- 10 minutes ago
Conservationists hope to save the guitarfish in Ghana — with snails. Plus: an underwater kelp farm in Namibia.
Category
🛠️
LifestyleTranscript
00:15Our ocean is extraordinary.
00:18It helps regulate our climate, provides food and is home to some remarkable creatures.
00:24Some look like they belong on another planet, others have a surprisingly familiar shape.
00:33Apparently the ocean has gittas too, just without strings.
00:39Meet the gittas fish.
00:41In Ghana, it is critically endangered and some of the people trying to save it are the
00:47very fishers who use to catch it, maybe because they love gittas as much as I do.
01:01It looks like a cross between a shark and a ray and it has been gliding over the seabirds
01:06for a hundred million years, but its future looks bleak.
01:11Their population is heavily depleted.
01:14But protecting them could put livelihoods at risk.
01:22Meet the common gittas fish, we bet it will strike a cold with you.
01:28This is Ajwa community on Ghani's coast where fishing is a part of daily life and the gittas fish
01:34used to be a common catch.
01:36Not anymore.
01:57Jyoseph's experience reflects a wider trend along West Africa's coastline.
02:02all false species of guitarfish that live off the coast of Ghana are critically endangered.
02:08For decades, guitarfish were not only valued as food.
02:13Their fins are considered a delicacy beyond Ghana's borders
02:16and became a profitable commodity for some.
02:36But the fin trade and the extensive and often unregulated fishing poses a huge threat to the guitarfish.
02:44The Asian species reproduces very slowly, making it particularly vulnerable to overfishing.
02:50Marine biologist Issa Seidu has made it his mission to protect guitarfish.
02:58There are mesopredators in the marine ecosystem which feed on invertebrates.
03:06The absence of these species can impact the balance of life in the marine ecosystem
03:12because they control the population of these invertebrates species
03:18from growing disproportionately in our marine ecosystem.
03:22Researchers like Issa have observed that some species such as the sawfish
03:28have already disappeared from Ghanaian waters.
03:31And without urgent action, guitarfish could face the same fate.
03:35In the 1980s, if they were getting over 200 individuals per fishing trip,
03:42now it has reduced tremendously to now some of them are getting as low as even 10 individuals
03:49or 15 individuals per fishing trip, which is quite alarming.
03:54Issa Seidu and his team are tackling the problem on several fronts,
03:58reducing accidental catches of guitarfish, identifying remaining populations,
04:02and creating alternative sources of income for fishes.
04:06But convincing them isn't always easy.
04:17These people say,
04:39So how can certain fish species be protected without causing hardship?
04:46One answer may lie on land rather than at sea.
04:50The marine conservationists have helped to develop snail farming as a new source of income
04:56for more than 50 fishermen in Ajoa and other coastal communities.
05:00Snail farms don't require much in the way of running costs.
05:05It can even be more lucrative than fishing.
05:10Giant snail meat is a good source of protein.
05:14The hope is to persuade more fishers to tend to part-time snail farming,
05:19especially during the closed and spawning season.
05:22Fishers are also being trained how to release guitar fish unharmed when they get accidentally caught.
05:30And further off the coast,
05:31the NGO is teaching them to use GPS tracking so they can help monitoring efforts.
05:59The goal is to set up a locally managed marine area where guitar fish are protected.
06:04Fishers have already mapped 15 square kilometers of critical habitat.
06:09The data they have collected is being used by researchers like Jessica and Eunice.
06:18I wanted to publish my work so that the government or the Fisheries Commission will be able to see
06:24if possibly they can draft a policy that will protect guitar fish.
06:28Because there is no policy protecting race in Ghana, especially the guitar fish and the sharks.
06:36But there is progress.
06:38In April 2026, Ghana declared its first marine protected area,
06:42a 703 square kilometer conservation zoo off the coast.
06:48It aims to protect the spawning and nursery grounds of various species.
06:53All of this should help this ancient marine creature, the guitar fish too.
07:01It's quite insightful to document this film.
07:05Throughout the coastal communities that we visited, I have seen a sweet transformation.
07:10One that touches my heart is how fishers now understand that a particular species,
07:16that the guitar fish is getting extinct and they also want to help in the conservation effort.
07:23Why? Because these fishers understand the implications that the extinction of these guitar fish
07:31can have on the balance of life in the marine ecosystem.
07:37So, let's get started.
07:47Meat kelp. It is one of the busiest water plants.
07:50It starts the day by supporting fisheries, then removes excess nutrients from the water,
07:55and stores huge amounts of carbon.
07:59Now, the giant kelp can grow 60 centimeters a day in ideal conditions.
08:04It's underwater forests are big, bustling neighborhoods where over 1,500 animal species consider it home.
08:14Scientists reckon kelp forests capture huge amounts of carbon every year, helping us fight climate change.
08:22Now, one study values its ecological services at around 500 billion US dollars a year.
08:30The catch? Around the world, kelp forests are shrinking fast.
08:35So, some clever people are asking, what if we didn't just protect kelp, but found it?
08:44For years, fortune seekers flocked to Luderitz on the Namibian coast to dip for diamonds.
08:50But there's another tiny treasure to be found here, not under the soil, but beneath the ocean's surface.
08:57It's contained in these seeds that grow into giant kelp, the largest of these species of seaweed.
09:06To find out what is so special about kelp, we visited a project that's trying to unlock its value
09:13for commercial reasons and to combat climate change.
09:19This is what we are farming here in the Shorewater Bay. And as you can see, this is a beautiful
09:23kelp.
09:24This kelp grows very fast. It can grow up to 30 centimeters per day and up to 60 meters in
09:32height.
09:32So, it's really beautiful. It's rich in a lot of compounds like alginate, fucoiden,
09:39fucoxanthins, and really a lot of polyphenols, which is what we want in our biostimulant,
09:44which is the product that we make when you harvest it from the farm.
09:47The harvested kelp is used as a biostimulant in agriculture and in cosmetics,
09:52and it also captures carbon dioxide as it grows.
10:00The seedlings are hatched under laboratory conditions, with each baby plant attached to a line wrapped around a spool.
10:09Each line holds nearly 80 such plants that are wrapped around growing structures in the underwater farm.
10:18The Namibian coast is a kelp hotspot, thanks to the Benguela current that brings cold and nutrient-rich
10:25water from the southern Atlantic and provides all the ingredients necessary for this giant algae to thrive.
10:32Within months, the seedlings reach the surface and produce a canopy, like a land forest.
10:45We are creating so much life in this forest, and it's taking up a lot of carbon every day,
10:51contributing to carbon sequestration. So, I mean, it's just a beautiful place to be at,
10:57and I can see it also on the faces of our divers.
11:02Almost all the staff are from Namibia. Zacharias Malienge grew up far from the sea,
11:08but says he has grown to appreciate the project.
11:11It means a lot, really, apart from the fact that I am able to support some of my family members,
11:18like my younger brother who just recently started university. Also just that pride of doing something
11:24which was not common to our community. By pioneering professions that speak directly to the blue economy,
11:32I think it will also show people out there that, yes, it's possible, and we are able to find people
11:39within the community who are able to do the job just as well.
11:48The diving team harvests over 12 tons of kelp from the canopy per day by hand, leaving the lower
11:55parts untouched. The collected kelp is transported to this factory, where it is processed into a range
12:01of commercial items. The main product is a seaweed extract for boosting crop yields on land. The kelp
12:09can regrow a harvestable canopy every three months. When it dies, the carbon captured in its structures
12:16is buried in the marine sediment. Kelp Blue estimates that their farm could eventually remove
12:21one megaton of carbon from the atmosphere per year, equivalent to the annual emission of 200,000 cars.
12:32Figures like that remain projections, however. The company says it's still tracking the
12:37farm's carbon sequestration performance. The effect of the non-native kelp on the biosphere is also
12:43closely monitored, but the project has had some upside already beyond the creation of jobs on land.
12:49The new underwater forest has rapidly become colonized by many other forms of life.
13:01What is quite unique about kelp is that it's not one species. They are this ecosystem forming
13:08a species. So like you can't imagine kelp without everything else that exists with kelp. So looking at
13:15that when we grow more kelp and ensuring that the natural kelp is safeguarded and left alone to thrive
13:23even longer, combined we have a much much greater chance of fighting climate change.
13:31While kelp aquaculture alone is no carbon capture silver bullet, it could be another tool to reduce
13:38climate warming gases. And projects like this one off the coast of Namibia can show the world the potential
13:44of this amazing algae.
14:02Seagrass. At the bottom of the sea it provides food and shelter to marine life. When washed ashore,
14:08like here at the Baltic Sea island of Pöl, it's often treated as waste. However,
14:12it can provide shelter here too, according to entrepreneur Vincent Manitz.
14:17He says that seagrass is an ideal raw material for home construction.
14:29Every morning, crews of workers clean the beaches on Pöl before the tourists arrive,
14:34leaving them pristine white. Over the year, they collect 1,000 tons of seagrass that washes up here.
14:41It's why the local tourism authority supports the project.
14:56Vincent Manitz has set up his production facility for the eco-friendly insulation material at the local landfill.
15:03As a first step, sand and seagrass are separated in a rotating drum.
15:08Next, the seagrass is dried in custom-built bins using solar energy to keep costs down.
15:15Because the material has a very high price pressure, we have very, very little gain per kilogram.
15:21That's why we have to look at how expensive the production is.
15:26After processing, only 5% of the original mass remains as pure seagrass. The rest is sand.
15:33So far, the seagrass has only been used in private construction projects. Approval processes are currently
15:39underway to certify it as an insulation material across Europe. Manitz has already received inquiries
15:45from Mediterranean countries and Portugal.
15:49And there is an example here, an algae that we have sent from the Azorne.
15:54There is a huge waste problem here, similar to the seagrass here.
15:58There is this algae, which, when it is dry, is not so different from a seagrass.
16:04There is strong demand for his eco-friendly insulation material. Manitz can't even supply
16:10what's needed. So far, he has installed it in 25 houses. Homeowner Willy Martin is one of his clients.
16:18He chose the marine-based material because it contains no harmful substances.
16:24It also takes care of the insulation, because we have a old building. You know
16:29that you have to take care of things. And I can imagine that the seagrass,
16:34if you want to break the house somewhere again, can be able to recycle it easier.
16:39Seagrass doesn't burn because of its high salt content. It is also resistant to mold and rot.
16:45Another of its properties comes into play in this future bedroom.
17:10For now, seagrass is slightly more expensive than other insulation materials. But Vincent
17:16Marnitz aims to further refine his process and expand to process tens of thousands of tons of
17:22seagrass from other communities along the Baltic Sea coast, lowering cost and increasing supply.
17:31In one of the wettest places on earth, you would think the challenge is staying dry.
17:38So why would anyone there struggle to feel a glass of water?
17:43Clearly, the weather forecast doesn't tell the whole story.
17:49Cook, clean, farm, fetch water, repeat. Single mother Monica Nonggroom's days
17:56used to leave her without a single minute of rest.
17:58I'm known for my life.
18:36These days her routine is pretty much the same, except for one major change.
18:43Now she can finally get water just steps from her home.
18:53We are in Mohsin Ram, which holds a Guinness World Record for the highest average annual
18:57rainfall, receiving nearly 1,200 centimeters of rain each year.
19:07And yet, in one of the wettest places on earth, villagers like Monica have had to plan their
19:13entire day around the availability of water, often losing hours each day in the process.
19:20I think we have to go to the camera.
19:28We are inaudible 2,500 meters.
19:32We are on the way to go to the camera.
19:40We are on the way to get water.
19:43We are on the way to get water.
19:48I think it's a good thing.
19:56Meghalaya lies within the Barak Meghana river basin.
20:00Yet, even in high rainfall areas like Monica's village, Pongkung,
20:05steep terrain, rocky geology, deforestation and changing land use
20:10cause rainwater to run off quickly,
20:12leaving little to recharge the underground aquifers that feed springs.
20:18This is environmental scientist B.K. Tiwari.
20:21No relation.
20:23He studied Meghalaya's paradoxical rainfall patterns for decades.
20:27The Meghalaya receives highest rainfall,
20:30but this highest rainfall is confined only to a small area,
20:34near Cherrapunji and Mausenraum and that plateau.
20:40Rest of Meghalaya receives up to 250-300 cm rainfall,
20:44which is not very high.
20:45Then again, the rain is confined to about six months in a year.
20:50Otherwise, it's dry.
20:52Particularly the months of December to February is quite dry.
21:00Across Meghalaya, nearly 80% of people depend on springs for their daily water.
21:07These are natural outlets where groundwater reaches the surface.
21:11But many of these springs, once perennial, are now becoming seasonal.
21:16Climate change has definitely caused some variability in distribution of rain and intensity of rain.
21:25The population is increasing and the consumption and production is increasing.
21:31So, this has definitely put pressure on most of the natural resources, including water.
21:41But the region is finally getting some help.
21:45Youth volunteers like Kinti Vlang Kharbani are stepping in to protect the springs that communities rely on.
21:51They trek across the hills, tracing water sources, mapping recharge zones, and digging contour trenches.
22:00They also plant native trees to help rainwater seep back into the ground.
22:06They're not just fixing the point where water emerges, but restoring the entire spring shed.
22:11The hidden underground system that keeps a spring alive.
22:16It's not that they're not going to be able to live.
22:23They're not going to be able to live.
22:25If it's not as a river, they're going to be able to live.
22:30They're not going to be able to live.
22:34effort. In just over one year, more than 55,000 springs
22:41across Meghalaya were documented, helping identify which were drying up and where urgent
22:46action is needed. Since 2014, these grassroots efforts have been
22:52supported and expanded by the state under the Spring Protection Initiative.
22:59Vankit Keswar, Deputy Project Director at the Meghalaya Basin Development Authority,
23:04now helps coordinate and guide this work across the region, bringing together local
23:09communities and government efforts.
23:11We leverage on the power of the communities. We only give them the devices, show them how
23:16to calibrate, how to measure. And we were able to monitor a number of parameters, like for
23:21example, the amount of dissolved solids that it has, salinity, electrical conductivity, to
23:29physical aspects, like discharge, hours of discharge every month, and so all were dependent
23:34on these springs in the village.
23:37But restoring springs in Meghalaya is not just about water. It's also about land.
23:43Nearly 95% of land here is owned by clans and families under customary law, not by the government.
23:50That means many springs lie on private land, even though entire villages depend on them.
23:57Managing water, therefore, requires negotiation, trust, and collective agreement, especially
24:02when landowners no longer live there or when community land is scarce.
24:12There are many good examples where private owners have full-heartedly given their land.
24:17But you still encounter those issues in many places, where they don't have community lands,
24:22then the limit of your interventions becomes smaller.
24:29Back in Monica's village, the springs are flowing again.
24:33Over a dozen have been restored and are now maintained by residents like her, through regular
24:38cleaning, monitoring, and protection.
24:40where they can well, understand the records.
24:54.
24:54.
25:11In Meghalaya's rain-drenched hills, community members have taken it upon themselves to revive
25:17drying springs so that families like Monica's no longer have to hike miles in search of
25:22water. Well, to get more constructive stories, follow our Echo Drop newsletter. We'll see you
25:31next week. And if you have any idea yourself, would love to hear your suggestion, just write
25:39to us at echo at dw.com. Thanks for watching and see you next week.
25:53Okay, still bring, yeah, bring that one, that's all.
26:07Switch.