in the eco-system, and finally doing presentations for the chiefs and head men about the problem of overfishing.
We learned that the fishermen were already concerned about dropping numbers of fish and eager to hear solutions for sustainable fishing. We explained our experiences among Pacific Islands and suggested installing no-fishing areas.
Returning to Matuku in February, we were happy to hear that some villages were planning to implement no-fishing-zones, but then we had a horrible boat accident while scouting out a possible location for a tabu on the Southern side of the island, which left me with serious injuries and ended fatally for Maikeli Tamani, the headman of Makadru village…
Continue reading the article in the AUGUST ISSUE of AHOY Sailing.
