Rescue coral reefs worldwide

Why is the threat of gradual destruction of coral reefs in the world also a matter of human survival?

Great Barrier Reef Coral Reef is one of the natural wonders of the world, covering an area larger than Italy and attracting nearly two million visitors here to sail, swim, snorkel and swim. Diving among marine flora and fauna populations. It earned Australia an annual profit of $ 6 billion and provided jobs for more than 50,000 people. But the cradle of more than 11,000 creatures is also one of the most vulnerable ecosystems on the planet.

Great Barrier Reef

This coral reef is not sustainable for long. Clustered corals secrete calcium carbonate to form submerged reefs. When healthy, coral reefs provide shelter and food cradles for organisms in the food chain, and above all humans. Across the planet, half a billion people live on coral reefs, directly or indirectly. That's why what happens to the 9,000-thousand-year-old, 2,300-kilometer Great Barrier Reef, which is recognized by UNESCO as a world heritage, and other coral reefs in the world, has become a matter of survival. of human.

Recent floods in Queensland, Australia, have caused great losses to Australians, and also destroyed the Great Barrier Reef by dumping large amounts of freshwater and agricultural materials into the ocean , things that have Can cause serious damage to corals. In addition, heavy rains caused flooding, rising sea temperatures, changes affecting the chemistry of the sea, and global trade affecting natural resources, leading to the War on the sea environment.

Currently in Heron Island, Australia, computer systems are promoting the measurement of pH of seawater flowing through coral reefs. This information will let the world know what is happening on the Great Barrier Reef and 90% of the other coral reefs in the world. Scientists want to know how the coral reacted to the acidification of the ocean, which is believed to be one of the biggest threats to the marine environment today.

The oceans absorb half of human-produced carbon dioxide, while helping to reduce the effects of fossil-fuel wastes in the atmosphere, which also react to increase seawater acidity. . Those changes are bad news for corals. When seawater becomes more acidified, coral bones will become weak and tend to break more easily.

Carbon dioxide levels have increased by nearly 40% compared to the beginning of the industrialization era, from 280 parts per million (ppm) to about 385 ppm. Scientists estimate that corals and other coral reefs will adapt themselves until the number hits 400 ppm. By then, even hard corals were extinct, and the world's coral reefs began to be gradually destroyed.