The Fight to Save Coral (2017)
Oceans are in fact largely great blue deserts. Occupying less than one percent of the ocean floor, coral reefs are home to more than twenty-five percent of marine life. And 90% of all ocean life is found in coastal waters.<p>To me this means that we should invest a focused effort in planting coral reefs in protected areas (and protecting additional areas for the same.) This would have the effect of creating more marine sanctuaries safe from human fishing pressure, which will seed surrounding fishery areas and become a win-win. New Zealand has done this to great effect (creating protected areas, not planting reefs.)<p>I think however the typically human reaction is see a coral reef that's dying and try to use re-planting to bring it back to life. Unless that's coupled with re-planting higher-temperature corals, that's neither going to work or be sustainable as the Oceans continue to warm for hundreds of years to come. I would rather see more resistant corals being planted, or coral reefs being planted in colder waters.<p>Lastly, while it is a great tragedy that the coral reefs are dying, it should be noted that the Earth has been here before and come back from it at the end of the last ice age when sea levels rapidly rose 400 feet and drowned all of Earth's reefs at the time. That doesn't make things any less tragic, or absolve us of the blame, but perhaps helps frame things by remembering that Earth is not a steady-state system but a rather a system of constant flux and adaptation.<p>I hope that in the same way humans have been having massive negative effects on nature and the climate, we can also pool together and create some equally impressive positive effects on the natural world.