Page 55 - Coral Reef Teachers Guide

Coral Reef Teacher’s Guide Benefits, Threats, and Solutions

treatment have produced large mats of nui- Guam
sance algae that has smothered many corals. In Guam, military defense activities both during
Fast growing algal blooms out-compete slow World War I and II and military testing there-
growing corals for habitat. Extending the sew- after have damaged many of the coral reefs.
er line beyond the harbor has improved the Development of the island has added to this
situation, however our oceans should not be damage and now a growing tourism economy
used as dumping grounds for storm drainage, is creating additional coastal development that
sewage, or garbage. is negatively impacting all of Guam’s marine
For many years, beaches in Hawaii have been ecosystems even further. The extent of living
developed as resorts. This development, along coral reefs in Guam are now very limited.
with historical pineapple agriculture, has al- Puerto Rico
tered many of the shorelines. Airports have
been built adjacent to the reefs. The construc- Puerto Rico is working to address the many
tion of hotels, golf courses, ports, and mari- human impacts to its coral reefs with efforts
nas has resulted in the dredging and destruc- to create marine protected areas, increase ed-
tion of seagrass beds, mangrove forests, and ucational efforts, and restrict further devel-
coral reefs. Golf courses require tremendous opment. Relatively healthy coral reefs can be
amounts of irrigation water, herbicides, pesti- found at Culebra, Culebrita, Mona Island and
cides and fertilizers which often leach into the Parguera. Many other areas of the coast that
seawater damaging the coral reef ecosystem. have been developed have lost the benefits of
The creation of the Hawaii Islands Humpback mangroves resulting in massive siltation and
Whale National Marine Sanctuary in Hawaii erosion. In addition, industrial development,
has resulted in a management plan to help particularly of pharma- ceuticals, has resulted
address these impacts. in severe pollution discharges from industrial-
ized ports around the island.

Figure 3-9. Before the widespread application of reef mooring buoy technology, first designed by John Halas and Har-
old Hudson of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, anchors were the accepted way of securing a boat above a
coral reef. Unfortunately, anchors can tear, crush, and drag fragile corals. (Photo: Craig Quirolo)

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