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On a tropical island, halfway between the Australian Great Barrier Reef and the city of Cairns, in northern Queensland, researchers and members of the tourism industry unite to try to grow healthy corals.
In a process commonly known as "coral gardening", researchers and volunteers at the Reef Restoration Foundation, a non-profit social enterprise, take coral cuttings from the reef around Fitzroy Island and suspend them to underwater plastic frames. rapid growth
(A volunteer diver removes algae from a "tree" of coral with the help of a bamboo toothbrush) [Reef Restoration Foundation]
Seven months after harvest, corals have grown rapidly. Stewart Christie, CEO and Chief Strategy Officer of the foundation, has almost doubled in size. "(When they are hanging from the trees) they are in this kind of fattening pen, and they use their" When they are on the reef, the corals are fighting and using the energy to get themselves protect pests, algae and starfish, "he added, he said, referring to a predator eating corals that can devastate the reefs in plague proportions.
The cuttings of the foundation can grow quickly thanks to volunteer divers who affectionately tend to floating trees, using bamboo toothbrushes to brush
(Lovis Hinz is photographed to get off a boat and s & # 039; 39, occupying submarine coral cuttings)
Lovis Hinz is one of 50 divers who travel to Fitzroy Island once a day. "It's so amazing to see them grow," said the 21-year-old German. "We talk to them while we clean them!"
Currently, the foundation has 10 submerged trees in a coral nursery off the coast of the island, each tree containing between 80 and 100 pieces of coral.
Christie's team will reinstall the cuttings on the reef with the help of an underwater glue.
Christie says that the process mimics what happens naturally when the coral branches break away from the reef and start to grow back into a new area. But often, this is not the case
"Often what happens is that the coral breaks, tumbles, then gets covered with sand and sediment and dies," he says. he
. "OK, we will strategically place this piece of coral in a place where it will take and grow with greater success."
Christie and his team took more resistant coral cuttings at the back. Bleaching events at the back that have damaged parts of the Great Barrier Reef, including the reef surrounding Fitzroy Island, in 2016 and 2017.
(Close-up of a cut of Coral Suspended from a "Tree" of Coral) [Reef Restoration Foundation]
Coral bleaching occurs when high water temperatures cause coral polyps to expel small colored algae living in their bodies soft and translucent. Although it is considered one of the greatest threats to the Great Barrier Reef
Although bleaching is not a sign of coral death, polynuclear can hardly push back and support various ecosystems that depend
The reef also plays an important role in supporting the local economy, which is why Christie and his team have partnered with the local tourism industry to encourage businesses to play a active role in protecting their assets.
report released by Deloitte Access Economics accounting firm in 2017 found the World Heritage site contributes about 3.4 billion Australian dollars ($ 2.5 billion) to the Queensland economy by tourism alone, and supports about 64,000 jobs nationwide, half of which are based in Queensland. Already, tourism companies, including Japanese company JTB Corp., have sponsored entire coral trees, but Christie hopes that individual tourists will also be able to sponsor their own coral cuttings in the future.
Stewart Christie, CEO of Reef Restoration Foundation (right), with volunteer divers on board)
"The Great Barrier Reef is so vital to our community," said Christie. "The message circulating nationally and internationally is that the reef is dead or dying," he said, explaining that such sponsorship can help visitors develop a personal relationship with the world. reef.
"What we want to do, is show Even on a small scale, you can make a difference.
Volunteer Julie Beauchet says friends and family in Europe were already of the opinion that the Great Barrier Reef was "dead".
"Many people in France said do not bother (go to the reef), everything is white (bleaching)," said the 30-year-old
Beuchet and his comrade Hinz believe the cover media that focuses heavily on the impact of climate change on the reef inadvertently promotes a negative image of the world's largest life structure.
The project is still only in one place. it starts and takes a lot of time and work, admits Christie.But he hopes that within a few years, the team will be able to grow and replant about 25,000 corals a year and bring the sections back damaged to their former glory
"The outlook is healthy for the Great Barrier Reef. please, do not give up, "he says.
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