Desperate bid to save coral reefs
Print Edition
As a strong gust of wind hit the Beibu Gulf of the South China Sea, Huang Wen and other “coral sitters” waited anxiously for the sea to calm.
The team composed of researchers from a coral reef research center in Guangxi University in south China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, and local diving instructors needed to get into the water as soon as possible since the reefs had taken a beating.
“The coral reefs have been protecting us as well as the island by blunting the storm’s destructive power,” said Huang, 33, a researcher on coral reefs with the center. “Now it’s our turn to protect them.”
China observed the Earth Day yesterday. Scientists estimate coral reefs could be extinct by 2100.
While global warming, typhoons and human activities such as fishing and industrial pollution threaten the reefs, Huang and other team members are racing against time to rescue coral off Weizhou Island in the Beibu Gulf.
When broken coral rolls around and gets buried in the sand, it soon dies. But coral pieces can still be saved if they are fastened back onto either natural reefs or artificial reefs.
“The more days that pass, the less chance they have of survival,” Huang said. “Some pieces of coral may need to be repaired in our laboratory, instead of being fastened directly back onto reefs.”
Known as the underwater Great Wall, coral reefs protect the coast by cushioning the intensity of sea waves. The survival of about one-third of the world’s fish species relies on coral reefs.
As someone who majored in aquaculture, Huang knows better than others the importance of coral reefs for marine biodiversity, a major reason he works on coral protection.
After acquiring his doctorate from the Institute of Oceanology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Huang joined the coral reef research center of Guangxi University in 2015, the year after it was established.
Artificial nurseries
Over the past seven years, the team has placed more than 100 artificial reefs under the sea to act as coral nurseries. Strains of coral covering over 2,000 square meters have been rescued.
Huang spends about a quarter of a year on the island. Inspired by his work, Huang’s three-year-old and five-year-old daughters enjoy playing on the beach as well, retrieving coral remains washed ashore.
The coverage rate of living corals in Weizhou marine ranch has dropped from 80 percent to 8 percent over the past 30 years.
Apart from the damage caused by typhoons and surges, global warming is another cause of the death of corals.
Last year, many coral strains died due to rising sea temperatures, including many rescued by the team.
“When I dived underwater, I found a vast area of dead corals. Fish and shells around the reefs were all gone,” Huang said, adding the grief left him sleepless for several nights.
“Each strain of coral is as precious as any other life on Earth so they deserve a better living environment and being treated with dignity as living organisms,” Huang said.
Guangxi University has more than 70 postgraduates in coral protection. Huang, now a postgraduate supervisor, hopes to make Weizhou a coral shelter.
“Maybe we can’t stop global warming, but if only we can extend the lives of corals, our work is meaningful,” said Huang.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
