Our Coral Initiative
After attending a diseased coral training (SCTLD) in 2019, Sarah Elise, owner of Crystal Clear, further pursued identification and treatment to protect the reefs in Vieques. She and Emily (a former CC guide) are the only individuals in all of Vieques permitted to do such work. From 2019 to 2022, Crystal Clear treated corals in Vieques, supported by DRNA, the community, and funds from Crystal Clear tours. In 2023, facing a Caribbean-wide bleaching event, Crystal Clear resumed coral reef surveys, including joining a pilot program with the Department of Natural Resources for a citizen science coral reef report. We educate about this and many other conservation topics during our Private Reef Report Snorkel Tour.
Community involvement
With education and conservation being our top priorities, we volunteer with a local program called MANTA, run by The Vieques Conservation & Historical Trust. We also hold an annual fundraiser for the program and have raised over $7000 in the past two years, including donations from Crystal Clear.
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There are many nonprofits in Vieques that benefit the island, so we also donate yearly to the Vieques Humane Society and a nonprofit called Vieques Love, one that works towards better resiliency of the island.
