---
id: twins/wansec
about:
  label: 'Wave Attenuation: Natural Solutions with Elkhorn Coral (WANSEC)'
  description: >-
    Caribbean project testing whether dense restored stands of elkhorn coral
    reduce wave energy and sediment movement along coasts, with sites in
    Jamaica, Barbados and Antigua & Barbuda; funded by the Caribbean
    Biodiversity Fund.
  tags:
    - coral
    - restoration
    - wave attenuation
    - coastal protection
    - caribbean
    - elkhorn
twin:
  tier: 4
  place: 'Jamaica, Barbados, and Antigua and Barbuda'
  operational: research
  homepage: >-
    https://www.mona.uwi.edu/mori/research-spotlight/wave-attenuation-natural-solutions-elkhorn-coral-wansec
open:
  source: unknown
  data: unknown
  api: unknown
  participation: unknown
provenance:
  origin: agent
  sources:
    - title: >-
        Wave Attenuation: Natural Solutions with Elkhorn Coral (WANSEC) | The
        Mona Office for Research and Innovation (MORI)
      url: >-
        https://www.mona.uwi.edu/mori/research-spotlight/wave-attenuation-natural-solutions-elkhorn-coral-wansec
    - title: >-
        National Parks Authority announces completion of the WANSEC project –
        National Parks Antigua
      url: >-
        https://www.nationalparksantigua.com/national-parks-authority-announces-completion-of-the-wansec-project/
  created: '2026-10-17'
  reviewed: '2026-10-17'
  reviewed_by: 'Claude, from the sources listed'
  status: draft
import:
  source: openai-linkedin-scrape 2026-10-17
  id: DT036
  kind: simulation_case
  family: models_simulations_and_forecasts
  priority: high
  verified: true
  posts:
    - P059
  posters:
    - Michael Beck
domains:
  - ecology
  - water
relations:
  - predicate: built_on
    target: engines/openfoam
    note: uses solver (source_claim; exact implementation not independently tested)
  - predicate: built_on
    target: presentation/paraview
    note: >-
      visualizes with (source_claim; exact implementation not independently
      tested)
---
The University of the West Indies at Mona profiles the project.[^1] The question is whether thickets of elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata) can act as a natural coastal defence by taking energy out of waves and trapping sediment.[^1] The work pairs coral restoration with coastal risk modelling and adaptive management tools, backed by US$2 million.[^1]

In Antigua and Barbuda the National Parks Authority planted about 2,500 elkhorn colonies in Rendezvous Bay, inside Nelson's Dockyard National Park.[^2] They average one coral per square metre, the same high density used on all three islands.[^2] The aim is dense stands that restore reef function over time.[^2] Severe bleaching during the fourth global mass bleaching event killed much of the Antiguan nursery and parent stock.[^2] The project then shifted toward propagating colonies that survived the heat.[^2] It also trained community members in restoration and started doctoral research on the distribution and genetic diversity of elkhorn coral across the Eastern Caribbean.[^2]

The intended outputs are replicable restoration strategies, stakeholder training and policy guidance for coral-based coastal protection in Caribbean small island states.[^1]

The Antigua and Barbuda component was announced complete on 26 August 2026.[^2]