WiLD Blog

A study released says that coral reefs in the Pacific Ocean are dying faster than previously though. In the past two decades 20 percent of coral has disappeared from the Pacific Ocean. More than 600 square miles of coral reefs has disappeared since the 60’s. Losses in well-protected areas such as the Great Barrier Reef were just as bad as losses in poorly managed areas like the Philippines. The United Nations estimates that nearly a third of all coral has been lost and by 2030 an estimated 60 percent of coral cover will be gone.

There are many reasons behind the decline of coral reefs. Global climate change, storm damage, agricultural runoff, predators and diseases are the main factors influencing this rapid decline. Warming waters cause coral to “bleach” and lose their color, often resulting in death or reduced reproduction. In addition the ocean absorbs carbon from the atmosphere, which causes the ocean to become more acidic and thus dissolving the coral’s calcium skeleton. Agricultural runoff dumps massive amounts of nutrients into the ocean, fueling massive algae blooms that block out light for coral. Overfishing has exacerbated this problem, since no predators are left to feed on algal blooms.

Coral reefs are dying at an unprecedented rate around the world.

It’s so hard to describe how disheartening this news is to me.

Coral reefs are a source of life for people. Ecotourism and fishing provide money for families to make a living. Coral reef islands are homes for people as they have been for hundred of years. They’re homes to an amazingly diverse group of animals and plants. They’re also a source of amazement and joy to the people that visit them.

I stayed on a coral reef island for a few days when I studied abroad, and I will never forget the amazing things I saw. I was gathering algae for a research project during high tide on the reef and when I looked up I saw a sea turtle hovering in front of me, quietly contemplating me as I slowly reached out and scratched it shell (I’ve been told that sea turtles enjoy having the algae scratched off their shells by divers). I’ve seen eagle rays jump six feet out of the water and silently watched female sea turtles digging nests on the beach. I’ve seen a 600-pound grouper hunting at night and swam beside a five-foot shark. I’ve seen a giant clam the size of a small child and dove through a school of simmering fish. Just floating above the reef and watching the sheer abundance of life weave their way around you as they go about living is indescribable.

I’m unable to do justice to all the crazy things I saw. I’m just telling stories. There are so many things I can’t convey in words. It’s the difference between seeing it on the TV screen and actually experiencing the realness of it. I think there was a point where I just stopped and thought, “This is real”. Before, all I’ve ever seen of the reef was in National Geographic and nature shows I watched as a kid. It’s unbelievable to think that someday, the only things left of coral reefs will be stories, pictures, movies and memories. One day, people won’t be able to go out and see all these things anymore, simply because the reefs will one day cease to exist. They’re already on their way there.

I’ve read too many reports and seen too many news stories on disappearing reefs. Whenever I see another one, all I can think to myself is, “This is unreal.”

Calvin Lee

U.S. Army, Nay and Coast Guard are beginning the process of removing an artificial tire reef from the coast of Fort Lauderdale. The tires were put in 40 years ago to help promote tourism and to help bolster the local fish population. Officials had hoped that the artificial reef would be a success in helping restore the natural environment and disposing of unwanted trash but instead have been causing more problems than initially anticipated.

The tires were originally bound together using nylon straps or steel cables, but in the ocean environment the tires have broken free. After hurricanes, tires would litter the beach, and in the Fort Lauderdale area, the tires have run into a living reef, destroying whatever was along their path.

Divers explore the underwater tire reef which comprises approximately 34 acres (photo South Florida Sun-Sentinel)

While using our old trash to create new environments seems like a great idea, it should have been researched more extensively and thought out more thoroughly. This latest case is another example of good intentions gone wrong. That isn’t to say that efforts like these should be stopped or anything. Innovation is crucial to helping save the environment, but at the same time innovation has to be properly thought out.

Tire waste in the coast of Florida (photo South Florida Sun-Sentinel)

The most unfortunate part of this story is the fact that while people meant well; they actually ended up doing more harm than good. This is a common theme throughout world’s history. One blatant example would be introduced species which are meant to provide a means of biological control but can quickly get out of hand. Cane toads in Australia were meant to control pests that were destroying the cane crop, but ended up as a nightmare killing domestic pets and destroying native wildlife.

I think the lesson here is that we simply don’t know enough about the natural world to be making such large changes to the ecosystem. Recently, I was discussing with an elderly gentlemen about how some scientists believed by dumping huge amounts of iron into the nutrient deprived waters off South America they could cause huge algal blooms that would absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and thus helping to solve global warming. The gentleman seemed very much sold on the idea, even as I explained that such large scale algal blooms could radically change the ocean ecosystem and that the consequences were unknown. I don’t think he fully understood the idea.

To me, stories like these serve as a caution sign to the part we play in trying to the save the environment. In my opinion, sometimes it’s just best to leave the environment alone, to have it unaltered and in its true natural state and not imposing what we believe is natural for it. That’s why it’s important to support efforts to protect and preserve land, especially in areas like Baja California, where development has been steadily accelerating. If one day those lands are gone, and we realize what we have lost, efforts to restore it could be as futile as these efforts in Florida.
Calvin Lee