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As noted yesterday, Buccoo reef, now a national marine reserve, is stressed to the point that it may no longer be the main tourist attraction of the island. One reason is that it is smothered by algae as a result of surface water runoff and sewage effluent from overloaded septic tanks and malfunctioning package treatment plants. Over the years, communities have grown up in the vicinity of Buccoo and Bon Accord with little care or understanding of their effect on the marine environment.

Angostura Resorts has aimed to integrate the needs of the natural environment into its development and has so far constructed 2.6 hectares of a planned 32 hectares of fresh water wetlands to trap sediment and remove contaminants and nutrients from its own development and the existing communities. Deep and shallow lakes now slow the speed of the sediment-laden run off and catch some of the heaver particles while local and other flowering wetland plants remove contaminants.

The results have been very encouraging. Heavy metals, nutrients and fecal coliform have all shown dramatic declines, ranging from 40-90%, suggesting that the aim of revitalizing the reef system is realistic. The system has also achieved a second objective: to use the water features to improve vistas for residents and encourage them to connect with the wetlands and the wildlife they attract.