Codrington, Barbuda – A natural sea wall off the coast of Barbuda that has held back ocean currents and has protected the Codrington Lagoon from the open sea for decades, has been breached and is threatening the integrity of the marine ecosystem and livelihoods of the people on the island.

“With these breaks remaining open, Barbuda’s entire fishing industry is threatened, and we risk losing it completely along with our most important tourism attractions,” remarked marine biologist, John Mussington.

The Codrington Lagoon is considered as one of the most prominent ecological features of Barbuda and is designated as a Wetland of International Importance under the Ramsar Convention. Then lagoon is formed by a sand bar that is strengthened by several million grains of sand.

A breach occurred in the lagoon for the first time in recent years, after the passage of Category 5 Hurricane Irma in 2017.

John Mussington, a consultant marine biologist from Barbuda said the sea wall expanded by about 400 metres and after two years it had still not completely closed.

Again in 2019, unstable weather from a trough system which moved across the Northeast Caribbean caused the sand bar to widen even further and form a second breach in the sea wall.

Unlike when Category 4 Hurricane Luis breached the wall in 1995 and took less than six months to repair, this time the sand bar is taking much longer to naturally reconstruct itself.

What is at risk

There are many unfavourable outcomes that can occur if the breach does not close. For example, a break in the sea wall has allowed predator species and trophic interaction inside the lagoon.

Leroy Gore, President of the Barbuda Fisherfolk Association confirmed an increase in the presence of lionfish and tiger sharks inside the area. Normally, he said, sharks would occupy mangroves near the lagoon to breed but now they have been spotted throughout the entire lagoon.

This poses a risk to the life of sea bathers and according to Gore, it may be just a matter of time before an incident occurs.

“With the opening, we see a lot more activity happening within the lagoon. We see the flow of water has introduced a lot more different types of species within the lagoon. Species that were not thriving prior,” he explained.

Deon Desouza, a member of the Barbuda Fisherfolk Association, said they have noticed a decline in certain fish like parrot fish, snapper, red hind, chub and grouper. Both men acknowledged however that decline can also be attributed to overfishing in the area, as these species are in high demand.

The breakdown of the sand bar also means that a higher concentration of water can enter the lagoon and travel on to land and into the village. This means that more water is rushing landward when there is heavy rainfall and inclement weather systems.

In January 2020, Philmore Mullin, the then Director of the National Office of Disaster Services (NODS), expressed concern that the height and distance of water inland would increase.

The highest point of this low-lying coral island is only 125 ft above sea level. By sea and by air are the only two ways to depart from Barbuda. So, any seaward disaster could mean that about 1,500 people would be trapped on the island.

He suggested then that multi-storey buildings should be constructed on Barbuda amidst consistent warning of a tsunami threat in the Caribbean region.  That way, he said people can evacuate to high ground.

Meanwhile, Mussington is concerned that the entrance of ocean water will also change the salinity level in the lagoon.

The lagoon serves as a regional nursery and feeding ground for creatures like the spiny lobster, the endangered hawksbill and leather back turtles as well as a nesting colony of Frigate birds. The productivity from the lagoon helps strengthen coral reefs as well as ecosystems outside of the lagoon and is a major food source for Barbudans.

“Those larvae are taken by ocean currents throughout the region so, what happens in Barbuda impacts everywhere else,” he questioned. “The system works because there are certain parts of it that are isolated from the ocean. With that isolation it provides perfect sanctuary areas for juvenile fish, lobsters, conchs, all these things”

Sea creatures within the lagoon thrive on the enclosed system which offers them an abundance of food and because the salinity of the lagoon is higher than ocean water, the flavour of the catch is said to be tastier than in other areas. 

“The lagoon depends on its circulatory patterns. The salinity in the lagoon is 42 parts per 1000 and that’s pre-Irma. Ocean water is 35 parts per 1000,” he informed.

Historically, Barbudans have relied on fish as a major part of their diet and from a young age child are encouraged to fish for their own food in the lagoon.

The lagoon supports thriving lobster fishery. Some people sell their catch within the community to hotels or export the lobster commercially to other Caribbean islands.

Fishing is often the sole source of income for most families on the island where there is limited alternative employment.

But predatory fishing is likely to lessen the presence of the fish population and that of other marine life.

Seaside development & Climate Change to be blamed

Another local marine biologist, Ruleo Camacho explained that because the 2019 trough system, unlike Hurricane Irma, was more long standing, it would have led to more sand movement that could have resulted in the lagoon breach expansion.

“If you get one hit from someone verses someone who is consistently hitting you for three, four days, the impact, even though each hit is smaller, cumulatively becomes bigger”.

While no one has denied that the climate crisis has contributed to the current state of the lagoon, Mussington believes that coastal construction of the Light House Bay Hotel is what initially compromised the sea wall.

He explained that the issue started in 2004 when the hotel was allowed to be built “in a manner that went against the advice of the technical experts”.

“The situation was made worse in 2010 when a decision was made to lease an additional 30 acres of the sand bar to the same individual. Again, technical advice was ignored,” he said.

Within months of the expansion in 2011, he said erosion of what was once Luis beach had started.

“In 2012, there was a ground swell issue and that one ground swell issue started to expose the foundation of the building,” he recalled.

Under the zoning plan for the Lagoon National Park the sand bar is declared a no build area.

The marine biologist believes that the presence of the dilapidated concrete structure is part of what is causing the break to remain open and to widen.

What’s the Solution

Notes shared by Mussington during a workshop in Antigua on November 12, 2019 quotes Philmore Mullin, the then Director of the National Office of Disaster Services (NODS) as saying that it would cost $100 million to build barriers to close the breach.

But according to the marine biologist, authorities first need to address the effects of geotextile bags at Cedar Tree Point and tend to environmental issues at Palmetto Point, in addition to breaking down the remains of the Light House Bay Hotel to begin to remedy the problem.

Such efforts will help the sand bar begin to restore naturally. There is also the option of using artificially induced coral reefs to change the shape of the coastline.

“We have decided that the best course of action is to employ a technology that will actually help to grow the coral reef …if we can get them a boost so that they can actually grow and at the very least, not get worse from further storms,” he said.

This technique is called electro-deposition and will regenerate coral reef systems by running electric current through a piece of iron which will cause a deposition of calcium carbonate that forms corals. The low-voltage charge will use solar panels to accelerate the coral’s natural formation process.

Within a matter of months, Mussington believes that these corals will start to create their own ecosystems. “You will actually stimulate coral and other marine organisms to grow on that skeletal structure. And that’s exactly what a coral reef is, a skeletal structure with various organisms growing on it and soon you have an entire eco system,” he explained.

The reefs will also allow sand to accumulate and in return grow the size of the beach within the lagoon and stimulate sea grass and mangrove growth inside the lagoon. A combination of these will reverse the destruction or at the very least stop further erosion and create new ecosystems, Mussington noted.

The proposal has been drafted, and Mussington and his team are working to secure grant funding to pioneer this solution.