The incredibly productive species, coral reefs are pressurized by global warming. This has not only shows effective impact on the oceanic ecosystems, but also on the coastal populations. Global warming doesn't attack only the coral reefs by ocean acidification and elevated temperatures, but it causes stronger storms against which the coral reefs are outstanding protection.
How do Coral Reefs Help in Protecting the Coastal Populations?
Coral reefs reduce wave energy by an average of 97% and the height is reduced by 84%. The reef crest breaks the wave and dissipates 86% of the wave energy on its own.
The mechanism is simple. When the open water wave hit the coral reefs, they crest and release a lot of energy. Researchers have found that the shallowest part of the coral reefs where the waves first break, release about 86% of the wave energy. When the waves reach the coast, about 97% of the energy was released on an average and the height of wave was reduced by 84%. That is really a huge difference.
The study, published in the Nature Communications and authored by Dr. Michael Beck, who is the leading marine scientist of The Nature Conservancy, noticed that about 200 million people worldwide living near coastal areas are getting risk reduction benefits from the coral reefs or they may bear expenses for disasters if the coral reefs was degraded.
Dr. Curt Storlazzi, a co-author in USGS, said that,
"Coral reefs are amazing natural features that provide akin wave reduction benefits to many coastal defenses and acclimatize to sea level rise. This research proves that coral reef restoration can very useful to decrease the hazards faced by coastal communities due to storms and sea level rise."
The average cost for setting an artificial breakwater is US $19,791 per meter and US $1,290 per meter for coral reef restoration projects. This sounds a good investment, no?
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Published: May 24th, 2014
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