Hydroflux helps Fiji protect coral reefs

Global environmental leaders have named 2018 the International Year of the Reef, in an effort to protect the planet’s coral from the effects of rising water temperatures and ocean acidification. As part of this initiative, Fijian Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama has announced the nomination of large portions of Fiji’s Great Sea Reef as a Ramsar site, designated under international treaty as a wetland important for the conservation of global biological diversity and for sustaining human life.

“We are engaged in a battle for the future of these reefs,” Bainimarama said, claiming that threats to the reef include climate change, chemical and wastewater run-off from neighbouring urban settlement, and industry.

“We approved the nomination of large parts of the Great Sea Reef as a Ramsar site to protect it for future generations.

“Today I appeal to every single person on Earth to help us. We must replace the present culture of abuse with a culture of care.”

But winning the battle for the future of the reefs is not quite so simple. While healthy coral reefs can exist over a wide range of natural nutrient environments, the heat and light stress tolerance of corals — and thus their bleaching susceptibility and recovery after bleaching events — is adversely affected by high dissolved inorganic nutrient loads.

Higher than normal inorganic nutrient loads disrupt the finely balanced environmental conditions necessary for coral to thrive via multiple pathways. Increased phytoplankton loads can supply more food for the larvae of the crown of thorns starfish, limit light penetration and cause an abundance of filter feeders. High algal growth, fuelled by the unnatural abundance of inorganic nutrients, meanwhile outcompetes and smothers both live and bleached coral, releases algal toxins and depletes oxygen, inhibiting growth and recovery.

Inorganic nutrients make their way into the coral reefs from a wide variety of sources, including fertiliser usage, deforestation, land use for grazing, urban stormwater pollution and lack of sewage treatment or poor nutrient removal in sewage treatment plants. Even mobilisation of sediments via trawling and dredging increases the levels of nutrients. Making matters worse, nutrient stress on coral reefs often occurs a considerable distance from the source, via the movement of the increased phytoplankton loads.

Hydroflux Pacific, Hydroflux’s latest addition to its environmental group, is located in the heart of Fiji’s capital of Suva, and has already started helping with the battle for the future of the reefs. Bringing global technology to the country along with the necessary local support, the company is helping Fiji treat wastewater from both industry and resorts, all of which potentially makes its way into the local coral reefs.

The Hydroflux Group has a number of major projects underway in the region. This includes the provision of a wastewater treatment plant at the Musket Cove Island Resort, located in the remote Malolo Lailai, and several more packaged sewage treatment plants under construction for other major resorts in Liku Liku, Malolo and Matamanoa in the Fijian Mamanuca group of islands. Hydroflux’s range of packaged sewage treatment solutions treat wastewater generated by guests, in addition to that from the laundry and the kitchens, to a standard suitable for re-use in irrigation, thus ensuring the environmental sustainability of the resort and helping protect the fragile neighbouring coral reefs into the future.

Hydroflux Industrial is currently constructing a wastewater treatment plant for a multinational food and beverage company in Suva, taking significant pollutant and inorganic nutrient load off the local municipal sewage treatment plant. The plant incorporates the Hydroflux Group’s HyDAF Dissolved Air Flotation, Hydroflux HUBER Screening and HUBER QPRESS dewatering, as well as Hydroflux HySMART SBR technology, all designed to treat high-strength industrial wastewater so that the discharge complies with Fiji’s National Liquid Waste Management Strategy.

Hydroflux Pacific fully supports Prime Minister Bainimarama and his appeal to every single person on Earth to help save the coral reefs of the world.

Image caption: Musket Cove Island Resort, located in the remote Malolo Lailai, Fiji.