[Coral-List] CO2 risks for coral reefs

[Steve Mussman]

   Accepting the status quo and continuing to manage coral reefs as best we can
   is  only  acceptable  if  one finds it satisfactory to do nothing when
   confronted with a confirmable and transcendent crisis. At the moment there
   still seems to be cause for hope, but time is running out. I don't see how
   people of conscience have any choice but to advocate for a comprehensive and
   proactive approach as Peter suggests. We can all come up with reasons to
   doubt and question the current level of national and international will to
   take  on  this  challenge,  but  that  in no way justifies inaction or
   indifference.
   -----Original Message-----
   >From: Peter Sale
   >Sent: Aug 21, 2015 12:24 PM
   >To: "eugeneshinn at mail.usf.edu" , "coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov"
   >Subject: [Coral-List] CO2 risks for coral reefs
   >
   >Gene,
   >Agree with the sentiment, but disagree slightly on the details of what you
   said.  1)  Yes,  it  will  take  time, but we can be passive and see a
   long-drawn-out shift away from fossil fuels, or we can be more pro-active
   and achieve the shift much more rapidly - second is clearly preferable if we
   want   to   minimize   damage  to  the  oceans,  and  2)  as  well  as
   reducing/eliminating CO2 emissions, we can maximize rates at which CO2 is
   taken out of the atmosphere by encouraging reforestation and afforestation,
   encouraging no-till farming practices and use of perennial rather than
   annual crops, and by developing technologies for sequestering CO2, CH4
   preferably in solid materials, either capturing the gases at source, or
   extracting them from the atmosphere. The new technologies would increase the
   rate at which we pull atmospheric concentrations back, thereby getting reefs
   and oceans back to a less damaging place.
   >
   >In other words, we can be more proactive in reducing damage to reefs and
   oceans  from warming and acidification. If we do this, and also act to
   actually manage the local pressures of overfishing and pollution, we bring
   reefs through this tight spot relatively unscathed. If we go forward as we
   currently are doing, making minimal efforts to reduce GHG emissions, reefs
   disappear, and the oceans are seriously acidified, both to the detriment of
   humanity because we need the goods and services they provide us.
   >
   >Main effort at present should be to push, in advance of Paris talks, for
   CO2 less than 350ppm - a much more demanding target than the 2 degree limit
   set at Copenhagen.
   >
   >Peter Sale
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