As announced, construction projects for the aluminium tower at Teahupoo were resumed yesterday and locals reported that they had once again damaged the reef.

Local Lorenzo Avvenenti posted the video showing the pieces of coral that had broken off the reef. He also said that the test was carried out at the time of highest tide.

“Once again a lot of corals were destroyed as we documented in the video. We will be there filming and documenting to keep you updated on the destruction this Project has caused and will cause to our precious and healthy ecosystem,” Avvenenti wrote.

“The goal of showing this damage is to stop this new tower/new foundation project and find another solution that suits the people of Tahiti and their culture and also respects the reef and the ecosystem. Our resources are our greatest treasure and we need to preserve them at all costs,” he added.

Last weekend there was a meeting between the Tahitian government and local groups and it was decided to resume the work that had been stopped since the first attempt to use the barge broke parts of the reef.

They said they were going to use a smaller boat.

The ISA blamed the government of Tahiti for wanting to go ahead with the tower.

Paris 2024 has said it is regrettable that the reef has been damaged.

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