The Long Island Conservancy is a registered Bahamian not-for-profit corporation that was originally created to oversee the restoration of The Salinas’ coastal wetlands, which are home to countless critical marine and terrestrial species in the Bahamas.
Beginning with the conservation, restoration and stewardship of The Salinas Nature Reserve, the Long Island Conservancy’s mission is to conserve, restore and protect lands and waters in and around Long Island, Bahamas—including the proposed 215,000 acre marine managed area—through the educational, promotional, and scientific activities and support.
LIC’s longer-term vision is to support the sustainable development of Long Island with respect to its natural infrastructure, biodiversity conservation, its communities and employment. LIC works with partners such as the Bahamas National Trust on conservation, restoration, and stewardship projects including the establishment of The Salinas Nature Reserve.
While our ecological work is ongoing, several initiatives are currently underway.
Removing invasive species, inclusive of Australian Pine and Hawaiian sea grape, and replacing them with a native landscape palette. Over years of neglect, invasive plants have overtaken vast areas of the site, preventing native species from taking root and providing habitat for fauna.
Preserving, enhancing and creating additional habitats for migratory shorebirds and resident bird species. Many migratory shorebirds, as well as resident endemic birds, call The Salinas Nature Reserve home. Habitat enhancements include creating additional inland islands for nesting, establishing low disturbance areas, and providing lagoon areas with ideal habitat conditions.
Improving the hydrology of the intertidal lagoon system to promote biodiversity and population growth. The intertidal lagoons, as well as the coastal environment, are home to several high conservation priority marine species inducing Parrotfish, Queen Conch, Lemon Shark, Stingrays, and seagrasses. Improving flushing across the lagoon system, which is currently heavily impacted from its industrial past, will vastly improve food sources, habitat conditions and overall species abundance and diversity.
Remediating years of industrial damage from the site’s solar sea salt operations requires re-engineering the hydrology throughout the intertidal lagoon system. After creating a hydrodynamic model of the coastal and lagoon areas of The Nature Reserve of our site through extensive data collection, we have arrived at a site plan, including additional coastal openings and berm reconfigurations, to guide our remediation efforts. These remediation efforts will improve flushing throughout the site, which is essential to balancing the salinity, improving food sources, and enhancing the overall habitat conditions for critical species.
