Something More - Ideas
OUGD603
______________________________________________________
Research conclusion
I Identified the main issues causing the deterioration of the coral reef these are; pollution, climate change, ocean acidification, destructive coral gathering practices, and overfishing.
Pollution is causing an increase in the level of nitrogen in seawater, causing an overgrowth of algae, which 'smothers' reefs by cutting off their sunlight.
Climate change is increasing the temperature of the oceans which subsequently causes coral bleaching, This warming causes corals to lose the microscopic algae that produce food that corals need. Without this algae coral also lose their coloration—a condition known as coral bleaching — because the loss of algae reveals the white color of the calcium carbonate structure underlying the polyps. Severe or prolonged bleaching can kill coral colonies or leave them more vulnerable to other threats such as infectious disease.
Ocean acidification refers to a change in ocean chemistry in response to the uptake of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is in equilibrium with that in seawater, so when atmospheric concentrations increase so do oceanic concentrations. Increases in ocean acidity (measured by lower pH values) reduce the availability of dissolved salts and ions needed by corals to form the calcium carbonate structure. Consequently, coral growth and reef growth can be slowed, with some species affected more than others.
Destructive coral gathering practices are really effecting the coral reef because in many people's eyes coral are really desirable and they want them. This makes gathering and selling the corals a big market. The methods which are most destructive are cyanide fishing, blast or dynamite fishing, bottom trawling, and muro-ami (banging on the reef with sticks). Bottom-trawling is one of the greatest threats to cold-water coral reefs.
Overfishing affects the ecological balance of coral reef communities, warping the food chain and causing effects far beyond the directly overfished population.
Idea 1 - Pollution
Idea 1 - Climate Change (coral bleaching)
Idea 1 - Ocean acidification
Idea 1 - Destructive coral gathering
Idea 1 - Overfishing
Research conclusion
I Identified the main issues causing the deterioration of the coral reef these are; pollution, climate change, ocean acidification, destructive coral gathering practices, and overfishing.
Pollution is causing an increase in the level of nitrogen in seawater, causing an overgrowth of algae, which 'smothers' reefs by cutting off their sunlight.
Climate change is increasing the temperature of the oceans which subsequently causes coral bleaching, This warming causes corals to lose the microscopic algae that produce food that corals need. Without this algae coral also lose their coloration—a condition known as coral bleaching — because the loss of algae reveals the white color of the calcium carbonate structure underlying the polyps. Severe or prolonged bleaching can kill coral colonies or leave them more vulnerable to other threats such as infectious disease.
Ocean acidification refers to a change in ocean chemistry in response to the uptake of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is in equilibrium with that in seawater, so when atmospheric concentrations increase so do oceanic concentrations. Increases in ocean acidity (measured by lower pH values) reduce the availability of dissolved salts and ions needed by corals to form the calcium carbonate structure. Consequently, coral growth and reef growth can be slowed, with some species affected more than others.
Destructive coral gathering practices are really effecting the coral reef because in many people's eyes coral are really desirable and they want them. This makes gathering and selling the corals a big market. The methods which are most destructive are cyanide fishing, blast or dynamite fishing, bottom trawling, and muro-ami (banging on the reef with sticks). Bottom-trawling is one of the greatest threats to cold-water coral reefs.
Overfishing affects the ecological balance of coral reef communities, warping the food chain and causing effects far beyond the directly overfished population.
Idea 1 - Pollution
Idea 1 - Climate Change (coral bleaching)
Idea 1 - Ocean acidification
Idea 1 - Destructive coral gathering
Idea 1 - Overfishing
No comments:
Post a Comment