• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

NOAA Releases Report on The State of Deep Coral

Posted on: Monday, 10 March 2008, 09:00 CDT

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) released a report last month, "The State of Deep Coral Ecosystems of the United States," called for in the president's Ocean Action Plan. The peerreviewed report, prepared by NOAA's Coral Reef Conservation Program, provides a baseline for future research and management of these unique and vulnerable ecosystems. "The United States has become a world leader in conservation efforts for deep-sea corals," said Dr. Bill Hogarth, NOAA Fisheries Service director. "Deep-sea corals are not only beautiful, they are fragile living ecosystems that are critically important to the survival of many living creatures in our oceans.

"This report is another tool that scientists and managers can use to help stop their destruction and to develop new ways of helping them recover and survive."

The report comes on the eve of the declaration of 2008 as the International Year of the Reef, a worldwide campaign to raise public awareness about the value and importance of coral reefs and threats to their sustainability.

The report provides an up-to-date look at deep coral ecosystems in U.S. waters, including the biology of deep corals and their associated species, their spatial distribution, the Stressors that may threaten their survival, current management measures and regional priorities for future research. Many deep corals form complex and biologically rich habitats in deeper waters off the United States and elsewhere around the world.

Because deep corals are long-lived, slow growing and fragile, they are vulnerable to human activities that damage the seafloor or alter the surrounding environment.

Recovery from damage may take decades or centuries. Coral can be damaged by bottom trawling, other types of fishing gear, ocean acidification and, especially in the Gulf of Mexico, oil and gas exploration and development.

Source: Sea Technology

More News in this Category