Today we went on an ISER - Caribe tour around the research center. Their aquaculture system at the facility was so fascinating; I've never seen a system that has an efficient way to pump water through the whole facility and into the aquaculture habitats. The water pump first starts from the boat basin and is then run through the entire island, which means that the water they are using to reach their aquaculture habitats is coming from the ocean itself, which I thought was super innovative. They also work on coral, sea urchin, and crab restoration and help with repopulating low populations of these organisms in their natural habitats. Further, we also had the opportunity to meet some of the staff, Amanda Prieto and Roger Guzman, who are both part of the coral reef restoration project. I was able to ask Roger about his dive experiences; he told me that the majority of his dives were all scientific dives, which I was very intrigued about. He told me about one of his previous jobs, aquaculture farming, but doing it underwater next to the actual reefs, which was mind-blowing to me. I am very thankful to Amanda and Roger for being able to take the time out of their day to answer our questions about their facility and aquaculture systems. I hopefully will be returning soon!
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