Electrification and Oyster Update

ELECTRICITY

The official quotation to extend the electricity grid to our village arrived in my mailbox this week!

This is how it breaks down:

Total cost:                                                             $696,295.00
The government will cover 95% of the cost:       $661,480.00
The community contribution will be 5%:            $  34,815.00
Divide by 129 households:                                   $      266.00/house

This includes overhead power lines and internal wiring in 129 households.

The fundraising will be discussed in the February village meeting. It will be a major committment by community members to raise the money. The quotation expires at the end of the year. The quicker we can raise the money, the quicker the project can happen. (Especially crucial since there are elections for the first time in ages this year).


PEARL OYSTERS

We went out to check the pearl oyster lines this week. They are suspended about 5 meters below the surface. The lines were in good shape with no buoys missing. There was an awful lot of algae though, so we're waiting for feedback from Department of Fisheries as to whether or not we need to clean the line. Cleaning will either require the use of SCUBA or a lot of strong lunged free-divers.

Oyster Spat Collections Lines

Yesterday was a blessed Thanksgiving Day in the village! Nevermind that no one has ever heard of that holiday! We had a team from Department of Fisheries in Savusavu bring us an early Christmas present:

OYSTER SPAT COLLECTIONS LINES! 

In August a few people from the village attended a workshop to learn about small business ideas involving the marine environment. There was talk that Fisheries was looking to support communities to establish some sustainable income generating projects, so we submitted a request letter to Fisheries to help us determine if we were a suitable site for oyster spat collection. They didn't turn up to just survey, they turned up with two 100m lines to place in our fishing grounds.

After finding a boat to hire in Nabouwalu, we prepared the lines and waited for the boat to come at high tide.

Preparing the buoys

Unrolling the spat collections lines

Lines packed and ready to go!

At high tide and in a sudden burst of heavy rain, we headed offshore just a little ways to place the lines. We used flour sacks full of sand as anchors and tied tied large stones to the middle of the line for it to sink. In two weeks time we will cut away the stones, as the line will become heavy. The line rests about 5m below the surface, so passing boats will not disturb it. Four buoys mark each 100m line.

Checking the depth

Tying off the sandbag anchors

Placing the first buoy

Stringing out the first line

Buoys marking the submerged line

Fisheries Team Member and my trusty Environment Committee Members

Line in the water. The spat collectors (black, dangley things) will fall down in time.

Stone weight.

Myself and one of my many Fijian fathers checking out the line underwater

The line will remain in place for about a year, after which the team will return to see how many oysters we were able to collect. A good line can collect anywhere from 2000-4000 oysters. At a year and a few months time the oysters will be seeding size. Then they can be sold to pearl farmers for around $2 per oyster.

There are a few pearl farms in Fiji. The most notable is J. Hunter Pearls in Savusavu who sells gorgeous jewelry no one in Fiji can afford (http://www.fijipearls.com/)

We don't have a proper site to farm the pearls in the village. A farm requires a quiet bay or lagoon, and we have an intertidal reef flat. The good current coming off the Bligh Waters, however, may be filled with oyster spat. Oyster eggs and sperm meet in the water and drift on currents until finding a proper place to call home. Hopefully they will find a good home on our lines!

The lines were placed in the area we have proposed as a Marine Protected Area (awaiting formal approval of the chief). We hope they will give additional incentive to the community to protect these waters and help create a sustainable fund for management of this and other village projects. Furthermore, the lines will act as FADs (fish aggregating devices) around which fish may group or swim.

A great reason to give thanks, indeed!

I am thankful for this and all my experiences here in Fiji, for the wonderful people who help make projects like this happen, and friends and family both near and far.

Thankful today, thankful for every day.