Seabees Tribute (Palau)

In 1987 the US Navy Civic Action Team (Seabees) based in Palau assisted with the initial expansion of the MMDC Giant Clam Hatchery by building eight concrete raceway tanks on Malakal Island. This more than doubled the existing size of the facility, from 6 to 14 tanks. Rapid further growth of the MMDC was accomplished with revenues generated from clam hatchery sales. By 1994 the MMDC had 64 large clam tanks in production, a 10-fold expansion from the outset. Also added during this growth phase were a state-of-the-art hatchery, laboratory and administration building, a 2000-cage ocean clam nursery, a screen printing shop, a shellcraft fabrication shop and a profitable gift shop with stunning mini-reef displays built into the walls. More than 100 local and regional clam culture training courses were conducted; over 100 tons of clams were produced in the Malakal Harbor ocean nursery and yearly production of hundreds of thousands of baby clams was routinely achieved by the hatchery staff. MMDC's work marked a turning point in the global status of the giant clam resource, which until that point was considered threatened, endangered or already locally extinct from overfishing in many Pacific island nations. Giant clams can now be produced in abundance on farms in Palau and elsewhere, thanks largely to the pioneering mariculture efforts, research and regional outreach work of MMDC and the many giant clam hatcheries that followed in the tropical Pacific region. Inspiration for the ...



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