About a year before my barracuda attack, local
divers were complaining that some reefs were being
smothered with algae. I was quickly able to find the
source of the nutrients -- a captive dolphin pen inside
the Cozumel marine park. Masses of algae typical
of sewage outfalls covered the down current side of
the enclosure, and were killing coral reefs up to a
kilometer down current, but were completely absent
from areas up-current. I made a documentary film
showing the impact there, at another dolphinarium
in Isla Mujeres, Mexico, and at the Turtle Farm in
Grand Cayman, to point out that if such small and
local sources could produce such impacts, that of
human sewage was vastly worse. You can see the film at:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDT_q1LwGmA
The response of the Marine Park was to “shoot the
messenger” and protect the coral killers rather than
protect corals. They denied there was any problem,
told the press that I knew nothing about corals or
algae or water quality (all issues on which I have many
scientific publications) and that I was a trouble maker
trying to destroy their tourist industry. The head of
the Cancun Isla Mujeres National Marine Park told
me that I was not allowed to discuss my observations as
this was “a political matter, not a scientific one.” When
I insisted that there was a real problem that needed to
be addressed, they cancelled all my projects restoring
coral reefs in the marine parks that had run for around
seven years.
Many or most of the dolphins had been imported
from the Solomon Islands, in clear violation of another
Mexican Federal law banning the introduction of any
exotic species into National Marine Parks. But these
laws were ignored because of the large revenues the
marine parks get from licensing their waters to captive
dolphin operators.
– Thomas Goreau