Coral reefs suffering, but collapse not inevitable, researchers say

[OKIsItJustMe]

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/cp-crs050213.php

[font face=Serif]Public release date: 9-May-2013

Contact: Mary Beth O'Leary
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Cell Press

[font size=5]Coral reefs suffering, but collapse not inevitable, researchers say[/font]

[font size=3]Coral reefs are in decline, but their collapse can still be avoided with local and global action. That's according to findings reported in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on May 9 based on an analysis that combines the latest science on reef dynamics with the latest climate models.

"People benefit by reefs' having a complex structure—a little like a Manhattan skyline, but underwater," said Peter Mumby of The University of Queensland and University of Exeter. "Structurally complex reefs provide nooks and crannies for thousands of species and provide the habitat needed to sustain productive reef fisheries. They're also great fun to visit as a snorkeler or diver. If we carry on the way we have been, the ability of reefs to provide benefits to people will seriously decline."

…

"Business as usual isn't going to cut it," he said. "The good news is that it does seem possible to maintain reefs—we just have to be serious about doing something. It also means that local reef management—efforts to curb pollution and overfishing—are absolutely justified. Some have claimed that the climate change problem is so great that local management is futile. We show that this viewpoint is wrongheaded."

Mumby and his colleagues also stress the importance of reef function in addition to reef diversity. Those functions of reefs include the provision of habitat for fish, the provision of a natural breakwater to reduce the size of waves reaching the shore, and so on. In very practical terms, hundreds of millions of people depend directly on reefs for their food, livelihoods, and even building materials.

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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2013.04.020

[ellisonz]

1. If we don't tend the reefs now, they're going to be much worse down the line.

Fatalism isn't an acceptable excuse for inaction!