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DMR HOST TRAINER OF TRAINERS DIAMONDBACK SQUID WORKSHOP

The Department of Marine Resource is hosting a Trainer of Trainers Diamondback Squid Workshop from 9 – 13 January 2017. With the identification of Diamondback Squid resources in the marine jurisdiction of the Federation, the DMR is seeking to carry out trials to assess the possibility of promoting the utilization of these resources. This workshop is the product of collaborations between the DMR, Department of Fisheries Nevis, as well as local and regional fishers to essentially train persons who will then train other fishers.

“There are five major fisheries: lobster, conch, reef and slope fisheries, small coastal pelagic and large ocean pelagic. Exploring the Diamondback Squid as a fishery can bring added economic benefit to St.Kitts and Nevis and provide food security while having the potential of enhancing the livelihood of fisherfolk. The DMR should work on expanding the market for Diamondback squid so more persons can enjoy it as much as I do”, added Workshop facilitator, Mitchell Lay, a fisher of Diamondback Squid in the Antigua.

The Trainer of Trainers Diamondback Squid Workshop has the following objectives:

  • Promote awareness of the availability of Diamondback Squid fisheries resources in St. Kitts and Nevis
  • Train fishers in the production of fishin    g gear for catching Diamondback Squid
  • Demonstrate the technique to catch Diamondback Squid
  • Train fishers in processing and packaging Diamondback Squid
  • Demonstrate the use of gear and equipment for catching Diamondback Squid suitable for small fishing vessels

Workshop activities include an initial gear and equipment assessment.  Aboard MV Transformation, an assessment of potential fishing grounds was done on Tuesday morning.  On site at the DMR, there were demonstrations of different gear types, gear making and a presentation of the squid life cycle, sustainability and fishing.  Experimental fishing trips will be done throughout the week to test the gear. On Friday, Diamondback Squid processing and value added activities and presentations would be completed.

 

Facilitator Mitchell Lay and Clive Wilkinson – preparing the gear

Fisheries Officer – Kharim Saddler

Fisheries Officer Kareem Wilkin assisting Kharim Saddler with set up

Squid gear and equipment

Participants from Department of Marine Resources and Department of Fisheries Nevis

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Fisher Consultations on Fisheries Regulations

The Department of Marine Resources held consultations with the fishers at every major landing site in the Federation during the month of November 2016.

The St.Kitts based consultations conducted at; 9th November at Old Road Fisheries Complex, 10th November at Pump Bay, Fig Tree for the Fig Tree and Sandy Point based fishers, 14th November at the Dieppe Bay Fisheries Cooperatives and 23rd November at the Basseterre Fisheries Complex for the Basseterre East and West based fishers.

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Meeting at Basseterre Fisheries Complex

The Nevis based consultations conducted at; 15th November at the Franklin Browne Community Center for New Castle, Long Haul and John’s Bay fishers, 17th November at the Charles Walters Community Center, Hanley’s Road for the Indian Castle based fishers and 21st November at the Gazebo fishers who use the landing site at Charlestown.

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Meeting at Franklin Browne Community Center

The fishers were engaged in an interactive session on topics that included Safety at Sea, Trading of Fish and Fishery Products, Illegal, Unregulated and Unreported Fishing, Basic Fisher Training, Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, Registration and New Identification Cards for Fishers, Vessel Monitoring Systems, St.Kitts and Nevis Marine Managed Areas, Species Catch Size Limits, Closed Seasons for vulnerable species, and Trap Mesh Sizes. Presentations were made by the Fisheries Enforcement Officer, Wilmot Alleyne.  The fisher feedback will be integrated into the final regulations document to be produced.

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 Meeting at Charlestown Gazebo

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St.Kitts and Nevis SocMon Workshop 2016

November 16 -18 2016 commenced the first phase of the Eastern Caribbean Marine Managed Areas Network (ECMMAN) Socio-Economic Monitoring for Coastal Management (SocMon) Capacity Building Workshop for the Narrows area in St.Kitts and Nevis.

The workshop’s overall objective was the development of the Site Monitoring Plan for the Narrows area through scoping exercises and capacity building through knowledge sharing – data collection, sampling, SocMon variables for monitoring and data analysis.  Technical expertise was provided by Maria Pena of Centre for Resource Management and Environmental Studies (CERMES) from the University of the West Indies Barbados http://www.cavehill.uwi.edu/cermes/home.aspx .

Images from Scoping exercise

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Workshop training

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Participants for the workshop included; Thema Ward – Physical Planning of the Department of Physical Planning, Natural Resources and Environment, Clive Wilkinson- Fisheries Officer, Department of Fisheries Nevis, Daniele Moore – Outreach Officer, Nevis Historical and Conservation Society and from the Department of Marine Resources were Marcia Stubbs -Education and Compliance Officer, Nikkita Browne – GIS Officer, and Tricia Greaux – MMA and Habitat Monitoring Officer.
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The second phase of the workshop would take place November 28 -29 using SocMon Spatial Tools.

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Declaration of St. Kitts Nevis Marine Management Area

Declaration of the St. Kitts & Nevis Marine Management Area (MMA)

On August 18th 2016, the Honorable Eugene Hamilton approved on behalf of the Government of the Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis the declaration of the St. Kitts and Nevis Marine Management Area as defined by the two (2) miles radius of sea water around the St. Kitts and Nevis’ coastline including the Monkey Shoals area to be managed by the Department of Marine Resources as the entity with jurisdiction of the Federal Waters of St. Kitts and Nevis as indicated in the Fisheries, Aquaculture and Marine Resources Act (FAMRA) 2016.

This St. Kitts and Nevis Marine Management Area has been proposed since the late 1980’s. Substantial work was completed in the 2010 Marine Zoning Plan for St. Kitts and Nevis after extensive multi-sectoral consultations to define the marine area to be managed and the zones within the area. However, the Fisheries Legislation at the time was inadequate to adequately manage the St. Kitts and Nevis Marine Management Area.

Since then several consultations and efforts have been geared towards increasing the awareness and importance of this proposed area. With the newly passed FAMRA 2016, there is now legislation that supports for proper management and governance of such an area.

The Government of St. Kitts and Nevis is thankful to the fisherfolk, government officials, Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine, the Eastern Caribbean Marine Management Areas Network and other stakeholders for their invaluable assistance during the process of establishing the SKNMMA.

 

 

 

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DMR participates in SKN Bureau of Standards Exhibition 2016

Members of the Department of Marine Resources participated in the inaugural exhibition hosted by the St. Kitts and Nevis Bureau of Standards celebrating World Accreditation Day 2016 on the Thursday June 9th.

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The Department of Marine Resources is incooperating standards as defined by International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to utilize an ecosystem based approach to Fisheries management.  This is evident in the tripartite structure of Aquaculture, Marine Management Areas (MMAs) and Fish Aggregating Devices (FADs).  Displays highlighted standards pertaining to cost of impact, criteria of proper evaluation, SMART techniques to be incooperated for result based management,  monitoring and evaluation mechanisms and the differences between them.

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Trade facilitation brochures were also on display which highlighted the processing of Fish and/or Fishery products. The procedures for import and export of fish/ fishery products include processing fees and certificates needed.

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For more information on the SKN Bureau of Standards World Accreditation Day exhibition see: http://www.sknvibes.com/news/newsdetails.cfm/96667

 

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CATS PROMOTES SAVING OUR CARIBBEAN PARADISE

 

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Department of Marine Resources (DMR) launches its new website!

A look at DMR’s website

 

Department of Marine Resources (DMR) launches new website and social media page.

The Department of Marine Resources (DMR) welcomes 2016 with exciting new ventures: diving into the mobile, web and social media revolution.

DMR has launched a responsive website and social media page via Facebook in an effort to connect with a wider audience. Director of DMR, Mr. Marc Williams stated “The new website provides a platform that allows us to inform interested individuals of our vision: to promote the sustainable use of all living marine resources in all waters of national jurisdiction and areas beyond the national jurisdiction of Saint Kitts and Nevis as well as projects undertaken by the Department of Marine Resources.”

The addition of our social media presence creates an avenue for interested persons to stay up to date with the plethora projects launched by the DMR.

Tricia Greaux, Marine Management Area and Habitat Monitoring Officer, DMR, is extremely excited “We would like persons to get a feel of our marine environment and change the attitude of fear of the ocean; we have used vivid visual and audio content (pictures, videos) on the website to help to enlighten the public”.

Caribbean Aqua-Terrestrial Solutions (CATS) Component 2 has funded the website which was developed and designed by local digital marketing company, Caribbean Commerce Ltd.

TAKE THE PLUNGE INTO DMR’s website www.dmrskn.com and COME SEE THE SEA with us by liking our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/DMRSKN

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