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In a global context of disappearing coral reefs, projects for artificial underwater habitats are multiplying, in the goal of developing the biomass to encourage the survival of fish and crustaceans.
Invited to Saint Barthélemy in early March for the Environmental Agency for their “Ocean Week”, Julien Chalifour presented the BioHab project, established since 2014 in the waters of the Réserve Naturelle de Saint-Martin, and whose results have exceeded expectations. Five months after modules of cinder blocks were placed, 33 species had moved into the site, which was empty beforehand, and there were at least 151 individuals in 100 square meters, including 63 royal lobsters, for a density well superior to that on natural reefs! Other participants presented their projects on the theme of coral reef restoration, notably the Biorock process, whose goal is to stimulate the growth of coral by an electric current. These diverse initiatives are complementary projects over the long term to help with the maintenance and restoration of reef ecosystems.
