[Coral-List] Impact of listing 66 coral species on coral research

Karsten Shein kshein at yahoo.com
Thu Dec 13 13:44:15 EST 2012


Hi  Gene,

"So explain how listing will prevent extinction."

The answer, at least in my mind is that the ESA cannot prevent extinction of any listed species.  What I believe it can do is reduce some of the controllable factors that are contributing to the decline of the species.  It can make it extremely difficult for those who would negatively impact the species or its supporting ecosystem by their actions from doing so anywhere within U.S. jurisdiction (not just within an MPA).  For example, in the case of these corals, the ESA could be used to prevent dredging a reef or to halt shoreline development that has no containment controls for sediment runoff.  For example, had any listed species been present on the Majuro reefs that were dredged for the airport, at the least the FAA would not have been able to use the dredged material, and at best the Compact of Free Association may have (I don't know) prevented the dredging in the first place.  Of course, a possible Draconian consequence of the ESA is that large
 sections of reef could conceivably be placed off limits to all human activity (boating, snorkeling, diving, fishing, even research).

Karsten
-- Opinions expressed are my own. --


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