Department of Diasaster Management and Ministry of Natural Resources and Labour Officers are co-authors of a study of impacts on mangroves from the storms of 2017 published in the May 2021 edition of the Journal of Ocean and Coastal Management.
The lead author is DDM consultant Dr. Louise Soanes, while DDM’s Acting Deputy Director Sheniah Armstrong-Jones and former Data Management Officer Kristi Creque are co-authors alongside the MNRLI’s Rosina Gumbs, the Jost Van Dykes Preservation Society’s Susan Zaluski and Dr. Katie Medcalf of Environment Systems, Ltd.
Highlights of their article include:
- • Analyses that reveal that up to 94% of the Territory’s mangroves were impacted by Hurricane Irma.
- • Flood risk vulnerability maps identified that Virgin Islands coastlines are most vulnerable to storm surges in the absence of mangroves.
- • Small-scale mangrove restoration can provide flood protection up to 475m inland.
- • Mangrove restoration can reduce flood risk to at least 700 buildings.
