THE BOTTOM – As the Saba Conservation Foundation’s ReLeaf Saba reforestation project ends, the Public Entity’s reforestation project takes over monitoring and maintenance of both outplanted trees and those in the tree nursery.

ReLeaf Saba project team and the Public Entity’s reforestation project team at the Thais Hill reforestation site for a symbolic handover of the project.

This step was taken to ensure the survival of the trees and to ensure the efforts of the SCF have a lasting impact. These trees will play a critical role in increasing Saba’s biodiversity, further helping the land restoration efforts of the Public Entity and in making Saba more resilient to climate change.

To prepare for this, the management of both projects met for a smooth transition of trees and all relevant data that the Public Entity’s reforestation project will need to continue with the monitoring and maintenance of the trees. Over the span of the project, over 1,500 trees have been outplanted by the ReLeaf team across 6 different sites. The outplanted trees have been recorded in a database, which will help the Public Entity’s reforestation team with continued monitoring and maintenance. These trees will be monitored for another year to ensure they continue to grow in the natural environment of Saba until they are established and are able to survive on their own.

The saplings remaining in the SCF’s tree nursery that had not been outplanted were also transferred to the Public Entity’s reforestation project. Both project teams transferred over 300 saplings and other plant species to the new nursery site of the Public Entity’s reforestation project. These trees will be used by the Public Entity’s reforestation project for outplanting. In the meantime, the trees will be kept and cared for at its new and second nursery site at the hydroponics farm project in Rendezvous.

The Saba Conservation Foundation started its ReLeaf Saba reforestation project in April 2023. This project was done in collaboration with the reforestation project of St. Eustatius National Parks Foundation (STENAPA) in St. Eustatius, was funded by the European Union program RESEMBID (Resilience Sustainable Energy and Marine Biodiversity) and implemented by ExpertiseFrance. This project has helped enhance Saba’s national park and the Public Entity’s ability to respond to the needs of the marine environment through reforestation, which will help improve the ecosystem services, biodiversity, and economic resilience of the island.