June 12, 2009 — The Virgin Islands Mangrove Research and Conservation Coalition has been selected as the Coastal Zone Organization of the Year by the Coastal Zone Management Program of the V.I. Department of Planning and Natural Resources. VIMRCC also won the 2008 V.I. Coastal Zone Management Program Awareness Award, given for helping manage, enhance and protect the territory’s coastal and ocean resources.
VIMRCC does coastal cleanups and gives presentations on mangrove ecology, marine debris and similar subjects. It awards merit badges to members of Boy Scouts of America Troop 156, and gives presentations at local schools, the St. Thomas Agricultural Fair and UVI’s Afternoon on the Green.
The coalition collects data on the territory’s mangrove habitats over time, which can be compared with mangrove information from other parts of the Caribbean and the world. VIMRCC's newest endeavor is a partnership with Virgin Islands Sea Tow to remove derelict vessels in the territory. Since September 2008, more than 30 derelict vessels have been removed from Benner Bay. The VIMRCC project coordinator, UVI graduate student Sophia McKenzie, will receive the awards June 26 on behalf of the coalition on St. Croix.
The VIMRCC coalition grew from a project by Nasseer Idrisi at UVI's Center for Marine and Environmental Studies in 2006. Idrisi's project was funded with a grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration through the Gulf of Mexico Foundation for mangrove research and community outreach on environmental awareness.
The St. Thomas Fishermen’s Association, the Environmental Association of St. Thomas-St. John, V.I. Ecotours and the Friends of the Virgin Islands National Park actively helped VIMRCC too, according to a UVI statement on the award.
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