Published 5:00 am Saturday, August 10, 2024 By Guest Columnist As a veterinarian and avid wildlife advocate, I’ve spent my career nurturing animals and educating others on the importance of conservation. Recently, I had the incredible opportunity to combine my passion for animal care and environmental stewardship during a volunteer trip to Tom Owen’s Cay in Belize, where I completed my advanced open water scuba training and earned a lionfish specialty certification. Accompanied by my offspring, who completed their open water scuba training, we embarked on a journey that was as eye-opening as it was enriching.
Tom Owen’s Cay is a small, secluded island in the Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System. For a week, we lived on an island no larger than the treatment room at Guardian Animal Medical Center, immersing ourselves in the stunning marine environment. The vibrant underwater world teemed with life—nurse sharks, eels, colorful nudibranchs, sea slugs, sea cucumbers and an array of dazzling fish species and corals.
Every dive brought new wonders and adventures, yet it also highlighted an increasingly alarming issue: ocean plastic pollution. This experience underscored the critical need for conservation efforts, not just on land but also in our oceans. One of our training presentations focused on the pervasive problem of single-use plastics in the ocean.
Plastic waste poses a severe threat to marine life. Sea turtles often mistake plastic bags for jellyfish, their primary fo.