See full version: Coral Reefs can be saved; immediate action is necessary
“Nevertheless, all coral reefs, even those that are well-protected, suffer damage,” Jacoby said. “Little Cayman is an example of what can happen, because it is essentially free from local stresses due to its isolation, small human population and generally healthy ecology.”here
Corals are very sensitive to environmental conditions. Even slight warming and increased ocean acidification (two processes of which Earth has plenty of these days) can be devastating to them, and despite many efforts, damaged reefs could not be saved. But it’s not all bad news.
The occupy less than 0.01 of the oceanic environment, but they host up to 25 percent of the different species of marine organisms, yield about 25 percent of the fish caught in developing nations and generate up to 30 percent of the export earnings in countries that promote reef-related tourism. Their safety value is huge, protecting coastal areas against tsunamis and threatening waves, and their environmental value is inestimable.
Although some scientists suggest that coral reefs are headed for certain doom, a new study by University of Florida and Caribbean has shown that even damaged reefs can recover, but immediate and consistent action is required.
Most of the area in the Cayman area is highly regulated. Damage from human activities such as fishing an anchoring is minimized. more
Thankfully, bleached corals are technically not dead yet. Coral reefs have been known to recover from a bleaching event, particularly when water temperatures cool during winter. However, when corals are in this state, they do become more vulnerable to disease and possible death, especially if they are continuously subjected to stress. more
Floating trash can also cut young coral polyps off from the nutrients they need to grow into a thriving reef. here
It is unfortunately common practice to use cyanide and other poisons to fish for coral reef dwelling creatures. The poison is not specific enough to necessarily kill a specific fish, but is used to stun fish that are then used in domestic saltwater aquariums. Although many fish can metabolize the cyanide and will only feel the effects temporarily, the same is not true for coral polyps. When cyanide gets in the nooks and crannies of the reef, the coral often dies in the cloud of poison. more
Corals are living organisms—they can get sick and die, just like any other plant or animal. Due to a variety of local and global factors, which can be either independent or interacting, more and more of the world’s reefs are dying.
It’s a feeling I surrender to, giving space for it to grow. I’m a human. And it is, after all, humans that are ruining this place.
Since Peter discovered how the reef can be protected through land-based maintenance, other islands in the area have followed suit. Plastic has been banned, fuels are no longer burned and guests are encouraged to leave no trace. “I can point to just out here, a few feet from the shore, to some of the most stunning coral you’ll ever see and you’d find it hard to believe that seven or eight years ago, it looked like a desert,” Peter tells me.
It was reports of coral bleaching that brought Natalie back to Australia six years ago, after living in Spain. Today, she runs tours taking tourists on day trips to the island to raise awareness of the danger the reef and its wildlife faces. Plastic pollution is one of the issues Natalie finds herself talking about more and more these days. She tells me of the dangers turtles, which have recently been added to the endangered list, are facing on the reef. [links]
“Their throats are filled with spines to help them swallow jellyfish. Plastic bags, unfortunately, look like jellyfish. They get caught in their throats, making breathing almost impossible. So the turtles spend more time at the surface, trying to breathe, and that’s when they’re more susceptible to being hit by boats, too.” We stroll on the powdery white sand of Lady Musgrave Island, spotting turtle nesting sites tucked in the shade of the trees.
Though Lady Elliot and Heron are both coral cays, Heron is considerably older, the sand underfoot ground down over time to a finer grain. But it too holds scars from human destruction. It was first occupied in the 1920s when a factory producing soup from turtle flesh was built here. Inevitably, the population of turtles in the area dropped dramatically during the decade the factory was in operation. The next weighty punch came in the 1950s, when tourism was introduced. Visitors spent their days riding sea turtles on the island before that was prohibited in the 1960s — the same decade when the harbour was demolished to give boats direct access to the beach, taking part of the reef with it. here
This Earth Day, the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation is focusing on the coral reef crisis and what can be done to save coral reefs. The Foundation embarked on the Global Reef Expedition and nearly circumnavigated the globe studying coral reef health and resiliency. What we found gives us hope that despite finding evidence of human impacts everywhere we went, there are concrete actions people can take that can help reefs recover.
The key to the success of any coral reef management plan is effective monitoring and enforcement of whatever rules and regulations are already in place to protect the reefs. Regular monitoring can also help local managers identify and address any potential issues—such as an outbreak of crown of thorns starfish—before they decimate a reef. In places where resources for monitoring and enforcement are limited, community-based management efforts can engage stakeholders to monitor their own coral reef resources.
Often, the best way to conserve a coral reef is by establishing a Marine Protected Area (MPA). MPAs define what is allowed to happen where, and can be set up to achieve a wide variety of objectives. The benefit of MPAs is that rules can be set in place that protects life on the reef while still allowing for sustainable human use. MPAs can be set up by the government, but in many places, traditional and local leaders have established their own community management areas which they also monitor and enforce. [links]