50,000 seeds planted at Penychain off the Llŷn Peninsula in Gwynedd
RH Desk
New Delhi, February 25
Showing an innovative way to fight climate change, Wales has decided to plant five million seagrass seeds along the country’s coast to create underwater meadows that are key to marine life.
The joint effort undertaken by the World Wildlife Fund in partnership with the Project Seagrass, Swansea University, North Wales Wildlife Trust and Pen Llŷn a’r Sarnau Special Area of Conservation, plans to restore the lost seagrass cover of Wales.
Earlier this week, 50,000 seeds were planted at Penychain off the Llŷn Peninsula in Gwynedd, BBC reported.
The World Wildlife Fund defines seagrass as a “wonder-plant that lives in shallow, sheltered areas along the sea coast.” Not only is the plant vital for marine life, they constitute important nursery habitat for several species of fishes.
According to Rory Francis of World Wildlife Fund, Wales had lost more than 90 percent of its seagrass in the last century. However, if the replanting efforts are taken at a larger scale, they could be restored.
“It could make a real difference in terms of both absorbing carbon and also of restoring really valuable and important marine habitats,” Francis said.
For now, the Seagrass Ocean Rescue is estimating 10 hectares (25 acres) of seagrass meadow by the end of 2026. One hectare of seagrass could provide a habitat for 80,000 fish, the project’s supervisors have said.
While the initiative is one of the many solutions to undo the impact of climate change, scientists are calling it an “important part of the jigsaw of solutions.”
“There is no one element that is better than the others but it is a key part of what they call nature-based solutions to climate change,” Swansea University’s Dr. Richard Unsworth told the BBC.
