The mangroves which could be affected by the proposed $600 million Tian Lun integrated hotel-tourism project must be protected at all costs.
This is the view of Dr Apisalome Movono, senior lecturer in Development Studies at Massey University, New Zealand.
“They take decades to develop yet take minor disturbances to be destroyed,” he said.
Dr Movono said for Suva and its harbour, the importance of the mangroves was of critical importance that there was a “need to protect what we still have with our lives”.
“I feel this way not only having a background in marine affairs and tourism but also because I earned my diving credentials in the Suva fish patch, have been an avid fisher in the Suva area for over 20 years and have witnessed first-hand the immense decline in the quality and volume of marine life in the Suva harbour over the past 16 years.
“This, I believe, is due mainly to the mass-scale degradation of mangrove that has been allowed – from Lami to Nadawa, including the huge forest in between Raiwai and Vatuwaqa.
“Mangroves have been removed en masse with only the Nasese and Bailey Bridge patches being spared.”
Dr Movono said the Laucala Beach Sustainability Society, along with its partners were passionate about protecting the mangroves along the Nasamabula River (Bailey Bridge).
“Because we have lost so much already. Families who once relied on the bounty of the sea can no longer do so because there are fewer nurseries to sustain healthy stocks.
“People’s livelihoods are affected, the health of our oceans is at stake, and if we are to have tourism then a healthy marine ecosystem, coupled with happy locals is key.
“I just don’t think this project is right for brand Fiji, nor does it fit within our values and roles as custodians of our environment,” Dr Movono said.
