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MPA Program Newsletter

V O L 4 . , N O . 1 A U G U S T 2 0 1 1 F A G A T O G O , A M E R I C A N S A M O A

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Marine Stewardship Learning Exchange in Apia, Samoa

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Participants in the Marine Steward Learning Exchange at the village of Satalo in Safata district March 2011

From 21st 24th March 2011 a group of 24 people travelled to Samoa to participate in a marine protected area (MPA) learning exchange. The group was made up of representatives from existing and potential Village Marine Protected Area villages and staff members. They participated in a four day event hosted by both Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) and Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE) in Apia, Western Samoa. The objectives of the exchange were to provide a forum for information gathering and sharing between community and government leaders of the two Samoas working on similar community-based MPA projects and to engender a sense of stewardship in the participants and increase their participation in management related efforts in the future. On the first day of the exchange, the participants were greeted by the managers of the two Government agencies in Samoa and were welcomed by a traditional Ava ceremony. Afterwards there were presentations from both agencies about their respective MPA Programs and the village by-laws that exist for the MAFF villages. The second day of our visit was spent with the MAFF visiting some of the their villages on the south coast. We met with village representatives from Tafatafa village in the Falealili district. Once again, our group were warmly welcomed by an Ava ceremony after which presentations were given by various village representatives from the district. They discussed things such as their goal in establishing MPAs and their efforts to carry out aquaculture projects such as Giant Clam culture. Our village representatives had a lot of questions and there was a good exchange between the two Samoan entities. Following a hearty lunch provided by the village, we were taken to see their sites and got to discuss things such as the marking of boundaries and the selection of size and location of the sites.

Our Deputy Director also made a small presentation about the programs that we have here in American Samoa but it is anticipated that we will share much more information about these when our Samoan counterparts reciprocate the exchange. On the third day, we were hosted by the MNRE and visited sites in the south east of Upolu in Aleipata district. We spent the morning in Vailoa village where after a traditional welcome there were several presentations from village representatives. There were representatives from both Aleipata and Safata districts present and presentations were given from them and Pulea Ifopo of MNRE.
Representatives from the village of Fagasa and Alofau in Satalo, Safata

Participants in the Marine Stewardship Learning Exchange in Lalomanu, Aleipata district

Discussions revolved around emphasizing the importance of community involvement in decision making and discussing some of the challenges that they face. After another delicious lunch, we were taken to visit the sites of their MPAs and to continue the exchange in an informal manner which allowed for open and free discussion. During the final morning of our exchange visit, we had three main objectives which were to; discuss some of the lessons learned, to establish a mechanism and a date on which to hold a post exchange workshop and finally to carry out an evaluation of the trip. These objectives were all met by holding a meeting at the hotel. There was some good exchange between our participants about what they had learnt and what the differences were between the two Samoas (in terms of MPA designation and management). The group decided to hold the post exchange in the summer months when the information is still fresh in their heads. This was an extremely successful event, the funding for which came from CRAG as part of the Coral Reef Initiative funds. It is hoped that more similar exchanges will be hosted in the future.

Youth Summit with Western Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Council

Marine-Life Reserves News, Vol. 3, No. 2, March, 2010 Page

Students also received a lot of prizes from the WPRFMC. Prizes were cooler bags, snorkel and mask sets, rod and reels, water quality testing kits and GPS units. The Youth Summit went well with the participation of all the people that made it possible. Thanks to the WPRFMC from Hawaii for all the hard work in organizing this event.

CFMP Booth & VMPA Presentation by Selaina Tuimavave

On Saturday the 5th of March 2011, representatives from the Western Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Council (WPRFMC) from Hawaii hosted a Youth Summit at the Lee Auditorium in Utulei. They had presentations and booths set up by the Department of Marine and Wildlife Resources (DMWR), Natural Resources Conservation Services (NRCS), Fagatele Bay National Marine Sanctuary and also a booth from a representative from Hawaii demonstrating nutrient testing in streams. This event was open to the public but the attendees were mainly from; Samoana High School, Poly Tech High School and some parents and teachers that were there supporting the event. The participants learned that it is important to take care of our marine environment and also marine resources that are found in it and about the work that is being done as a result of funding from the Fishery Council. A student from Hawaii talked about his research into a traditional lunar calendar and another researcher from Hawaii discussed a project that they have carried out measuring nutrients throughout the watershed with the assistance of students. Dr. Phil Wiles (EPA) gave a presentation on the ADCP surveys that have been carried out by him and staff from the Department of Marine and Wildlife Resources. He discussed the effects of the tide and the currents and showed data from the recent current surveys in Amanave and Aunuu. Students from both Samoana and Poly Tech also had a chance to learn from the Community Based Fisheries Management Program (CFMP) in a presentation that was given by the Project Leader, Selaina Tuimavave. The no-take MPA Program staff were able to discuss the program and the benefits of MPAs when the students rotated around the booths. Representatives from the MPA Program were talking about the different process the villages have to go through to have a Marine Protected Area. They also discussed the outreach programs they carry out in the youth groups, schools, churches and villages. Rules and Regulations were also discussed during the booth display.

Dr. Phil Wiles presenting on the ADCP Project and Dr. Domingo Ochavillo with his Biosampling booth

Pavaiai Elementary School Outreach

Maria Vaofanua introducing the DMWR to Pavaiai Elementary School fifth Graders

Friday April 15 2011, the Information Education Division (IED) from the Department of Marine and Wildlife Resources received an invitation from Pavaiai Elementary School to present on the topic of coral reefs to the 5th graders (10 year olds). The Marine Protected Area Program made presentations about why MPAs are important, what can be protected and the benefits of MPAs including larval transport, and spillover. Afa Uikirifi and Onosai Toimoana talked about the Community based Fisheries Management Program (CFMP), Sione Lam Yuen Jr and Tafito Aitaoto talked about the No-Take MPA Program, and Maria Vaofanua, Lusila Minoneti, Herbie Umi, Sitivi Iosua and Auvaa Soonaolo held a fishing clinic. A fishing clinic is where students learn how to use rods and reels for fishing, rather than illegal fishing methods or destructive fishing methods such as dynamite, Ava Niukini and Clorox.

No-Take MPA booth by Lucy Jacob and Sione Lam Yuen Jr

Shey Auelua and Carl Tiffany from the boat based monitoring team talked about how they interview fishermen and the types of questions they ask such as how long were you out fishing?, what time were you fishing?, what fishing method did you use to catch the fish?. The team also measure and identify all of the fish that they survey. There were more than 100 students so we divided ourselves into four groups and the students rotated into these four groups. We really enjoy doing these types of activities with our young students of American Samoa because it teaches them to protect their coral reefs. They also learn about the work of the Department of Marine and Wildlife Resources and maybe one day some of those students will come and work with us!
Sione Lam Yuen Jr explaining the importance of having a balanced ecosystem to the 5th graders at Pavaiai Elementary School

Marine-Life Reserves News, Vol. 3, No. 2, March, 2010 Page

Other departments also working together on these activities include NOAA Pacific Island Regional Office (PIRO), the Department of Commerce (DOC) and ASCC-Land Grant. Presentations from each agency were delivered in accordance with their work and in relationship to parts of the environment being emphasized in the workshop. Part of the PLA process is developing and implementing management strategies to address issues raised by the community while the workshops were conducted. Remnants of the old clam farm in Nuuuli were categorized by the villagers as an area that needs to be cleaned up. As an outcome of the PLA workshop, an assessment of the site was carried out by a team led by DMWRs no-take MPA Program on 24th of May, 2011. The old net that was used to surround the site has been decaying and become tangled to the bottom sea floor. While some parts of the netting are loose, others have been cemented to the sea floor making them very hard to remove. Ropes and buoys marking the site have been worn out and are still anchored to the bottom with cement bricks. Corals have grown over some metal fencing and worn out nets. On June 24, 2011, the DMWR performed a clean-up at the area in Nuuuli village that was the former location for a clam farm. Several articles including nets, ropes and floats were collected and were disposed of at the Futiga and ASPA disposal area. Quite a few scrap metals and plastics were also collected from the beach adjacent to the location of the clam farm. This effort fulfills part of the Departments mission statement with the aim to manage and protect the marine resources from harmful effects. In addition, other agencies involved had performed clean-ups of streams and have collected trash nearby the streams that made up parts of the Nuuuli watershed.

Afa Uikirifi, Shey Auelua, Carl Tiffany and Sitivi Iosua; other representatives from DMWR during the Coral Reef Outreach at Pavaiai Elementary School

Ofu and Olosega Manua MPA Workshop Nuuuli Watershed Management PLA Workshop

Representatives from DMWR, CRAG and ASEPA at the Assembly of God Church in Nuuuli

Some members of the DMWR have been actively participating in carrying out Participatory Learning and Action (PLA) workshops on watershed management in the village of Nuuuli. This collaborative effort, led by American Samoa Environmental Protection Agency (ASEPA) has been put forth in view of the fact that each agency has jurisdiction on parts of the environment impacted by watersheds.

Silifaiva Faiai the Mayor of Olosega with DMWR representatives and Carlo Caruso from the National Park Service

In an on-going effort to promote MPAs in American Samoa, several staff members of the DMWR conducted workshops in Manua at Ofu, Olosega and Sili villages. The purpose was to understand the management needs of the community in relation to marine resources, to empower the community to improve the

Marine-Life Reserves News, Vol. 3, No. 1, March, 2010

management of their marine environment and to improve collaboration between DMWR and the community. A total of more than eighty individuals with ages ranging from 8 to 75 participated. Titled and untitled men and women as well as children attended the workshop and carried out the activities in groups. Presentations were made about MPAs after which a series of activities were carried out. These were historical profiles, resource mapping, identification of problems causes and solutions, prioritization of issues and an MPA design activity. As documented during the activities, marine resources in Manua are slowly declining. The use of illegal fishing methods and pollution from landfills were some of the key problems. Requests were made to have scientific research conducted and increase enforcement of fisheries regulations to solve some of the problems that are threatening the marine resources. Some of the work that has been scheduled in relation to the problems voiced by the participants of the workshop includes a collaborative work between American Samoa Environmental Protection Agency (ASEPA), National Parks Service (NPS) and the US Geological Survey to carry out some preliminary research into the pollution from the landfill that will be done in September 2011. The DMWR Director also attended a site visit to the land fill with ASPA who were working to clean it up in June 2011. The DMWR director held meetings with the suspected suppliers of dynamite to fishermen and tried to prevent such transactions taking place. This should protect the fish and the coral from such destructive fishing methods. A follow up workshop is yet to be conducted depending on the availability of village councils and it is hoped to provide more information on MPAs to the village councils. I realized that the ocean did not just bring warm sand to lie on or provide tide pools to look at baby fish. It was a key part of life! My love for the ocean from my childhood years only grew and I was sure I wanted to be around the sea for my entire life. To make that dream a reality, I am now a sophomore at ASCC, majoring in Marine Science. One of my favorite classes was my Aquaculture class where I learned how to raise fish. In addition, this internship here at the Department of Marine and Wildlife Resources (DMWR) gives me firsthand experience on what it is like to work for the waters. I've learned so much from working with Marine Protected Area (MPA) Program team. While here, I joined Lucy Jacob, Tafito Aitaoto and Sione Lam Yuen Jr in an outreach with the Fagaalu Participatory Learning Action (PLA) Community Outreach concerning their watersheds. It surprised me that although the people did not exactly know what a watershed was but they were determined to learn more about what they can do to protect it. I also attended a meeting about the Marine Protected Area (MPA) Workshop that the MPA Programs had in Manua, this meeting is a recap on the threats to the marine environment of Olosega Manua. Information about threats and ways to minimize them were presented. All were exciting but my favorite experience was the snorkeling at the old DMWR Clam Farm in Nuuuli. I saw a lot of tiny fish, most of which I didn't know, but now I know their names. I am currently practicing my fish ID; this is studying the scientific, common and Samoan name for fishes that are found in the Pacific. I love the ocean because it links our people together. Fishermen, farmers, lawyers, doctors, teachers, men, women, the young and the old all need the ocean. We depend on it to keep a balance in the circle of life. The next time I will be in this newsletter, I won't be just a sophomore at ASCC, but rather a marine biologist here at DMWR. I don't have the eyes of a snorkeler, the stomach of a sailor, the lungs of a diver, or even the arms of a swimmer, but that will never keep me out of the ocean that I love!

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Marine-Life Reserves News

Editor-in-Chief Lucy Jacob Authors and Project Assistant Sione Lam Yuen Jr Tafito Aitaoto Layout Artist Sione Lam Yuen Jr Editorial Board Chair - Ufagafa Ray Tulafono, Director Department of Marine and Wildlife Resources All content has been written by the Marine -Life Reserves News editorial staff unless otherwise attributed. Marine-Life Reserves News is funded by: Federal Aid in Sports Fish Restoration (Dingell-Johnson and the Wallop-Breaux Amendment) Director a Response to: Marine-Life Reserves News, Department of Marine and Wildlife Resources, P.O. Box 3730, Pago Pago, American Samoa, 96799, E-mail: mpa.americansamoa @gmail.com Tel: (684) 633-4456 Fax: (684) 633-5944 Subscriptions to

No-Take MPA intern at DMWR

Marine-Life Reserves News are free. To subscribe, send an e-mail to mpa.americansamoa @gmail.com Type "subscribe MLR newsletter" on the subject line, in order to receive your free electronic copy. Paper copies are also available at the DMWR office upon request.

Faasalafa Diana Kitiona No-Take MPA Intern

Did You Know?

Many corals have

Born as the granddaughter of a former fisherman, I have always had a passion for the great blue. My name is Faasalafa Kitiona and I want to be a Marine Biologist. I was only five when my grandparents took me to Apia on our family boat. I was fascinated with the seabirds above our heads and the dolphins that raced along the boat side. When we arrived my uncle came out in a canoe to bring us to the shore. It was amusing to discover that we weren't the only passengers. Fish, that night's dinner, filled one end of the canoe. I did not think about it then, but when I looked back at that experience,

zooxanthellae within their tissues. Zooxanthellae are algae that form a symbiotic relationship with the coral by producing organic compounds that the coral polyps use. This food source enables the corals to grow faster than they would without the zooxanthellae.

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