[Slamajamajama]

Quote: Originally Posted by clarionreef 1) How and who the surveys and thrice yearly monitorings will take place. What is being checked for? How is it being checked for? etc. The survey team is comprised of...three Filipinos from the old MAC/REEFCHECK experience....and two from the University in Port Moresby who are also working within Fisheries. They survey the reefs for fish and invert counts w/ 100 meter transect lines prior to collection...then they keep track of the same reefs three times a year to monitor impacts. 2) How will the business structure be set up so local villages and fishermen do reap the benefits? We start the pricing structure off to insure that the divers prices are fair in the world market sense...ie similar to Bali and Filipino pricing. THIS WAY BUYERS CANNOT BE CAVALIER AND EXPLOITIVE W/ THE PRICING TO DIVERS. Since the fish abundance is so high in their areas and since they don't run long range multi-day boat trips burning thru gasoline all day, they get to keep a better % then other divers. The lack of killing coral as a methodology will keep the fishes near home for good and we will finally get to see the sustainable refilling of fishes that many of us already have in cleaner collecting places. Fishers will elect their own spokesman and these guys will interact more with the buyers in Port Moresby DIRECTLY. We will teach these guys all they need to know to market to Moresby buyers without middlemen....giving them the midlemens cut. Filipinos would be so jealous! THEN AGAIN, FILIPINOS RUINED THEIR NEARBY REEFS W/ CROWBARS AND CYANIDE IMPOVERISHING THEMSELVES FUTHER. 3) Why is it so important for hobbyists to be involved from the outset? In what way did leaving hobbyists out of prior reform efforts help doom them to failure? RD As I have said before, the other groups left em out and owed em nothing. They also ignored em and engineered a huge history of mistakes that aquarium savy people wouldn't make. I AM AQUARIUM PEOPLE 100%...but being from a Democratic tradition, I think the more witnesses and participants you have in an important endeavor, the better. You always need some peers around and people of equal intelligence and similar experience as possible to avoid the excesses of absolute power and detachment.

im still not all warm and fuzzy about all this, but I wish you the best of luck on this venture...Happy New Year.