News
Duke and Duchess impressed with Coral Farm in Grand Bahama
By: Andrew Coakley
Bahamas Information Services
#TheBahamas, March 28, 2022 – Their Royal Highnesses Prince William and Duchess Catherine got up close and personal with a project that is dear to Prince William’s heart, during their tour of Coral Vita Coral Farm in Grand Bahama.
The tour of the Coral farm took place on Saturday, March 26, 2022 as a part of the Royals’ Official Visit to The
Prince William expressed fascination with the work being done at the Coral Farm, listening intensely during a summary of what they do at the Coral Farm, and asking questions about some of the various corals being grown at Coral Vita.
Prince William and Duchess Catherine were invited to plant a Propagule, a mangrove in the Mangrove Farm at the Coral Vita site. They both got their hands dirty, as they scooped up some of the soil to properly plant the Propagule.
Prince William and Duchess Catherine chatted with four young volunteers at Coral Vita farm, following the planting.
“Keep up the good work, Duchess Catherine told the young ladies. “What you’re doing here is great work and what you do is going to greatly help restore the coral reefs on your island.”
They were given an extensive tour of the facility, where they got a first-hand look and explanation from founder Sam Teicher about how the project was started and how growing coral actually worked.
The Prince and the Duchess boarded a yacht where they were taken to an area off of east Grand Bahama to plant coral there.
Minister of the Environment and Natural Resources, Hon. Vaughn Miller, who was on hand with the Government delegation touring the Coral Vita facility with the Prince and Duchess, said that he was impressed with what is being done at the coral nursery, adding that he would like to see more Bahamians get involved in the project.
“I spoke specifically with one of the partners of this project about Bahamians becoming much more involved with this and possibly being trained so that they can take this same project to the other family Islands replicate this
“You know the stony coral tissue disease is spreading rapidly and has become a real issue in this country. Thank God there is now a solution for it and we can do restoration work. So, hats off to what they’re doing here, not just with the coral, but with the mangroves.”
As a result of Hurricane Dorian, Grand Bahama lost over eighty percent of its mangroves: Minister Miller said this is an important restoration project not just for Grand Bahama and Abaco, but for the islands around The Bahamas.
Prince William, after listening to what the plans are for restoring the mangroves in Grand Bahama, noted that what happened after Hurricane Dorian was devastating for The Bahamas and was glad to see that Coral Vita’s work was helping to restore all that was lost since the storm.
Coral Vita, which opened in Grand Bahama in 2019, is the world’s first land based commercial coral farm. They cultivate 24 different types of indigenous coral with innovative techniques that speed up growth by 50 percent (micro fragmenting) and make the coral more resistant (assisted evolution) to the rising temperatures and acidity.
Photo Caption:
Header: Both Prince William and Duchess Catherine got an opportunity to plant a Propagule, which is like a seed for mangrove, during their tour of Coral Vita Farm in Grand Bahama on Saturday, March 26, 2022.
1st insert: Prince William asked a series of questions during the tour of the Coral Vita Farm on Saturday, March 26, 2022 in Grand Bahama. Workers at the facility explained how coral is grown at the facility. Looking on in the background is Minister of the Environment and Natural Resources, Hon. Vaughn Miller and Minister for Grand Bahama, Hon. Ginger Moxey. At right is Sam Teicher, one of the Founders of Coral Vita Farm.
2nd insert: Upon their arrival at the Coral Vita Farm in Grand Bahama on Saturday, March 26, 2022, Prince William and Duchess Catherine got a brief history on the reason and purpose of establishing the Coral Vita Farm.
(BIS Photos/Lisa Davis)