Why are coral reefs in danger

The future of the world's coral reefs is so threatened that the United Nations (UN) is taking drastic action to save them.

�

Q.� What is coral

A.� This question was posted by ATOB2. Click here to see Isaacr's answer.

�

Q.� What is threatening the coral reefs

A.� Coral reefs are particularly sensitive to certain types of human impact. The fishing industry poses a huge threat to coral reefs, which suffer various assaults from dynamite targeted at shoals of fish to haphazardly dropped anchors.

�

Other culprits are sewage and plundering by divers.

�

Q.� How is climate change affecting coral reefs

A.� The rising sea temperature associated with global warming only adds to the reefs precarious situation. Scientists believe that the rise in carbon dioxide (CO2, also known as the greenhouse gas), levels in the atmosphere, which affect coral calcification rates, could reduce coral growth by almost half.

�

Additionally, high temperatures may cause the organisms that live in coral reefs to expel the microscopic algae that share their home. This weakens the colony and further stress leads to the death of the reef. The loss of the algae also robs the reef of its colour, which is why it is called bleaching.

�

During the El Nino climate disruption in 1998, up to 70% of Kenya's corals were bleached and damaged.

�

Q.� How near are coral reefs to extinction

A.� Researchers say that more than a quarter of the world's reefs have been damaged by pollution and climate change. In less than 20 years the rest could meet the same fate.

�

Q.� What is being done to save coral reefs

A.� The UN is dedicating around $10 million to a scheme to save coral reefs across the globe as part of a four-year action plan.

�

The money will go to support 'flagship' reef management demonstration sites in four regions: the Caribbean, East Africa, East Asia and the South Pacific. It is hoped that the sites will become models for saving other threatened reefs.

�

Do you have a question about any other of the Earth's ecosystems Just click here to ask it

�

by Lisa Cardy