Looking for a positive here from someone who has been there during COVID. Has the lack of boats and tourism given the reefs a chance to recover a bit? I've noticed the past 30 years or so they are steadily declining. Just wondering if this "breather" has made any difference?

The reefs haven’t declined from tourism, over the years its basically the runoff from showers and storms which fills the bays with dirt and animal fecal matter.
The waters are still beautiful.

There has been a notable difference in the water clarity in CGB. Particularly back in May after the beaches were closed for 45 days!

I swim here in STT most days -- except for the earlier weeks when all the cruising// traveling boats inundated our local anchorages the waters are clear and corals have been very healthy and the grasses and turtles abundant.

Through a small foundation grant to JVD Preservation Society in partnership with H Lavity Stoutt Community College, as part of our ongoing work on mangrove restoration, Dr. Lianna Jarecki developed a nw water quality testing programme. Right after 24/7 lockdown, there was a vVERY RARE moment with no boats and no rain and more than 200 samples were collected from across the BVI. With the exception of a few "hotspots" (Fecal coliform), water quality was very good. We can now (hopefully) go back and carry out testing during the rainy season and then when the charter fleet starts back up to better understand and pinpoint pollution sources.

On the flip side, Stony Coral Tissue loss disease has spread into the BVI from USVI, which is not good!

Are the results published? I'd love to know if CGB is a hotspot. We still have runoff issues here.

I would hope all charterboats are dumping offshore now. There is no reason to dump in a anchorage.
G

Stony Coral tissue loss has been severly affecting the USVI corals in many places -- I personally haven't seen an increase since the March lockdown , but the past damaging effects are terrible.

ARK (Association of ReefKeepers) and National Parks Trust have been out doing a lot of monitoring and have found tons - there has been a serious spread.