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Restoration and Remediation
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The world-wide degradation of coral reefs, particularly in the last two decades, has prompted greater attention to remediation and restoration. This has resulted in a wide range of initiatives broadly classified as improving the existing condition of impacted coral reefs (mainly through human influence). Early initiatives have focused more on artificial reefs where “reefs”, or more accurately “fish-aggregating devices” are created on non-coral reef platforms, mainly to enhance fisheries production. While this approach is still being expanded more recent activities have been directed specifically at restoring degraded coral reefs.
The diversity and scale of remediation/restoration activities include:
- habitat modification
- coral transplantation
- species re-introduction
- recruitment potential enhancement
Some of these interventions involve large-scale sub-tidal structures designed to facilitate natural colonization of reef-related species, while others use simpler and less costly approaches that are more readily replicated.
Reef remediation and restoration will continue to have an increasingly important role and efforts are likely to expand in the future.
However, viable approaches and technologies are in relatively early stages of development, and in most cases are currently difficult to implement on large spatial scales.
Reef remediation/restoration should not replace reef protection as the first management option.
However, large areas of degraded reefs make it unavoidable to ignore remediation and restoration action. The loss of biological and economic services from degraded reefs continually emphasize the need for maintaining the ecosystem, and where degraded, to restore it to a level where significance can once again be realized.
The Restoration and Remediation Working Group (RRWG) is examining the state of restoration and remediation techniques and is targeting investigations to test the efficacy of a range of potential applications.
The research includes the following considerations:
The scientific protocols necessary to design and implement restoration strategies
Baseline data for developing effective criteria for restoration
The efficacy, feasibility and cost effectiveness of restoration and remediation techniques
Prospects for enhancing natural recovery
Opportunities to combine reef remediation with small and micro-enterprise at the local level.
The Restoration and Remediation Working Group will coordinate its investigations with other Targeted Research Working Groups to consider implementing joint research in to remediation or restoration options, especially with th eBleaching, Disease and Connectivity Working Groups.
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