• All harvested corals are then CORAL USES AND PERSPECTIVES sun-dried for over 10 days. After drying, the corals ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT appear bleached because the IN live tissue has died. • The bleached corals are burned on a fire. Dried man- During a recent visit to Solomon grove wood is the best fuel Islands, staff from SPC's Aqua- Antoine Teitelbaum to use because they burn culture Section and the Solomon Aquaculture Officer slowly, and produce good Islands Ministry of Fisheries and SPC, Noumea heat. The wood is stacked as Marine Resources (MFMR) visit- New Caledonia when making a motu (tradi- ed the Western and the Central ([email protected]) tional oven). Provinces and gathered informa- tion on the wild harvesting and • The corals are burned until farming of corals. However, today many people they turn into ashes (lime). do not chew betelnut due to The lime is collected and TRADITIONAL AND MODERN religious restrictions (Seventh- stored in coconut woven CORAL USE IN SOLOMON ISLANDS Day Adventists and evangelical baskets or bamboo stalks. churches). These are then stored in the For many years, the wild collec- warmest part of the kitchen tion of corals has brought sub- Lime production is as follows. above the fireplace. stantial income to rural commu- nities in many provinces in • Corals are harvested from • The lime is now ready to be Solomon Islands. Wild coral their habitat using light crow- stored in various types and harvesting caters to three main bars or other tools. sizes of bottles to be sold to markets: Harvesting duration depends betelnut consumers. It is on the amount of coral important that lime is stored 1. Local trade (as a source of required. In some provinces, in airtight containers to lime for chewing with betel- coastal communities gather avoid humidity. nut); great amounts of coral in the waters near their villages. Lime is sold in local markets 2. Curio trade (dead corals) This coral is then stockpiled. through the barter system. The price for lime ranges from 3. Marine aquarium trade (live corals)

Lime production

In Solomon Islands, chewing betelnut is a long-standing and common tradition. Calcium car- bonate is the active ingredient of lime and forms the basis of the skeletal structure of staghorn corals (Acropora spp.), which are harvested on the reef.

All Solomon Islanders, especial- ly those who chew betelnut, are familiar with lime. Daka or leaf, lime and betelnut are all essen- tial ingredients in betelnut chewing because without one of these, the desired taste cannot be achieved. Betelnut chewing is part of Solomon Islands tradi- tional culture and enhances socialization among people. Staghorn corals used for the production of lime.

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SBD1.00 to SBD10.00 depending Harvesting corals for the for the following genera: on the quantity sold. Lime is not ornamental trade Euphyllia spp., Acropora spp., an export commodity in Montipora spp., Sarcophyton spp., Solomon Islands, therefore the Corals harvested for export for Sinularia spp., Ricordia spp., and Ministry of Fisheries has no the ornamental trade generate the Fungia spp. data on its production. highest incomes. Most of this activity takes place around the During a recent trip to Central Bleached corals Nggela group in Central Province. Province, staff from SPC and for the curio trade Inhabitants of Buenavista, Sandfly MFMR met with a group of and Nggela islands have been col- coral fishers from Leitongo vil- In Solomon Islands, the use of lecting corals since the mid-1990s. lage in the Sandfly Islands. corals for the curio trade began In 1996, 175,000 pieces of live Henry Kaoni, chief of the collec- in 1984. It was then stopped by coral were exported for the orna- tors, outlined his practices and the government in 1994 but re- mental trade. shared his concerns with the started again in 2003. According team. For 13 years, fishers from to MFMR’s data, 20,000 pieces Villagers often operate in Leitongo have been harvesting were exported in 2004 (Lal and groups under an informal coop- corals that are mainly sold to Kinch, 2005)1. erative, harvesting live corals as Solomon Islands Marine Export a cash income mostly on a part- (SIME) in . Over 2000 This activity is a substantial time basis. Of the 200 people pieces of corals can be sold each source of cash for coastal com- involved in the collection of week. Each piece sells for munities. Acropora spp., Pocillo- marine ornamentals in Solomon between SBD2 and SBD2.5. pora spp., Turbinaria spp., Helio- Islands, it is estimated that 25% Coral fishers are becoming pora spp., and Seriatopora spp. are are focusing on the collection of increasingly worried that coral harvested on reefs (especially in coral fragments. resource in their surrounding Central and the waters seem to be suffering by provinces) then sun dried and Around 70 species of corals are this activity, and while the cost bleached. These are shipped by harvested for the ornamental of living has increased, the price sea, in containers, to the USA trade. The most popular orders of corals has remained the same. where they are sold as curios. requested by Honiara-based exporters to village fishers are Later, the SPC/MFMR team met with a group of collectors in a mangrove stand. This area had a very diverse population of hard coral species. Although freshwa- ter runoff has caused mortality in the surface layers, healthy coral colonies were observed in the deeper parts of the mangrove. Collectors use a dugout canoe as the collection vessel and take turns diving. The group harvests corals with a screw driver or chisel. Coral fragments are then placed in a plastic basket on top of a layer of mangrove leaves. On the day of the visit, the SPC/ MFMR team observed a harvest of Lobopyllia spp., Euphyllia spp., Ricordia spp., and Merulina spp.

Back at the village, the corals are placed underwater in surround- ing areas, to ease the acclimati- zation of the freshly harvested Wild caught coral in the Nggela.

1 Lal P. and Kinch J. 2005. Financial assessment of the marine trade of corals in Solomon Islands. Report prepared for the Foundation of the Peoples of the South Pacific International, Suva, Fiji; South Pacific Regional Environment Programme, Apia, Samoa; Department of Fisheries and Marine Resources and Forestry and Environment and Conservation, Ministry of Natural Resources, the Solomon Islands Government, Honiara, Solomon Islands. C-SPODP II. 32 p.

36 SPC Fisheries Newsletter #120 – January/March 2007 CORAL USES AND PERSPECTIVES ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN SOLOMON ISLANDS colonies. The day before they of the total amount of corals show an increase from 600 are exported, the corals are exported from the Solomon pieces in 2004 to 1600 in 2005, taken to Honiara (1–1.5 hours Islands (see table below). and more than 7000 pieces in by boat) and placed at SIME's 2006. These figures are from the facilities. Coral colonies are The financial assessment pro- production of 1 farmer in sorted, graded and placed in the duced by Lal and Kinch in 2005 Central Province, 8 farmers in raceways of SIME’s re-circulat- demonstrated that coral culture the area, and 6 ing system. On the day of in Solomon Islands can only be farmers in Western Province. export, the corals are bagged a viable source of income if the with oxygen, boxed, and sent to following criteria are met. The international ornamental the airport. coral market is demanding • Culture operation are devel- more cultured corals because WHAT IS THE FUTURE OF FARMED oped on a large scale; they adapt better to aquarium CORALS? conditions and they are regular • Transport costs to Honiara in sizes, colours and shapes for The sustainability of the wild are shared with those from a given species. Furthermore, caught coral trade is question- other activities; farming corals is seen as an able. In the late 1990s, the first ‘eco-friendly’ practice, com- trials of coral aquaculture start- • Transport of coral fragments pared with the wild harvesting ed in Marau Sound in to Honiara are made at least of corals. . Of the 30 once a month; farmers that were trained and Unfortunately, in Solomon equipped for that purpose, only • Villagers fetch better prices Islands, coral farming is limited a few individuals adopted the for their production. by the following factors. technology and produced farmed coral fragments. Since 2004, the number of • The demand for wild caught Between 2000 and 2004, farmed farmed corals appears to be corals is still high and they corals accounted for only a increasing at an exponential are cheaper products for small fraction (on average 1.6%) rate. Official export statistics exporters;

• Only a few species of corals Number of farmed corals vs number of wild corals exported can be cultured (fast grow- from Solomon Islands since 2000 ing ones); a larger number of wild caught species can be Year No. of farmed No. of wild Percentage of corals (pieces) corals (pieces) farmed vs wild obtained; 2000 1299 51,417 2.46% • There are only two ship- 2001 766 33,250 2.25% ments of live stock per week. 2002 567 40,750 1.37% Most available airfreight 2003 686 51,627 1.31% space is already used by 2004 439 71,017 0.61% aquarium fish and wild caught corals;

• Villagers often find it diffi- Value in SBD cult to access basic materials for culture (wire, cement, Volume exported plastic moulds). (pieces) After further discussions with coral fishers, it appears that catching wild corals is not as profitable as it used to be. Prices are low and collection sites are far away because some nearby areas have been overfished. Culturing areas close to villages makes this activity very attrac- tive. Further more, farmed corals fetch higher prices than Export of farmed corals (in pieces) wild caught corals: farmed from the Solomon Islands since 2000.

SPC Fisheries Newsletter #120 – January/March 2007 37 CORAL USES AND PERSPECTIVES ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN SOLOMON ISLANDS

products in gaining recognition on the global ornamental trade.

So far, regulations on coral har- vesting in Solomon Island are basic (see boxed text below). However, a license is required for exporting corals overseas. The introduction of quotas on wild caught fragments would help in promoting farming activities.

WHAT WILL MFMR DO?

Although the global ornamental market is growing, MFMR understands that harvesting and culturing of corals can only be a source of income for a lim- ited number of coastal commu- Lagoon house used for farming activities in Sandfly island. nities. corals are currently marketed at fication of the products. For However, MFMR wishes to reg- SBD8 per piece. example, villagers are taught to ulate the wild caught harvesting commercialize third generation while promoting farming activi- Not all coral species can be corals only, and good practices ties. The following actions will farmed. Some have slow growth for fragmenting and handling be MFMR’s priority as part of rates, and others do not adapt to are demonstrated. Recently, the national aquaculture devel- farming conditions. However, three workshops, on corals, opment pan. for those that can be easily giant clams and post larval cap- farmed, it makes sense that cul- ture and culture techniques, • Assist the private sector in tured fragment should slowly were carried by the WorldFish developing in a sustainable replace wild caught for a given Center at the Nusa Tupe field way (i.e. promoting and sup- species, for both soft and hard station in Western Province. porting farming); corals. For example, Acropora spp., Montipora spp., Sarcophyton Obtaining MAC certification • Encourage competition by spp., and Sinularia spp. are very will help Solomon Islands prod- providing a limited number easy to farm and have fast ucts by adding value and will of licenses; growth rates. help farmed marine ornamental

COULD STOCK MANAGEMENT, LABELS AND REGULATIONS HELP DEVELOP THE CORAL AQUACULTURE INDUSTRY?

The WorldFish Center and the Marine Aquarium Council (MAC) are currently working together in drafting a 'Mariculture Area Management Plan’, with financial assistance from the New Zealand Agency for International Development (NZAID). Management plans are established within local communities that are involved in the aquaculture of clams and corals within Western Province. The goal is to obtain MAC certi-

38 SPC Fisheries Newsletter #120 – January/March 2007 CORAL USES AND PERSPECTIVES ON SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN SOLOMON ISLANDS

• Assess how many house- • Train provincial fisheries of corals in Solomon Islands’, holds will benefit from farm- assistants in coral farming written by Lal and Kinch, 2005. ing activities and support techniques; they in turn will accordingly; be able to train villagers. http://www.fspi.org.fj/program/coastal/re search_and_development_reports.htm) • Develop a strategy that will For further reading, see the progressively replace wild report of the Foundation of the caught corals by farmed Peoples of the South Pacific, corals (for fast growing International (FSPI), ‘Financial species); assessment of the marine trade

Mother colonies used for producing coral cuttings.

Culture of Acropora fragments.

SPC Fisheries Newsletter #120 – January/March 2007 39