After the incidents of coral bleaching in The Great Barrier Reef in Australia, researchers stated that it would not be long enough before a massive bleaching occurs in the U.S. major coral reefs as well. The culprit for the bleaching dangers was then identified to be the ocean’s rising temperatures and global warming.
According to Newsweek, experts from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predict that the coral reefs in U.S. are at high stake of disappearance in decades. They mentioned that bleaching may increase this year in the coral reef bays in Hawaii and Florida.
“It won’t be as severe as 2015, but we’ve now moved into a general pattern where warmer than normal temperatures are the new normal. We are looking at the loss or at least severe degradation of most reefs in the coming decades,” Mark Eakin, a coral reef specialist at NOAA explained. Eakin then stated that the U.S. coral reefs are being severely beaten. Eakin also said that they are now currently looking into a least possible severe degradation of most reefs in the future.
The researchers stated that the major U.S. coral reefs found in Hawaii, Florida, Guam and Puerto Rico are facing rising ocean temperatures due to global warming. Kim Cobb, an oceanographer at Georgia Tech then identified that the reefs would not be longer spared in a matter of 20 or 30 years because of climate change as well. If that will happen, the 100-year conservation goal will be broken as Cobb stated.
The Guardian then reported that 90 percent of Hawaii was already subjected to coral bleaching last 2014 and 2015. The countermeasures for the disappearance of the U.S. coral reefs was said to be not effective. Hence, the resume of coral bleaching off the coast of Florida and in the Caribbean was predicted as well.
Nonetheless, climate change was also said to cause bleaching in 2/3rds in the 1400 mile region of the Great Barrier Reef. Hence, the danger of bleaching causing drastic changes in the U.S. coral reefs are constantly being monitored and solutions are now being thoroughly searched. Cutting carbon emissions and stop burning fossil fuels was then advised.
