CORAL REEF DESTRUCTION WORLDWIDE

POLLUTION AND CLIMATE CHANGE DOOM THE REEFS

Ten percent of the world's coral reefs have been completely destroyed. In the Philippines, where coral reef destruction is the worst, over 70% have been destroyed and only 5% are in good condition. Nearly two-thirds of Caribbean coral reefs are under increased threat from human activities. With the parade of destructive hurricanes that has swept through the Caribbean this year, the region can ill-afford to damage their coral reefs, which function as vital natural barriers to costal erosion and other storm damage.

The reefs have been around for millions of years. What do you suppose has changed?

There are two different ways in which humans contribute to the degradation of the Earth's coral reefs, indirectly and directly. Indirectly, we have destroyed their environment. Coral reefs can live only within a certain temperature and salinity range. Global warming caused by the green house effect has raised the temperature of the oceans so high that the coral get sick and die. Even a rise of one degree in the average water temperature can hurt the coral. Due to global warming, 1998 was the hottest year in the last six centuries and 1998 was the worst year for coral.

The most obvious sign that coral is sick is coral bleaching. That is when either the algae inside die, or the algae leave the coral. The algae are what give coral its color, so without the algae the coral has no color and the white of the limestone shell shines through the transparent coral bodies. People have been noticing coral bleaching since the turn of the century, but only since the 1980s has it gotten really bad.

Humans also destroy coral reefs by physically killing them, for example, blowing them us. Are we not an excellent species, we Humammals? All over the world, but especially in the Philippines, divers catch the fish that live in and around coral reefs. They sell these fish to fancy restaurants in Asia and to fancy pet stores in the United States. This would be OK if the divers caught the fish carefully with nets and didn't hurt the reefs or take too many fish. But the divers want lots of fish and most of them are not very well trained at fish catching. Often they blow up a coral reef with explosives (picture below) and then catch all the stunned fish swimming around. This completely destroys the reefs, killing the coral polyps that make it as well as many of the plants and animals that call it home. And the creatures that do survive are left homeless.