Freedivers, leftover cables and bits of clay: Cuba gets inventive to save its pristine reefs amid US blockade

Blue tangs on a reef in the Bay of Pigs, Cuba. Lack of environmental awareness, invasive species and the climate crisis have long presented a threat to Cuba’s pristine marine ecosystem View image in fullscreen Blue tangs on a reef in the Bay of Pigs, Cuba. Lack of environmental awareness, invasive species and the climate crisis have long presented a threat to Cuba’s pristine marine ecosystem Freedivers, leftover cables and bits of clay: Cuba gets inventive to save its pristine reefs amid US blockade With limited resources and sanctions tightening, conservationists are forced to find new ways to protect the coral reefs of Ciénaga de Zapata national park At 8am, scuba divers gather to collect plastic and drinks cans from the sea at Cuba’s Ciénaga de Zapata national park. Amid a power crisis that has virtually paralysed the country’s economy, they use an electric trailer to move to a designated spot. In only a few hours, they have collected five sacks of cans and waste. Lack of environmental awareness, invasive species and the climate crisis have long threatened the island’s pristine marine ecosystem but as US sanctions and economic scarcity take their toll on the country, scientists and community conservationists are working with even scarcer resources to protect a vital ecosystem for the Caribbean and the world. Coral cover in the Caribbean has decreased by 48% since 1980, according to a recent report , making joint action between countries essential. Yet deteriorating relations between the US and Cuba are hindering conservation efforts in the Gulf of Mexico. View image in fullscreen Alejandro Acebo and Jorge Sánchez, members of the scuba divers’ volunteer group, during the cleanup at Playa LargaCiénaga de Zapata in the south-east of the country is a good example. Likewise, the island has been slower than other Caribbean regions to experience coral diseases such as stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD), which is spread – an activity that also causes pollution and harms corals through anchoring and grounding. “Coral restoration was not even a topic of discussion in Cuba. We could observe small reductions due to climate change, but not drastically,” says Albertus. View image in fullscreen An image on a screen shows coral egg and sperm collection in the National Aquarium coral farmAll that changed in 2023, when SCTLD and an intense bleaching event damaged the reefs, prompting the Cuban government to adopt a new policy to protect them.