As Disease Ravages Coral Reefs, Scientists Scramble for Solutions
As oceans warm, coral reefs are suffering not only from bleaching but from deadly outbreaks of disease. Researchers are developing remedies, but the key question is whether these solutions can work on a large-enough scale to save vast reef systems from Florida to Australia.
Sunscreen and cosmetics compound may harm coral by altering fatty acids
Researchers say that one such chemical, octocrylene (OC), which is also in some cosmetics and hair products, accumulates in coral as fatty acid esters that could be toxic to the marine organism.
Sprouting Mangroves Restore Hopes in Coastal Myanmar
In most places, mangrove forest’s density is wafer thin thanks to rampant clearing of the mangroves for space to breed shrimps and for firewood etc. According to a recent study, Myanmar loses about 21 square km of its mangrove forests each year. But thanks to restoration efforts, the story is changing.
Muddy waters: Exploring mangrove governance in Tanzania
At the Global Landscapes Forum (GLF) in Nairobi later this month, a side event devoted specifically to mangrove preservation and restoration around the African continent’s coastlines will attract a range of stakeholders offering an opportunity to review lessons learned from research undertaken in the Rufiji Delta and mangrove ecosystems across the globe.
Mapping blue carbon in mangroves worldwide
Mangroves store greater amounts of carbon than any other terrestrial ecosystem, which helps reduce carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. When carbon is stored in the ocean or coastal ecosystems, it is called blue carbon. However, a more precise estimate of how much blue carbon is stored by mangroves has not been available until recently.
Why mangroves matter: Experts respond on International Mangrove Day
Given all that mangroves do, it is unsurprising that the forests have a special day dedicated to them: July 26, International Mangrove Day. However, mangroves have declined rapidly around the world. What does the disappearance of this special forest ecosystem mean for our planet? This is what some mangrove experts have to say.
Deep-diving scientists say shallow reefs can’t rely on twilight zone systems for recovery
A team of highly trained scientific divers explored Pacific and western Atlantic reefs to test a widely held hypothesis that climate-stressed life from shallow reefs can take refuge at mesophotic depths.The results are clear: deep and shallow reefs are different systems with their own species, and deep reefs are just as threatened by climate impacts, storms, and pollution.
As North Sea Oil Wanes, Removing Abandoned Rigs Stirs Controversy
With thousands of North Sea oil wells soon to be shut down, ecologists are warning that removing the gargantuan platforms could be more environmentally harmful than leaving them in place. The rigs, it turns out, have nurtured cold-water corals and other marine life.
Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System removed from the List of World Heritage in Danger
Unesco, the world body’s educational, scientific and cultural agency, said its heritage committee voted Tuesday to remove the reef from its list of threatened sites because it no longer faced immediate danger from development.