[Coral-List] Re: Active Diving Mangement

Rich Wilson rwilson at coral.org
Mon Jul 26 20:47:53 EDT 2004


David,

In response to your query about resources and information on active diving
management, the Coral Reef Alliance has put together a number of guidelines
that relate to sustainable tourism in general.  In particular, we have good
environmental practice guidelines for diving and snorkeling that are freely
downloadable from our website at:

http://www.coralreefalliance.org/resources/

Also, CORAL recently partnered with Conservation International's Center for
Environmental Leadership in Business and the Tourism Operators Initiative to
produce a handbook - A Practical Guide to Good Practice:  Managing
Environmental Impacts in the Marine Recreation Sector.  The handbook also
includes an Assessment Checklist for determining environmental
responsibility of marine recreation providers.  This handbook is also freely
available as a download from our website at the same link as above.

Feel free to contact me directly if you would like more information on the
material CORAL has developed regarding sustainable diving.

Best,

Rich Wilson
Outreach Coordinator
The Coral Reef Alliance (CORAL)
417 Montgomery Street, Suite 205
San Francisco, CA  94109
(415)834-0900 ext. 307
(415)834-0999 fax
rwilson at coral.org
http://www.coral.org

"Working together to keep coral reefs alive."

Need information on how to better protect coral reefs of your region?
Share success stories or post inquiries on the CORAL Discussion Board.
http://www.coral.org/cdb




> Send Coral-List mailing list submissions to
> coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> 
> To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit
> http://coral.aoml.noaa.gov/mailman/listinfo/coral-list
> or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to
> coral-list-request at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> 
> You can reach the person managing the list at
> coral-list-owner at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> 
> When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific
> than "Re: Contents of Coral-List digest..."
> 
> 
> Today's Topics:
> 
>  1. Re: climate change and coral reefs (John Claydon)
>  2. Re: Basic Question. Simple Answer ? (John Meaker)
>  3. Re: Basic Question. Simple Answer ? (Michael Risk)
>  4. ACTIVE diving management  (David ZAKAI)
>  5. Okinawa Declaration (Hajime Kayanne)
> 
> 
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
> 
> Message: 1
> Date: Mon, 26 Jul 2004 00:55:11 +1000
> From: John Claydon <john.claydon at jcu.edu.au>
> Subject: [Coral-List] Re: climate change and coral reefs
> To: <coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov>
> Message-ID: <002101c47257$626fc5b0$6945db89 at envirodomain>
> Content-Type: text/plain;    charset="iso-8859-1"
> 
> I was interested to read the responses to the issue of coral reefs and
> global warming, but was curious to know how coral reefs "serve as nurseries
> to our world's fish stocks". I was under the impression that the majority of
> fish in the ocean never go anywhere near a coral reef. If I am mistaken then
> I'd love to know.
> Yours
> JOHN CLAYDON
> 
> Department of Marine Biology, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
> john.claydon at jcu.edu.au
> 
> 
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: <coral-list-request at coral.aoml.noaa.gov>
> To: <coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov>
> Sent: Sunday, July 25, 2004 2:00 AM
> Subject: Coral-List Digest, Vol 13, Issue 20
> 
> 
>> Send Coral-List mailing list submissions to
>> coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
>> 
>> To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit
>> http://coral.aoml.noaa.gov/mailman/listinfo/coral-list
>> or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to
>> coral-list-request at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
>> 
>> You can reach the person managing the list at
>> coral-list-owner at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
>> 
>> When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific
>> than "Re: Contents of Coral-List digest..."
>> 
>> 
>> Today's Topics:
>> 
>>    1. Fw: [Coral-List] Basic Question. Simple Answer ? (Todd Barber)
>>    2. Coastal Zone 05 CALL FOR ABSTRACTS (Rhonda Crawley)
>>    3. Re: Basic Question. Simple Answer ? (Mark Eakin)
>>    4. Re: Basic Question. Simple Answer ? (Hajime Kayanne)
>> 
>> 
>> ----------------------------------------------------------------------
>> 
>> Message: 1
>> Date: Fri, 23 Jul 2004 13:52:16 -0400
>> From: "Todd Barber" <reefball at reefball.com>
>> Subject: Fw: [Coral-List] Basic Question. Simple Answer ?
>> To: <coral-list at aoml.noaa.gov>
>> Message-ID: <0e8401c470dd$cb2e29a0$6c02a8c0 at LaFalda>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
>> 
>> 
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: Todd Barber
>> To: Fishy
>> Cc: coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
>> Sent: Thursday, July 22, 2004 9:32 AM
>> Subject: Re: [Coral-List] Basic Question. Simple Answer ?
>> 
>> 
>> Hi Chris,
>> 
>> Here are some other points to consider in answering that question, "Why
> are
>> marine biologists so worried by a forecast global warming  rise of 1.4-5.8
>> degrees occurring over the next century, when the  coral obviously
> survived
>> a far more rapid and greater increase (~7 deg over 10 years) about 15000
>> years ago (Younger Dryas) ?"
>> 
>> 1) Temperature changes would involve a re-distribution of coral reefs.
>> Coral Reefs are major assets for everything from tourism to fisheries to
>> cultures.
>> Re-distributing reefs would involve a loss of reefs in some areas causing
>> economic problems and any gains in other areas would be so slow from a
> human
>> perspective to provide new assets at least for the next several
> generations.
>> 
>> 2) When any biological systems are subjected to "shocks" or rapid changes
> in
>> the environment, they nearly always survive but what occurs is a loss in
>> biodiversity (species extinctions).  Now, in the very long run,  may not
> be
>> a bad thing (then again it might depending upon your point of view) but in
> a
>> world that is increasingly dependent on biodiversity to provide continued
>> solutions to our rapidly changing needs (many of them not foreseeable to
> us,
>> but that does not mean we don't need them) it is scary to ponder how mass
>> extinctions could limit our future options as a species.
>> 
>> 3) There are numerous other factors putting additional stresses on coral
>> reefs today that were not present 15,000 years ago...pollution, coastal
>> re-engineering, changes in CO2 concentrations, etc, etc.   The more stress
>> factors that add up...the more magnification one is likely to see in the
>> effects of rapid environmental changes.
>> 
>> 4) Coral Reefs serve as nurseries to our world's fish stocks....something
>> that Man has come to depend upon and harvest that was not occurring at any
>> significant level 15,000 years ago.  With world fisheries already on the
>> verge of collapse (and in fact, with many fisheries already collapsed),
>> massive changes in coral reefs is not welcomed at this time.
>> 
>> 5) In that regard, Coral Reefs serve also a great variety of other roles
> in
>> the ocean....perhaps roles we don't even know in supporting a huge variety
>> of marine (and perhaps even land based) life forms.  Rapid change on any
>> scale is difficult to adapt to even if it is possible.  The earth used to
>> have oxygen levels below that which would support human life....but life
>> still existed on the planet...does that mean we should not worry if
>> something we are doing was going to drive oxygen levels back to 8%?
>> 
>> Thanks,
>> 
>> 
>> Todd Barber
>> Chairman Reef Ball Foundation, Inc.
>> 6916 22nd Street West
>> Bradenton, FL 34207
>> reefball at reefball.com
>> http://www.artificialreefs.org
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Fishy" <fishy.1 at optusnet.com.au>
>> To: <coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov>
>> Sent: Wednesday, July 21, 2004 7:38 PM
>> Subject: [Coral-List] Basic Question. Simple Answer ?
>> 
>> 
>>> Greetings all,
>>> My sincerest apologies for wasting time and bandwidth with what Im sure
>>> is an eye-rolling question for you all.
>>> I have tried to answer this question myself but have found
>>> insufficient research
>>> to back up my response.
>>> Can anyone help me ?
>>> 
>>> "Why are marine biologists so worried by a forecast global warming
>>> rise of 1.4-5.8 degrees occurring over the next century, when the
>>> coral obviously survived a far more rapid and greater increase (~7
>>> deg over 10 years) about 15000 years ago (Younger Dryas) ?"
>>> 
>>> My response is this:
>>> 
>>> 1. Greenland never had hard corals and the temperature change was
>>> probably local not global.
>>> 2. Just because some corals survive, doesnt mean losing massive
>>> diversity was a minor effect.
>>> 3. Tropical coral reefs have been stable for a long time now - sudden
>>> change will be disasterous.
>>> 
>>> But thats the best I can offer.
>>> 
>>> Hope someone out there has some patience.
>>> Sorry again.
>>> 
>>> Chris.
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Coral-List mailing list
>>> Coral-List at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
>>> http://coral.aoml.noaa.gov/mailman/listinfo/coral-list
>> 
>> 
>> ------------------------------
>> 
>> Message: 2
>> Date: Fri, 23 Jul 2004 14:11:24 -0400
>> From: "Rhonda Crawley" <Rhonda.Crawley at noaa.gov>
>> Subject: [Coral-List] Coastal Zone 05 CALL FOR ABSTRACTS
>> To: coastal_list at udel.edu, czm at onms.nos.noaa.gov,
>> coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
>> Message-ID: <410154CC.B57141F0 at noaa.gov>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
>> 
>> ******************************************************************
>> Coastal Zone 05
>> Balancing on the Edge
>> July 18 - 21, 2005
>> New Orleans, Louisiana
>> 
>> CALL FOR ABSTRACTS
>> You are invited to submit an abstract of 250 words or less for one or
>> more of the many sessions planned for the conference.
>> Deadline for submission is October 4, 2004
>> 
>> Please visit www.csc.noaa.gov/cz/ for submission guidelines and
>> additional conference information.
>> 
>> Coastal Zone is the premier conference for the world's coastal resource
>> managers. The 14th installment of the biennial conference series focuses
>> on balancing the issues and interests of land and sea. With over 1,000
>> participants expected from all over the world, this conference promises
>> to provide valuable tools, lessons learned, and new ideas to help
>> address the coastal management issues we're all facing.
>> 
>> ******************************************************************
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> =================================
>> Rhonda H. Crawley
>> Coastal Management Specialist II
>> Perot Systems Government Services
>> NOAA Coastal Services Center
>> 2234 South Hobson Avenue
>> Charleston, SC 29405-2413
>> (843) 740-1326 ph
>> (843) 740-1224 fax
>> Rhonda.Crawley at noaa.gov
>> ==================================
>> 
>> 
>> ------------------------------
>> 
>> Message: 3
>> Date: Fri, 23 Jul 2004 13:16:25 -0600
>> From: "Mark Eakin" <Mark.Eakin at noaa.gov>
>> Subject: Re: [Coral-List] Basic Question. Simple Answer ?
>> To: Fishy <fishy.1 at optusnet.com.au>
>> Cc: coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
>> Message-ID: <CA3CE87A-DCDC-11D8-9463-000A95BCF0E6 at noaa.gov>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; delsp=yes; format=flowed
>> 
>> While air temperatures rose dramatically in Greenland at the end of the
>> Younger Dryas, it is unlikely that tropical oceans warmed anywhere near
>> that much.  More important were changes in the area of warmth in the
>> tropics.  That was also an increase from cold (glacial) conditions to
>> warm (interglacial).  Your question regarding global warming is a
>> further increase in interglacial temperatures.
>> 
>> If corals were not under a wide range of other anthropogenic stresses,
>> then the warming would probably be less of an issue.  The temperature
>> problem is really compounded by the additive and synergistic effects of
>> other stress imposed on the corals at the same time as the warming.
>> 
>> Corals are not likely to go extinct.  However, it can take a long time
>> for coral reef ecosystems to recover from severe stresses like those we
>> are likely to see in the next century.
>> 
>> Cheers,
>> Mark
>> 
>> 
>> On Jul 21, 2004, at 5:38 PM, Fishy wrote:
>> 
>>> Greetings all,
>>> My sincerest apologies for wasting time and bandwidth with what Im sure
>>> is an eye-rolling question for you all.
>>> I have tried to answer this question myself but have found
>>> insufficient research
>>> to back up my response.
>>> Can anyone help me ?
>>> 
>>> "Why are marine biologists so worried by a forecast global warming
>>> rise of 1.4-5.8 degrees occurring over the next century, when the
>>> coral obviously survived a far more rapid and greater increase (~7 deg
>>> over 10 years) about 15000 years ago (Younger Dryas) ?"
>>> 
>>> My response is this:
>>> 
>>> 1. Greenland never had hard corals and the temperature change was
>>> probably local not global.
>>> 2. Just because some corals survive, doesnt mean losing massive
>>> diversity was a minor effect.
>>> 3. Tropical coral reefs have been stable for a long time now - sudden
>>> change will be disasterous.
>>> 
>>> But thats the best I can offer.
>>> 
>>> Hope someone out there has some patience.
>>> Sorry again.
>>> 
>>> Chris.
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Coral-List mailing list
>>> Coral-List at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
>>> http://coral.aoml.noaa.gov/mailman/listinfo/coral-list
>>> 
>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> --------------------------
>> C. Mark Eakin, Ph.D.
>> Director of the World Data Center for Paleoclimatology
>> 
>> NOAA/National Climatic Data Center
>> 325 Broadway E/CC23
>> Boulder, CO 80305-3328
>> Voice: 303-497-6172                  Fax: 303-497-6513
>> Internet: mark.eakin at noaa.gov
>> http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/paleo/
>> 
>> ------------------------------
>> 
>> Message: 4
>> Date: Sat, 24 Jul 2004 11:28:16 +0900
>> From: Hajime Kayanne <kayanne at eps.s.u-tokyo.ac.jp>
>> Subject: Re: [Coral-List] Basic Question. Simple Answer ?
>> To: coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
>> Message-ID: <p06001f0bbd2776ebe09a@[211.206.102.106]>
>> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" ; format="flowed"
>> 
>> Before answering the question, scientists must know how much
>> percentages of marine biologists (and earth scientists or other
>> disciplinary scientists as well) are actually "so worried" (or a
>> little worried or not worried) by the global warming forecast.
>> 
>> It is now being investigated at
>> http://www.esig.ucar.edu/ICRS/icrs_survey.html for those who
>> participated in the 10ICRS.
>> Please join this investigation before 1 August!
>> 
>> Best wishes,
>> Hajime
>> 
>>>> "Why are marine biologists so worried by a forecast global warming
>>>> rise of 1.4-5.8 degrees occurring over the next century, when the
>>>> coral obviously survived a far more rapid and greater increase (~7
>>>> deg over 10 years) about 15000 years ago (Younger Dryas) ?"
>> 
>> -- 
>> Hajime Kayanne
>> Dept Earth & Planetary Science, Univ Tokyo
>> 
>> ------------------------------
>> 
>> _______________________________________________
>> Coral-List mailing list
>> Coral-List at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
>> http://coral.aoml.noaa.gov/mailman/listinfo/coral-list
>> 
>> 
>> End of Coral-List Digest, Vol 13, Issue 20
>> ******************************************
> 
> 
> ------------------------------
> 
> Message: 2
> Date: Sat, 24 Jul 2004 10:42:53 -0500 (CDT)
> From: John Meaker <kr4ah at empery.sss.org>
> Subject: Re: [Coral-List] Basic Question. Simple Answer ?
> To: Mark Eakin <Mark.Eakin at noaa.gov>
> Cc: coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov, Fishy <fishy.1 at optusnet.com.au>
> Message-ID: <Pine.LNX.4.44.0407240933310.15483-100000 at empery>
> Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII
> 
> On Fri, 23 Jul 2004, Mark Eakin wrote:
> 
>> While air temperatures rose dramatically in Greenland at the end of the
>> Younger Dryas, it is unlikely that tropical oceans warmed anywhere near
>> that much.
> 
> Do you mean that the warming trend was not at great in terms of
> number of degrees of temperature change or that the change had less impact
> on the ecosystem?  Does it not take a smaller temperature change in water
> to impact the marine environment than air for a terrestrial environment?
> 
> Also, many scientists believe that North Atlantic Deep Water
> (NADW) circulation was a large part of the reason for those dramatic
> temperature changes.  If the North Atlantic limb of the Conveyor did
> indeed shut down, would it not have had a major impact on tropical oceans?
> 
> Additionally, the mid holocene warm period actually saw warmer
> global temperatures than we are currently experiencing.  Then, of course
> there was the "Little Ice Age."  My point is that there have been periods
> of tremendous volitility in climate in the earth's history.  We currently
> (for the last 3,000 or so years) have been experiencing an unusual period
> of stability.  This is extremely unusual and I doubt that is normal, at
> least in the long term scheme of things.
> 
> We know that the recent stability in climate has been extremely
> favorable for us and that nature is capable of throwing some really nasty
> climatological changes our way. Large glacial melts, dramatic eustatic
> seal level rises, meltwater pulses causing salinity changes and other
> effects are not only possible but a normal part of global change.  I am
> not trying to say that they are good for the ecology (or for mankind
> either) but that they are "normal" in some sense.
> 
>> More important were changes in the area of warmth in the tropics.  That
>> was also an increase from cold (glacial) conditions to warm
>> (interglacial).  Your question regarding global warming is a further
>> increase in interglacial temperatures.
> 
> But (so far, at least) not as warm as the Mid-Holocene?
> 
>> If corals were not under a wide range of other anthropogenic stresses,
>> then the warming would probably be less of an issue.  The temperature
>> problem is really compounded by the additive and synergistic effects of
>> other stress imposed on the corals at the same time as the warming.
> 
> How about the additive stresses of a meltwater pulse?  How did the
> interplay of change in salinity, temperature, sea level and sediment
> loading affect the coral ecosystem?
> 
>> Corals are not likely to go extinct.  However, it can take a long time
>> for coral reef ecosystems to recover from severe stresses like those we
>> are likely to see in the next century.
> 
> Just because dramatic global global change is natural does not
> mean it isn't devistating.  Natural disasters in the past have virtually
> wiped out life on Earth as it was known at the time.  I believe that the
> difference here is that manking can forsee the effect that he has.  The
> larger question is, "Is mankind willing to change to protect the
> environment and not kill himself off?"








More information about the Coral-List mailing list