From the Bonefish & Tarpon Trust:
A new project to restore Bahamian mangrove forests destroyed by Hurricane Dorian in 2019 has been launched by Bonefish & Tarpon Trust (BTT) and its partners Bahamas National Trust (BNT), Friends of the Environment and MANG, an environmental apparel brand that plants a mangrove for every product sold. Together, they seek to transplant up to 100,000 mangroves in the hardest hit areas with the help of Bahamian fishing guides, students and other volunteers.
“Mangroves are an essential part of the ecosystem that supports bonefish and other flats species,” said BTT President and CEO Jim McDuffie. “They provide habitat for fish and other wildlife, prevent coastal erosion, and help buffer the communities where our friends and partners live against storms. BTT is pleased to be a part of this important work.”
“An ocean without mangroves is like a world without air,” said Kyle Rossin, co-founder and CEO of MANG. Mangroves are the number one carbon sequestration tree in the world, and provide habitat for up to 70 percent of marine life. As an apparel brand dedicated to planting mangroves for every product we sell, we are donating over 100,000 mangroves propagules, seeds, and mature plants over the next five years to help restore these critical island lands. Our goal is to not only protect the island and it’s ecosystem through community-led planting events, but also to preserve the guide fishing economy and teach other organizations how to grow and maintain a mangrove nursery for long-term sustainability.”
To support the mangrove project, MANG and BTT launched a new apparel collection on February 2. The purchase of every shirt will fund the planting of a mangrove in the northern Bahamas, and a portion of the proceeds will benefit BTT.
About Bonefish & Tarpon Trust
Bonefish & Tarpon Trust’s mission is to conserve bonefish, tarpon and permit—the species, their habitats and the larger fisheries they comprise. BTT pursues this mission across the southeastern US, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean through science-based conservation, education and advocacy.