Six countries draft protocol on coral reef management

Ni Komang Erviani, The Jakarta Post 5 Sep 08;

In a move to help preserve the region's coral reefs, the six member countries of the Coral Triangle Initiative have agreed on a draft protocol on protecting coral reefs from the effects of climate change.

The six countries, Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Timor Leste and the Solomon Islands, agreed on the measures during a forum in Denpasar, Bali, from Monday to Thursday.

The forum participants, including government representatives, NGOs and scientists from across the globe, decided to set up a Planning Response Coral Bleaching System and Coral Bleaching Alert Network. Their aim is to spearhead the creation of a protocol on the adaptation and protection of coral reefs within the coral triangle.

The Planning Response Coral Bleaching System includes guidelines on ways to monitor coral bleaching. The Coral Bleaching Alert Network programs an early warning system in the event of coral bleaching in a particular area.

The implementation of the systems will be supported by satellite surveillance from the U.S.-based National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Climate adaptation scientist from The Nature Conservancy (TNC), Elizabeth McLeod, said the planned protocol was expected to act as a guideline in predicting and detecting the presence of coral bleaching, because early identification could minimize the adverse impacts of climate change on coral reefs and allow for immediate action.

According to McLeod, the protocol will act as a strategy in adapting to climate change.

Implementation will differ in each country according to its capacity and condition.

She added that several reports show the world's coral reefs would be completely depleted by 2050 if no immediate action was taken to retard the rate of destruction.

The initiative is deemed crucial in curbing coral destruction, because more than 50 percent of the world's coral species are found in the coral triangle.

TNC country director Rili Djohani pointed out no effects of climate change on the condition of coral reefs in Indonesia had yet been observed.

"Coral reefs in Indonesia tend to be more resistant toward climate change thanks to cooler underwater currents in the seas in Indonesia," Rili said.

"The temperature of our oceans doesn't change much, so they are quite resistant toward the effects of global warming."

Around 33,150 square kilometers of the total 51,000 sq. km of coral reef areas in Indonesia are in a critical condition. About 12,750 sq. km, or about 25 percent, are still in good condition, while only around 5,100 sq. km, or 10 percent, are in pristine condition.