Hello fellow bloggers! I hope you are enjoying my posts on the Great Barrier Reef environmental issues, as I have more to tell you this week on the issue of flooding that was caused from Cyclone Yasi and extreme rain. The vast plumes of fresh water and agriculture run off from the flooded farms is still said to be a major threat to the coral. The more researchers look into this and the impacts it could cause scares me as I hate to such a beautiful natural resource be destroyed! The following pictures show the major impact on the Queensland coast from the flooding that is affecting the Great Barrier Reef.
I am relieved to see that researchers are taking extreme measures to try and protect the coral the best they can; such as hooking up computers and cables in the reef area to measure its pH levels. Having these tests done could help researchers figure out what is really going on to the coral and maybe find a way to protect it better. The reef is over 9000 years old which makes me so concerned in protecting it; and seeing the researchers measure how the coral responds in its natural environment to ocean acidification as it absorbs the carbon dioxide that humans produce is reassuring that they are doing everything in their power to save it. However, I have discovered that the more carbon dioxide and acidity the coral takes in, the less it will be able to withstand things such as the pollution from the agricultural runoff and pressures from cyclones; this is scary!
I have also come across an article posted by Planet Earth, the natural environment research council who have done research themselves on the destruction of the coral and have found out that humans aren’t always to blame for the depleting coral reefs. Beyond the environmental impacts to the reefs, overfishing used to be a problem as people needed the resources supplied by the reefs to survive. The information I have come across has helped me learn that the coral goes through an evolutionary life cycle before it shuts down... cool right! I had no idea. In this case I understand why some of the reef stops growing and have degraded surfaces; it is not only due to the environmental stresses.
If you are interested in learning a little bit more about the age of the coral and how it works through its life cycle, this is a great article to look at http://planetearth.nerc.ac.uk/news/story.aspx?id=907
Well I hope you have all learned something this week like I have and will keep you posted as I continue my research on the Great Barrier Reef!
“Travel Smart”
No comments:
Post a Comment