Florida Keys Set for $100 Million Restoration
The NOAA is funding the regrowth of seven reefs along the Florida Keys using polyps grown on shore and transplanted to the reef locations. According to the Tampa Bay Times, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration would like to regrow seven reefs deemed 'iconic' along the Florida Keys.
This is very exciting news! It's been a long time since we've had some positive developments regarding coral reefs, but as of right now, the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary is planning to revive some of the affected reefs.
The chain of reefs off the South Florida coast has fallen on hard times with the current coverage only 2 percent of its former peak. Those same reefs used to have coverage over 30 percent, sometimes up to 40 percent. The reefs help protect and maintain Florida's fishing and tourism industries.
The decline of the reefs is due to several causes that include climate change, and water quality. Climate change causes several major problems for reefs. When water temperatures change too much, the algae that live inside the corals flee. This is known as 'bleaching', and it means the coral no longer has that algae as a food source. More powerful and more frequent storms give the reef less time to recover. Ocean acidification also causes slower reef regeneration. With the combination of these three factors, reef coverage has dropped off significantly from where they once were.
Example of coral reef bleaching in Australia. File Credit: marineconservation.org.au
There are 7 'iconic' reefs set to receive the $100 million funding. From north to south they are: Carysfort Reef, Horseshoe Reef, Cheeca Rocks, Sombrero Reef, Newfound Harbor, Looe Key Reef, and Easter Dry Rocks.
These reefs were deemed 'iconic' because they are most popular with divers and snorkelers.
The restoration project's first phase is intended to last 5 to 7 years and cost $97 million. In this phase faster growing corals will be planted first from polyps grow in tanks on land. These corals have the unique ability to regenerate an entirely new coral from a broken piece in a fraction of the time it takes a coral to grow from scratch.
The second phase of the project is going to last another 10 to 12 years with the eventual goal of restoring 25% of the coral back.
Tom More, NOAA's lead on coral restoration efforts says "I think success, for me, is going to be when we have people that come to dive on these reefs, come to snorkel on these reefs and get in and go to one of these sites and hop out of the water and say, ‘Wow that looks a lot better than it looked five years ago,’"
The hope is to bring back economic value lost when the reefs were lost, and restore the biodiversity. Jessica Levy, a manager for the restoration program says “I feel for the industry. There’s a lot of economic value on our coral reefs and I understand it’s scary to admit how bad it is, but glossing over it doesn’t do anyone any favors. It’s only going to get worse if we don’t admit that there’s a reason restoration is needed.”
To better understand the coral regrowth process, watch how scientists are breeding corals that can better survive the onset of climate change in the short clip from Vice.