Reef Management, Global Warming, and Communing with the Sea Goddess
So here we are on the island of Bonaire, located approximately 75 miles off the coast of Venezuela, part of the "ABC" islands of Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao, "owned" by the Netherlands. This beautiful island is a diver's paradise, however, although diving is one of the main income sources for the island's economy, the government is highly aware that the future must be preserved. They take a very active role in ensuring that the underwater world is as strong as it can be, constantly patrolling dive sites and looking for signs of stress in the corals, critters, etc. They have no problem closing a dive site that is under stress, and allowing it up to 10 years to recover.
Despite our Bungling Baboon in Chief's stupidity regarding global warming, the effects can be seen SO clearly under water. A few extra degrees in water temperature, and you begin to kill coral. It becomes "bleached," devoid of all color. Dead coral can't support the symbiotic life that is the essence of the underwater world. And, unless we forget, land based life depends on underwater life, and vice versa.
Life is precious, whether it be the mantis shrimp I annoyed by taking pictures, the octopus peeking out at us from his rock, the cats that hang out here at Captain Don's Habitat who get taken care of by Karen the divemaster who buys their food and medical care with her own funds, and has for longer than most people can remember, or even the goofy people on the dive boats, life is still precious.
Nowhere else in the world is as unspoiled and close to nature as the ocean. There are no roads, no human habitats cut from the earth, no vegetation being trampled underfoot. And nowhere on the planet do I feel closer to Goddess than here. Even when the critters try to eat me :-)