Construction commences on a horticulture nursery to aid in the management and care of a major grass project

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Construction of a horticulture nursery with dimensions of 30ft x 50ft is currently being erected in Bendals on the property for the Ministry of Agriculture under the management of the Forestry Unit.

 

This nursery will aid the provision for the management and care of 3,000 vetiver grass which will be imported from Dominica under a regional externally funded project entitled  Strengthening Coastal and Marine Climate Resilience through Community Engagement and Ecosystem Based Adaptation Solutions in Upland Rural Watersheds”.

 

The project addresses the increasing climate risks driving degradation of marine resources that underpin coastal community livelihoods.

 

Increased development of coastal communities and upstream watersheds are degrading ecosystems and the services they provide and increasing climate vulnerability.

 

Coastal areas are affected by sediment-laden and contaminated run-off caused by buildings and infrastructure development, agriculture with high agro-chemical use, domestic and industrial effluents and chemicals generated through waste disposal and landfills.

Under this project, the Vetiver System (VS) embedded in a ridge-to-reef approach and combined with other traditional and innovative techniques including terracing, swales, sheet mulch and composting, will be used to build climate resilience in coastal and upstream watershed communities.

 

A participatory approach to knowledge (traditional and scientific) sharing will be used to inform the design and development of solutions through DATE (Diagnostic, Action planning, Trying-out and Evaluation) process at each phase of implementation.

 

The Cooks Landfill was selected as the main project site whereby 35, 000 vetiver grass will be planted along the ridge/base of the landfill which borders the mangrove swamp for the Five Islands Community.

 

This 1.6 million USD project is a regional project currently being implemented in Antigua & Barbuda, Dominica, St. Lucia and Trinidad & Tobago and is funded by Caribbean Bio-Diversity Funds  (CBF) Ecosystem -based Adaptation (EbA) Facility.

 

IICA is the coordinating and implementation agency and has partnered with other institutions for the execution of the project.

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2 COMMENTS

  1. How long is the “post/base expected to last?…….whoever designed that detail (shown in the photographs) should be relieved of their design duties……what a pi$$ poor detail…………….

  2. My question is,is this a sterile non seed producing variety of Chrysopogon zizanioides.If not how is the invasive species policelady Dr.Janil-Gore Francis allowed it to be imported as she wont allow any other grasses to be imported to help farmers create pasture for their animals

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