The Vetiver System shields coral reefs from sediment

Dick Grimshaw writes:

I have frequently written about the need to use the Vetiver System to rehabilitate eroding land and thus stop eroded sediment from moving downstream to coastal waters where it destroys coral reefs and coastal fisheries. VS is particular useful for small island erosion rehabilitation.

Since erosion on small tropical islands tends to be massive and close to the beach and sea, stabilizing a particular area will generate immediate benefit to the adjacent water and coral. Don Miller, a New Zealander who works on Vanuatu in the south Pacific, has, over many years, inspired local people to reforest a particularly badly-eroded area near Port Patrick. [By the way, Vanuatu is 1,090 miles east of northern Australia, 310 miles northeast of New Caledonia, west of Fiji, and south of the Solomon Islands. Thank you, Wikipedia!] The results have been spectacular. View a modified Power Point presentation at http://www.vetiver.org/VAN_REEF/VAN-reef2.htm).
In my travels around the world I've seen many instances of coastal waters turned brown by sediment flows. If you don't travel, take a look at Google Earth images of Hawaii, Fiji, Jamaica, Honduras, the Indonesian islands, and many more. The Vetiver System is the best, cheapest, and greenest way to address the problem. In addition to halting sediment flows to the sea, it prevents sewage and other pollutants from reaching pristine beaches, improves groundwater (reduced ground water on many islands is becoming a major problem), increases crop yields and generates biomass for fuel, forage, and, as value-added products, handicrafts. The Vetiver System is available to everyone who wishes to use it, and, if applied correctly, it will work.