M.A. Dworkin AgriFest really had its roots in the 1930’s when it was called Agricultural Field Days and held at the former Agricultural Experiment Station in Estate Anna’s Hope. The Fair was still held in February and was still considered one of the highlights of the Crucian year. It attracted almost every producer on the island and not only featured  fruits and vegetables as well as livestock and poultry but also their products and by-products which included fresh meats, mil

A.J. Pike USVI - Commissioner Jean-Pierre L. Oriol of the Department of Planning and Natural Resources (DPNR), on behalf of the Division of Fish and Wildlife (DFW), is advising the public that Virgin Islands shorelines are likely to experience significantly elevated levels of Sargassum in 2026. This forecast is based on new findings from the University of South Florida College of Marine Science’s Optical Oceanography Lab. These assessments are developed in collaboration with

M.A. Dworkin USVI - In a tense, escalating economic dispute, being described as a Charter Boat Trade War, that has now reached the U.S. White House and Congress, Governor Albert Bryan Jt. and members of the 36th Legislature of the Virgin Islands met to discuss the hot topic of the recent outrageous increase of fees imposed by the British Virgin Islands on cargo and trade entering from the U.S. Virgin Islands.        Government House officials said the fees function as an unre

M.A. Dworkin The Arctic - Actually, it’s easy-peasy to live to the ripe old age of 200 years, that is if you take a tip or two from the Bowhead Whales who live to two hundred-plus all the time in the Arctic.        First off, you’ll probably have to buy yourself one of those triple-thermal suits and  layer-up when you move to the arctic, where it gets down to ninety below. But most of all you have to become a master of your DNA repair like the Bowhead Whale. Yet, given all th

M.A. Dworkin St. Croix - Hatchling Sea Turtle disorientations cause their early death every year around this time on St. Croix. This tragedy is due to problematic landward lights that lead the babies away from the water instead of towards it.        After hatchlings emerge from their nest, they go towards the brightest horizon, which in a natural environment is the ocean. With increasing coastal development, bright inland lights are often visible from the beach and can cause

M.A. Dworkin Caribbean Sea - Green Turtle populations have recovered so successfully that their official status has been downgraded from ‘Endangered’ to ‘Least Concern’ by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.        Green Turtles (Chelonia mydas) have declined in numbers by between 48 to 67 per cent over the last 200 years, largely due to human influences such as fisheries bycatch, loss and degradation of nesting sites and

St. Croix Times Staff Frederiksted - The Virgin Islands Economic Development Authority’s (VIEDA) Enterprise Zone Commission (EZC) has purchased the Padilla Building at 53 A&B King Street in Frederiksted, St. Croix. The historic building will become the future site of the Agro and Food Innovation Center, the anchor project of the Frederiksted Enterprise Zone.        Supported by an appropriation provided by the 33rd Legislature of the Virgin Islands, the center will serve as a

M.A. Dworkin USVI - Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. has submitted two substantive measures to the 36th Legislature that build on his Administration’s commitment to growing the Virgin Islands economy, creating opportunity for working families, and revitalizing local industries.        The governor’s proposals would phase in a $15 minimum wage and open new avenues for small-scale distilleries and breweries tied to local agriculture.        The first proposal, An Act to Support Small-Scal

M.A. Dworkin USVI - Governor Albert Bryan Jr. joined Agriculture Commissioner Louis Petersen, members of the 36th Legislature, community...