Status: 07/20/2021 8:44 p.m.
A.In the face of climate change, scientists around the world have warned of the death of coral reefs. In a strategy paper they demand three concrete measures from politics. A third of all global reefs are still likely to be lost.
In a position paper, an international team of researchers called on politicians to take concrete measures to prevent the death of coral reefs around the world. The next decade is the last chance to prevent a worldwide collapse of coral reefs, according to the document presented at the 14th International Coral Reef Symposium.
“The current research results show that very few coral reefs will remain intact if we don’t act now,” said Christian Wild, professor of marine ecology at the University of Bremen and organizer of the symposium, at which 1200 experts will exchange digital ideas until Friday.
The strategy paper should be understood as a wake-up call, said Wild. The reefs are at a turning point, 30 percent have already been lost, 40 percent are seriously threatened. The main reasons for the destruction of these important ecosystems are overfishing and pollution of the oceans, as well as climate change.
Scientists want to breed “super corals”
The experts therefore call for three measures: limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, improving local conditions for the reefs, for example through sewage treatment plants and the reforestation of mangroves, and the active restoration of coral reefs.
“The model projections show that up to 30 percent of coral reefs will survive this century if we limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius,” said geoscientist Andréa Grottoli, ICRS president and co-author of the paper.
When restoring reefs, new approaches are to be pursued: “The aim is to raise ‘super corals’ that are particularly heat-resistant,” said Wild from the University of Bremen. They could withstand water temperatures of up to 34 degrees Celsius. The coral larvae distributed with the help of the current could also cause damaged reefs to regrow elsewhere.
Corals important for coastal protection
The strategy paper was written by scientists from the USA, Africa, Europe, the Middle East and Australia under the auspices of the ICRS. Coral reefs are among the most species-rich and important habitats in the world’s oceans. They are also important for the local food supply, for the economy and protect the coasts from storm surges.
One of the main threats is so-called “coral bleaching”. In most cases it leads to extensive death of the reef-forming corals and thus to the destruction of large ecosystems. A key trigger for coral bleaching is global ocean warming, which is directly attributable to climate change.
From the point of view of the scientists, the next opportunities for action in the coming months will be the UN Climate Conference in Glasgow and the UN Biodiversity Conference in Kunming.