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Apo
Island reef
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The
International Coral Reef Action Network (ICRAN) based in Cambridge, United
Kingdom and supported by the Nairobi-based United Nations Environment Programme
(UNEP), has also batted for the establishment of more marine sanctuaries or
reserves to protect the world's reef areas.
As
UNEP focused attention on reef preservation, it identified in a study 10 coral
reef hotspots, ranked according to the degree of threat.
These
are:
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The
Philippines.
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Gulf
of Guinea.
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Sunda
Islands.
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Southern
Mascarene Islands.
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Eastern
South Africa.
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Northern
Indian Ocean.
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Southern
Japan, Taiwan and China.
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Cape
Verde Islands.
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Western
Caribbean.
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Red
Sea and Gulf of Aden.
The
UNEP study said the 10 hotspots contain just 24 percent of the world's coral
reefs, or 0.017 percent of the oceans, but claim 34 percent of restricted-range
species. The study identified a total of 18 areas with the greatest
concentrations of species found nowhere else, and determined the hotspots
category based on threats.
Dr.
Sylvia Earle, Executive Director for Marine Programs of the Washington DC-based
Conservation International said, "the oceans have long been considered
limitless places where we have little impact on species survival."
"But
the richest of the shallow tropical marine habitats are at risk of disappearing
at an incredibly fast rate," she warned.
The
study said eight of the 10 coral reef hotspots are adjacent to a terrestrial
biodiversity hotspot, those regions of the world that harbor the highest
concentrations of species on land and are also at the greatest risk.
Vital
Significance of Coral Reefs
The
value of coral reefs has been stressed in an ICRAN report.
It
described coral reefs as one of the most spectacular and productive underwater
environments benefiting people and the natural world far beyond their
boundaries.
They
occupy less than 1 percent of the ocean floor and support over 25 percent of all
marine fish species, the report said.
They
safeguard lives, economies and cultures, generate jobs, create safe harbors and
protection against erosion, provide 10 percent of the world's fishing harvest
and hold the key to future scientific and medical advances.
Yet,
the report lamented that 60 percent of reefs are either severely damaged or
threatened with immediate damage unless action is taken now.
According
to the report, an estimated one billion people currently depend on fish for
their food, income and livelihood. At least 85 percent of those rely principally
on fish as their major source of protein, it said.
Most
of these live in coastal communities within developing countries including small
island states, it added.
The
report said healthy coral reefs are critical to sustaining people; one square
kilometer of healthy coral reef can produce 15 tons of food per year, enough to
feed 1,000 people.
Yet
pollution, destructive fishing methods, land reclamation, coral mining and
global threats such as climate change are taking their toll on coral reefs and
the people who depend on them, the report said.
That
is why all initiatives are being taken to protect coral reef areas of the world
and conserve their biodiversity.
With
the success of experiments in the establishment of marine sanctuaries or
reserves, this could be the way not only to protect the reef areas of the world,
but also to revive degraded ones.
This
initiative should be pursued because it works despite the skepticism of some
environmentalists, declared Dr. Alcala.
Sources:
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Status
of Philippine Coral Reef Fisheries by A.C. Alcala and G.R. Russ, Published
in Asian Fisheries Science 15 (2002)-177-192
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ICRAN,
International Coral Reef Action Network publication, People and Reefs: A
Partnership for Prosperity, May 2002 issue.
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Hotspots
Study Sounds Alarm for extinctions in the Ocean, United Nations Environment
Programme (UNEP) Press Release Feb. 14, 2002.
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Reef
stories published in Tierra, a publication of the Philippine Environmental
Journalists Inc. (PEJI) dated January 2003 issue.
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Reefs
at Risk Southeast Asia publication by Lauretta Burke, Elizabeth Selig, and
Mark Spalding dated 2002.
Manuel S. Satorre Jr. is President of the Philippine Environmental Journalists Inc. (PEJI) and Vice Chairman of the World Water Forum of Journalists (WWFJ). He previously chaired the Asia-Pacific Forum of Environmental Journalists (APFEJ) in addition to being the former secretary general of the International Forum of Environmental Journalists. You can reach him at:
msatorre@pacific.net.ph
