| Date: Tue 19-Oct-1993 Paper Page: 14 Publication: Daily Nation THE IMPORTANCE of the coral reefs in Barbados and other countries of the region, as well as the threats to their existence, are discussed in a just-released publication -- Corals And Coral Reefs In The Caribbean. Two West Indian secondary school teachers have edited a manual on coral and coral reefs for students and those with a general interest in the eco-environment. The teachers, Guyanese Eugenie Williams and Trinidadian Annette Edwards, have completed the 70-page textbook as a project for the Barbados-based Caribbean Conservation Association (CCA). A revision of an earlier work under the same theme by Eugenie Williams and Stafford Griffith, with illustrations by Nikki Meith, the manual is available for schools in the region and as general reading material. Corals And Coral Reefs In The Caribbean was produced and published by the CCA in co-operation with the United Nations Environmental Programme, United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation and the Canadian International Development Agency. Its release by the CCA coincides with the observance of October as "education month". The Executive Director of CCA, Calvin Howell, states in a foreword to the manual that coral reefs "are some of the most biologically diverse marine eco-systems in the world. . ." Understanding the importance of coral reefs as a biological and economic resource is critical to their protection and management, said Howell. This makes the revised edition of Corals And Coral Reefs In The Caribbean a valuable source of information. The material in the manual may be used in the school system with such subjects as social studies, biology, geography and integrated science. Williams, who has served as a member of the CXC Integrated Science Single Award Panel, previously authored A Teacher's Guide To Environmental Education and New Integrated Science For The Caribbean -- books one, two and three. Edwards, currently a post-graduate student in the Marine Resource and Environmental Management Programme of the University of the West Indies, had earlier edited, along with Reginald Burke, Environmental Pollution, a fact sheet done for the CCA. Corals And Coral Reefs In The Caribbean begins with a simple explanation: "Most likely on your visit to the sea, you have seen white pieces of rock-like material lying on the beach. "This rocky material, which is called `coral', is really formed by many tiny animals living side by side. Each one of these animals is known as a "coral polyp" (pronounced poll-ip)." Coral polyps are tiny, soft, transparent, flower-like animals which, according to the manual, "live together to form groups or colonies". The manual provides readers with a wide range of information, such as how coral reefs are formed, where they are found, the coral reef eco-system and the importance of coral reefs and the threats to their existence. |