The United States and Australia collaborate to protect the coral reef

PORT DOUGLAS, Australia

Marine biologists from Australia and the United States are joining forces to resurrect two of the world's major coral reef systems along their coasts threatened by rising ocean temperatures and extreme weather conditions.

In their two sunny states, Queensland and Florida, experts have gone from conservation to the restoration of the Great Barrier Reef and Florida Reef, where entire colonies of coral life have been bleached or destroyed.

Biologists working on the restoration of both systems are sharing data and experimenting with coral forms that appear to be resilient to warming waters. They held three main workshops in Cairns, Townsville and Miami for six months in an effort to accelerate their efforts.

The chief scientist of the Great Barrier Reef Foundation, at least one Australian biologist, is calling for a structured program between the National Science Foundation and the Australian Research Council to formalize the joint effort of the two countries.

"There is no question that our coral restoration methodology has developed in America," said Peter Mumby, chief scientist. "Australians and Americans have been working in this field for a long time, but for now, we are working closely with the Americans on the techniques they have developed for the spread of coral."

Although Australian scientists have focused on conservation for many years, two consecutive mass laundering events in 2016 and 2017 have prompted the community to take action.

Bleaching occurs when corals expel algae in response to an increase in sea temperature. Algae give corals their color. Thus, without this, the corals remain white.

In Florida and Caribbean reef systems, bleaching began years earlier than in the Great Barrier Reef, forcing US experts to lead the way in restoration technologies.

Experts from both countries claim that the sheer scale of the Great Barrier Reef – roughly the size of Italy or the length of the east coast of the United States – makes coral engineering much more difficult, and warn that techniques developed in the United States may not be directly applicable in Australia. And while the Caribbean system is home to only a few species of corals – which makes the ecosystem generally less resilient – the Great Barrier Reef has more than 100 species.

But Mumby said the Florida Keys' coral experts have provided valuable information to a $ 6 million Australian research project on the biology, ethics and feasibility of coral restoration efforts at large scale. The findings of this study were recently shared with the Australian federal government, which after the weekend's elections will decide the amount of the $ 100 million main funding to be allocated to coral restoration efforts.

Scientists based in Florida shared their findings at the Townsville workshop on the genetics of stressed corals, examining what contributes to biological resilience – essential to understanding which corals could survive in the future. always warmer waters, according to Mumby, who was in Fort Lauderdale. another series of meetings no later than in February.

A conference held in Australia in 2017, attended by prominent US scientists, has helped to strengthen the working relationship between the two countries, according to Tom Moore, head of the Coral Reef Restoration Program in the US Administration. oceans and the atmosphere.

"NOAA and Australia have always had great collaborations, but historically, Australians were not working on restoration as much as traditional management," Moore told McClatchy. "They are a little late for the match, but they are very well prepared, with resources and a total commitment."

While about one-third of all corals in the Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest reef system, have bleached or died in the past decade, Moore says 90-95% of corals Florida reef are already dead.

"Manual gardening does not cut it at the ecosystem level, we're working together to find an industry-wide effort," said Moore. "We are working on assisted evolution methods to create a coral more resistant to more hostile oceans, warmer oceans and disease."

At the Agincourt Ribbon Reef, which is part of the Great Barrier Reef System off the coast of Port Douglas, healthy, live corals were still visible to tourists. Most of Queensland's economy comes from tourism: according to data from the United States, the reef attracts two million visitors a year and brings in $ 6 billion for tourism.

Tour operators in Australia and Florida have been slow to recognize threats to the reef, fearing to drive away visitors.

"We are not going to water it, the reef is under threat and something needs to be done," said Greg Hoare, chief marine biologist for Quicksilver, one of Queensland's leading tour operators. "If we remove the idea that the reef is threatened or endangered, people will walk away from the day and say," Wow, that was beautiful, "but they do not get it. will not have the same desire to help keep what they have seen for the future. generations. "

Hoare said Quicksilver was conducting experiments on its reef sites with the approval of the Rehabilitation Great Barrier Reef Marine Park, and acknowledged that Australia had only recently focused on restoration.

As part of an experiment, the team operates a control site where the coral grows at its own pace on a mesh device. Nearby, at similar temperatures, corals develop on lattice dwellings, subjected to electric currents to multiply the rate of growth by three.

"We have fragmented colonies of corals that have already shown resilience," Hoare said. "We have isolated areas that have been resilient and are working to help the corals grow."

Within the marine biology community, the focus has been on refining resilience efforts that can be scaled up to cope with the size and scope of the upcoming challenge. Moore says these "assisted evolution methods" are the best way in the world to save these ecosystems, which are home to a quarter of marine life.

Mumby says that an official relationship between the two countries' national scientific foundations would appropriately strengthen their close working relationships.

"They have been able to sit at the table with a lot more resources and we will benefit from the work they do," Moore told the Australians. "The reefs of the future will be different from today's – we have to accept that. We will not win the fight everywhere. But we will succeed in some places, with help. "