7/31/2019 Coral Reefs at Risk

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Coral Reefs at Risk!

By: Mohsin Gul (0383-BH-ENV-10)

Coral reefs are underwater structures made from calcium carbonate secreted by corals. Corals arecolonies of tiny living animals found in marine waters that contain few nutrients. Most coralreefs are built from stony corals, which in turn consist of polyps that cluster in groups. Thepolyps are like tiny sea anemones, to which they are closely related. But unlike sea anemones,coral polyps secrete hard carbonate exoskeletons which support and protect their bodies. Reefsgrow best in warm, shallow , clear, sunny and agitated waters. Often called rainforests of thesea, coral reefs form some of the most diverse ecosystems on Earth. They occupy less than onetenth of one percent of the world's ocean surface, about half the area of France, yet they providea home for twenty-five percent of all marine species, including fish, molluscs, worms, crustaceans, echinoderms, sponges, tunicates and other cnidarians. Paradoxically, coral reefsflourish even though they are surrounded by ocean waters that provide few nutrients. They aremost commonly found at shallow depths in tropical waters, but deep water and cold water coralsalso exist on smaller scales in other areas.

Coral reefs deliver ecosystem services to tourism, fisheries and shoreline protection. The annualglobal economic value of coral reefs has been estimated at $US375 billion. However, coral reefsare fragile ecosystems, partly because they are very sensitive to water temperature. They areunder threat from climate change, ocean acidification, blast fishing, cyanide fishing for aquariumfish, overuse of reef resources, and harmful land-use practices, including urban and agriculturalrunoff and water pollution, which can harm reefs by encouraging excess algae growth.

Human impact on coral reefs is significant. Coral reefs are dying around the world. In particular,coral mining, pollution (organic and non-organic), overfishing, blast fishing and the digging of canals and access into islands and bays are serious threats to these ecosystems. Coral reefs alsoface high dangers from pollution, diseases, destructive fishing practices and warming oceans. Inorder to find answers for these problems, researchers study the various factors that impact reefs.The list of factors is long, including the ocean's role as a carbon dioxide sink, atmosphericchanges, ultraviolet light, ocean acidification, biological virus, impacts of dust storms carryingagents to far flung reefs, pollutants, algal blooms and others. Reefs are threatened well beyondcoastal areas. General estimates show approximately 10% world's coral reefs are already dead. Itis estimated that about 60% of the world's reefs are at risk due to destructive, human-relatedactivities. The threat to the health of reefs is particularly strong in Southeast Asia, where 80% of reefs are endangered.

(Compilation and Research)

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