Artificial Reefs Used as Fisheries

Consisting of less than 1% of the world oceans, the coral reefs are ancient animals comprising of thin calcium carbonate deposits within the photic layer. Aside from its biologically diverse ecosystems, coral reefs are major source of food for millions and provides habitats and nursery areas for many marine organisms. Coral reefs also act as a physical buffer to protect the coastlines from tropical storms and erosion. In addition, many local communities rely on coral reefs to generate an income through activities such as fishing and diving. However, 75% of the coral reefs are under threat from induced impacts of humans and climate change (Burke, et al., 2011). This essay looks at the human impacts constantly being inflicted on coral reefs.

First, I am going to talk about the importance of coral reefs. Coral reefs are some of the most diverse and valuable ecosystems on Earth. They are home to 4,000 species of fish, 800 species of hard coral, and hundreds of other species. Scientists believe that there are another 1 to 8 million unidentified species (NOAA). According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, new drugs are being developed from

I have been interested in marine sciences since I was a child. I grew up in and around the water. Being a resident of South Florida, and an avid boater, I have seen the degradation of the Florida reef system. I was fortunate enough that my parents were able to purchase a house in Key Largo when I was just 6 years old. I quickly got familiar with the surrounding ocean. My favorite place to go diving was a protected reef about 3 miles offshore called Molasses Reef. Since there is no fishing, lobstering, or even anchoring on this reef, the protected area has not changed much since I was a kid. Yet, one can start seeing changing not too far away for this tropical reef oasis. This part of the reef is unprotected and has changed drastically over

Restoration projects strategically planned and mapped nursery sites and out-plant sites. This is the mostly widely used method for ecological recovery of coral reefs which is also called coral gardening. Coral gardening framework has expanded to planting ten thousand rehabilitated corals on degraded coral reefs in the Caribbean and Western Atlantic. This method is based on two factors: the collection of coral fragments within nurseries and the out-planting of nursery grown corals onto ruined reefs (Lirman, 2016). First, engineers took a few factors into consideration – what corals exist, and where, in proximity to the restoration sites. Next, donor corals must be mapped and scoped to the location of the nursery and out-plant sites in the process. Past restoration projects in the Caribbean and Western Atlantic are quite different from coral gardening. They depended on the transplantation of corals from a donor site to a damaged site (Lirman, 2016).Coral gardening techniques are a little different because this technique uses a small amount of corals within ex situ or in situ nurseries prior to outplanting onto degraded reefs. The key to coral gardening is to maximize coral productivity and survivorship. While corals are in the nursery, they can provide an expanding source of corals for ecological restoration. If there’s a high productivity at the nursery, they will no longer need to use more corals

Besides being a spectacle to look at, coral reefs are also one of the most diverse ecosystems on the planet. In addition to ⅓ of all fish (not just species) spend at least a portion of their lives on a reef, they are also home to mollusks, sponges, turtles, and a plethora of different species of coral (Basic Facts, 2014). Coral reefs also can protect coastlines from wave erosion and also help support fisherman that depend on the reef as their livelihood. Contrary to the

After the two and half month survey, the data was collected and interpreted by various means: Cluster analysis, Coral Reef Health Index (CRHI) and Distance Population Index (DPI). The coral reef site that had the highest number of a specific indicator organism was to be used as the baseline indicating the healthiest reef. The other sites would be measured of that site and compared for that specific organism. The cluster analysis divided the sites into nine groups of shared characteristics. This allowed Hodgson to determine if reefs of differing natural and anthropogenic factors were

Easily the most well-known natural World Heritage Site in Australia, the Great Barrier Reef, which is the world’s most extensive coral reef ecosystem, was inscribed with UNESCO in 1981. The site covers approximately 348,000 square kilometers and includes a wide range of depths, comprising of shallow inshore, mid-shelf, and even extending into oceanic waters 2,000 meters deep. The Great Barrier Reef is actually made up of around 2,500 individual reefs, encompassing some 400 different species of coral, which makes for some of the most remarkable underwater scenery in the world. The massive size and varying depths allows for a wide array of ecological habitats and species, making the reef one of the most complex ecosystems on the planet.

The Great Barrier Reef is one of the seven wonders of the world. It extends more than 1,300 miles through the coral sea off northeastern Australia and it is even visible from outer space. It is also home to more than 400 types of coral and 1,500 species such as the tropical fish, birds, dolphins, and reptiles. The reef is not only home to the coral but it is also breeding ground for humpback whales and a habitat for endangered species. The Great Barrier Reef was listed as a protected site by the World Heritage Trust in 1981 to help maintain it’s beauty allowing for tourists to keep wanting to visit, which greatly affects the economy in Australia and more specifically to keep the marine life alive. However, the reef is undergoing huge

The Great Barrier Reef, one of the seven wonders of the natural world, is supposed to be larger than the Great Wall of China. The 1800-mile stretch of marine life is supposed to be the only living thing on Earth visible from space, with the world’s largest collection of corals, molluscs, rays, dolphins, and more than 1500 species of tropical fish. The reef should feature sea turtles and giant clams over 120 years old, humpback whales migrating from the Antarctic, and endangered species such as sea cows. However, just because it should doesn’t mean that it always will be. Its natural beauty has attracted tourists in the masses, but ironically, the treasured reefs are steadily perishing at their hands.

Many people may describe their jobs as difficult and strenuous, but as Kristen Marhaver said “people aren 't the only ones in our communities who do these difficult jobs”. Coral reefs take on similar jobs as humans, they provide food for sea life, income, and safety from tropical storms and other possibly dangerous weather. In Marhaver talk she informed the audience about the basics of coral reefs however, her talk lacked purpose, and although she presented with a strong voice, she seemed nervous, and her talk was generally unhelpful to the audience.

The Great Barrier Reef is dying. Twenty years ago, it was a flourishing string of 3,000 reef systems, and home to thousands of marine species. Today, global warming, water pollution and unregulated fishing are destroying The Great Barrier Reef and in order to reverse the damage, Australia’s government must fund the programs they promised to implement. If these problems are not resolved soon, the world is risking the loss of what thousands of species call home, and a beautiful site.

These measurements were taken at five different reef sites in Sarasota Bay near New Pass. Some of these sites were well known to

Reefs protect shorelines from currents, waves, and storms, helping to prevent loss of life, property damage, and erosion. Up to 90 percent of the energy from wind-generated waves is absorbed by reefs, in fact, coastlines protected by reefs are more stable, in terms of erosion, than those without. Reefs are also a natural source of sand in beach replenishment. Losing the natural reef barrier would have a large physical and economic impact on coastal communities as well as the millions of people who live in coastal areas near coral reefs. The health of sensitive coral reef ecosystems depends partly on sustainable coastal development along the coastlines the reefs protect. A study conducted in 1999 suggests that a 1% loss in coastal ecosystems leads to 1% loss of the value of the

Artificial reefs will be critical in evaluating social and ecological goals of decommissioned platforms, the efficacy of any possible rigs-to-reefs programme in present-day and future presentation of artificial reef (Schroeder and Love 2004). As a result, there is the likelihood that different stakeholder assembly will compete to define the goal of decommissioning as artificial reefs (Techera and Chandler 2015). Therefore, in this research, the host of participant perspectives concerning rigs-to-reefs agenda into three dissimilar groups, with each defined mainly by one public concern: community membership, resource accessibility, and environmental issues (Salcido 2005). Though an individual

The deterioration of coral reefs is mainly linked to human activities – 88% of coral reefs are threatened through various reasons as