Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease (SCTLD)
Since the discovery of Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease (SCTLD) on the north wall of Grand Cayman in June 2020, the Department of Environment (DoE) continues to battle with this deadly coral disease which has devastated reefs in Florida and around the Caribbean.
The DoE held a meeting with watersports and dive operators on the 16th October 2020 to update persons in the industry about the nature of this disease and DoE’s response, to request the public’s assistance in reporting any possible disease sightings, and to request that dive sites in diseased areas be avoided. This meeting can be viewed on CIG television here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97ItvlR22T4&t=2628s
The DoE held an update meeting on the 26th February 2021 for all watersports and dive operators given that the disease had progressed beyond the DoE’s managed firebreak. The full meeting can be viewed on CIG television here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tq14ka1Jaf0.
For more information, contact the Lead Coordinator of the SCTLD Response Project at [email protected] or report SCLTD with any photos that you take at: https://five.epicollect.net/project/cayman-islands-coral-disease-and-bleaching. For urgent issues, please contact the SCTLD hotline at +1-345-926-0680.
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Latest location of SCTLD
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Disinfecting Guidelines
The following protocols from NOAA (https://floridakeys.noaa.gov/coral-disease/citizen-participation.html Credit: Athena Burnett/NOAA) should be used by all persons diving or snorkeling anywhere in the Cayman Islands.
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