The Friends funds, supports, and implements projects and activities that further the protection of natural resources, preservation of cultural resources, and enhancement of environmental awareness.

Each fall, the Superintendent of Virgin Islands National Park submits a prioritized list of needs to the Friends' Board of Directors. Given limitations of federal funding for the Park - it typically meets only 70% of the Park's budgetary needs - Friends' support is often the only way critical programs and activities can take place.

The Friends' Board carefully considers the projects in the Park's Support Request. Those projects that are approved, along with Friends-initiated projects that the Board chooses to undertake, constitute our annual project plan. This year, 2008, we have committed to another ambitious and challenging project plan that will contribute to making Virgin Islands National Park a model of natural resource protection and cultural preservation. This year's program is projected to cost almost $400,000.

Natural Resource Protection

•Accessible Trails: A new and exciting program area for the Friends will be to assist the Park in making certain trails accessible to those with mobility difficulties – an obvious challenge given St. John’s terrain.
 		 •Adopt a Beach/Trail: Promote community participation in the park by organizing civic, religious, school and business groups to “adopt” a beach or trail for periodic cleanups.
 Adopted Sites

•Coral Reef Research: Annually support research projects that focus on various aspects of coral health on the reefs in VI National Park and the Coral Reef National Monument. Currently a fish species and population survey is being conducted at Leinster Bay.

 

 

•Resource Protection Moorings: 200 overnight boat moorings were installed in eight Park bays to protect sea grasses, mangroves, turtle habitat and coral reefs from damage by boat anchors. In 2004-2005, Friends funded the installation of an additional 75 moorings for day-use, storm refuge, dive sites, and fishing within Coral Reef National Monument. In 2006-2007, Friends funded the installation of 60 storm refuge moorings in Hurricane Hole, and will install an additional 30 storm moorings this coming Spring. Total expenditure to date on this activity has reached nearly $450,000. The Park now operates a fee collection system that will fund mooring maintenance and installation of additional moorings.

 

•SCA Trail Crews: Annual sponsorship of a crew of budding conservationists in partnership with the Student Conservation Association to repair and upgrade priority trails within the Park. We will again build on our experience of fielding a crew of young Virgin Islanders.

 

 

If you would like more information, or you would like to become involved in one of these projects, please come by the office or call. We invite members who are particularly interested in one of these projects to consider becoming a special sponsor of the project. Please contact our Development Director for more information, (340) 779-4940 or development@friendsvinp.org