The rapid spread of the invasive lionfish in the western Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea has reduced native reef fish numbers by up to 80% in some locations and is reducing the resilience of coral reef ecosystems that are already threatened by overfishing, pollution and climate change. The CLEAR team will work with the Division of Fisheries in St Lucia, the Travel Foundation and local stakeholders to implement a programme of activities aimed at increasing the volumes of locally-caught lionfish to hotels and restaurants.
The project will focus mainly on fishers from the communities in the South of St Lucia, which account for at least 60% of national lionfish landings but have few supply chain linkages with the tourism sector in the north of the island. The project hopes to directly contribute to the sustainability of local fishers’ livelihoods and to the resilience of coastal ecosystems threatened by this invasive species.
