[Coral-List] Request for input on coral relocation studies

Sat Jul 1 21:54:55 UTC 2023

I agree with Nicole that mitigation is a last resort and will not mimic the native community for many years, if ever.  We cannot yet build what nature takes centuries to create, or decades to recover.  I have visited the site of nuclear testing in the Marshall Islands and am impressed with the ability of reefs to overcome some of our predictions.  However, with declining baseline reefs are more challenged than ever to return to their former self when inflicted with injury.  Returning them to a declining baseline may also not be considered success, but hopefully it will not deter us from trying when there are unplanned and unavoidable impacts.   

I believe we will continue to improve our ability to help reefs regenerate with native species mimicking reference composition.  The question remains whether more successful strategies can overcome the declining baseline.   Nonetheless we are determined to try when the situation demands, such as the tragic vessel grounding and oil spill accident in Mauritius in 2020.  

Never give up.

Greg E. Challenger M.S.
Marine Scientist - President
Mobile: (206) 369-5686 | Office: (425) 823-4841
111232 120th Ave NE, Suite 200
Kirkland, WA 98033
www.polarisappliedsciences.com

-----Original Message-----
From: Coral-List <coral-list-bounces at coral.aoml.noaa.gov> On Behalf Of Nicole Crane via Coral-List
Sent: Saturday, July 1, 2023 2:06 PM
To: Todd Barber <reefball at reefball.com>
Cc: coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
Subject: Re: [Coral-List] Request for input on coral relocation studies

Thank you Todd, and yes, let me qualify my probably too strong a statement:
I don't know of any (and would love to hear of some!) mitigation efforts that have been deemed successful by local communities based on their own standards.  So Todd is right on point: the concept of success, and the ultimate goals need to be clearly defined, and based on what the LOCAL community needs, since it is their ecosystem being altered. However I will say here that I am extremely skeptical that destroying a native reef for a runway (never mind the ecosystem destruction - let's just start with the sedimentation, the flow of that sediment to nearby mangroves (for example), and the nutrients from the terrestrial input), can be mitigated with coral transplant projects.  If someone knows an example where this has led to equivalent fish biomass (of the fish that people rely on for food), and equivalent ecosystem integrity, I would love to read/hear about it!  Greg Challenger said few of these studies have been published.  I would respond to that: then how is the rest of the community to know they are successful if we cant read about and assess them?  Please send us at least the white papers.  If the data are proprietary, and cannot be released for scientific and community scrutiny, then I would say they are not to be trusted.  We cannot take people's word on success when livelihoods depend on that information, and the lack of it might send us in compromising directions.

In community,
Nicole

*Nicole L. Crane*
Executive Director, Smith Fellows Program <https://conbio.org/mini-sites/smith-fellows>, Society for Conservation Biology Senior Conservation Scientist, Project co-lead, One People One Reef <https://onepeopleonereef.org> Faculty, Cabrillo College, Natural and Applied Sciences

On Sat, Jul 1, 2023 at 8:41 AM Todd Barber <reefball at reefball.com> wrote:

> Very well said Nicole.  No mitigation will ever be the same as the 
> original (the word mitigation is better understood as offsetting).  
> And your point about one person's success is not anothers is VERY much 
> on point.  Monitoring is pointless UNLESS goals are pre-defined and 
> tracked against achievement.  That said, if goals are pre-defined, and 
> tracked then I could equally argue that MANY mitigation projects have 
> been successful and can even exceed the expectations of the original 
> and that may be contrary to your conclusion all are a fail but it's 
> only what is judged as success or failure in goal-based efforts.  Of 
> course, that is ONLY when goals are pre-agreed to by everyone affected 
> by the outcome which emphasizes your point to have local perspectives.  
> That does not negate the need for outside help...with locally defined 
> goals, sometimes technologies not developed locally are required to 
> achieve the goals within available resources.  It's complex, and we 
> all know it is, but your comments are spot on!
>
>
> Thanks,
>
> Todd R Barber
> Chairman, Reef Ball Foundation
> 712 Portia Street North, Nokomis, FL 34275
> 941-720-7549 (Cell & Google Voice)
> www.reefballfoundation.org
> www.reefbeach.com (Reefs for Beach Erosion) Reef Ball World Mapping 
> System 
> <https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1KrENaH-kJn_LCDrzCbgtW_1aW-ciY
> -M&usp=sharing>
>
>
> On Sat, Jul 1, 2023 at 2:24 PM Nicole Crane <nicrane at cabrillo.edu> wrote:
>
>> Dear Sebastian,
>> There is sometimes a strong divide between people who apply 
>> technology and ideas and those who investigate the implications, 
>> although there shouldn’t be. I don’t know of any, and I really mean 
>> any, human engineered mitigation effort to solve a human caused 
>> environmental problem that has stood the test of time, and many have 
>> caused harm. Witness introducing mongoose in Hawaii, rabbits in 
>> Australia (for hunting) and on and on. The problem with most of these 
>> efforts is that good rigorous science to investigate the outcomes was 
>> not performed. Much like the Titan disaster, where the CEO was 
>> impatient with regulations and testing, not doing so can lead to problems.
>>
>> This of course is MOST important on reefs where people depend on the 
>> resource. I would be careful letting western run ideas and programs 
>> where people (notably consulting and applied engineering groups) can 
>> make good money doing something they (genuinely I believe) feel will 
>> help. But if it fails in the long term they have less to lose. More 
>> importantly is the definition of success and failure in this example. 
>> Someone’s idea of success might be that corals stick and grow, 
>> leading to new coral covered reef. But your idea may be a reef that 
>> has fish and provides food. Those two things, as our research has found, are not always the same.
>>
>> We have found that just planting corals that are fast growing can 
>> lead to unintended consequences. Some fish don’t like some corals, 
>> and won’t recruit to those reefs. I would certainly be careful of 
>> sanctioning coral outplants from other areas, and if local corals, to 
>> carefully assess potential trajectory. Monocultures are generally not 
>> good for fish, and even if someone plants different species, there is 
>> little evidence they can predict if all will grow, or if a mini specific reef will develop.
>>
>> My advice is to be careful here and seek multiple voices on the 
>> science and efficacy of coral restoration. It is NOT as simple as 
>> planting corals on bare substrate and they will grow and bring back a 
>> reef. As has been mentioned, genetics, growth, diversity and ecology 
>> are all a part of that story.
>>
>> Happy to discuss, and to put you in contact with some people who are 
>> tackling this.  One possible step forward is to form a science 
>> committee that includes local people and coral scientists to inform 
>> the decision making, and to think carefully about the outcomes.
>>
>> All my best
>> Nicole
>>
>> On Fri, Jun 30, 2023 at 9:46 PM Todd Barber via Coral-List < 
>> coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov> wrote:
>>
>>> Steven,
>>>
>>> You are absolutely right NGOs are not necessarily "better" (or 
>>> worse) from the actual doing perspective, I meant only to imply they 
>>> are more transparent (which you pointed out as important).  And when 
>>> I said NGO I probably should have defined that as Public Non-Profits 
>>> (as opposed to private NGOs) which is the case for the organization 
>>> I represent as public NGOs have fiduciary duties to transparency. .
>>>
>>> Thanks,
>>>
>>> Todd R Barber
>>> Chairman, Reef Ball Foundation
>>> 712 Portia Street North, Nokomis, FL 34275 
>>> <https://www.google.com/maps/search/712+Portia+Street+North,+Nokomis
>>> ,+FL+34275?entry=gmail&source=g>
>>> 941-720-7549 (Cell & Google Voice)
>>> www.reefballfoundation.org
>>> www.reefbeach.com (Reefs for Beach Erosion) Reef Ball World Mapping 
>>> System < 
>>> https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1KrENaH-kJn_LCDrzCbgtW_1aW-ci
>>> Y-M&usp=sharing
>>> >
>>>
>>>
>>> On Fri, Jun 30, 2023 at 11:51 AM Steven Miller <smiller52 at gmail.com>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>> > Hi Todd
>>> >
>>> > NGOs are not necessarily better than private companies. That 
>>> > sounds
>>> right
>>> > but is a fallacy. Transparency is paramount. So we mostly agree. 
>>> > My experience is that there is nothing about NGOs that makes them 
>>> > better suited to do the work. Indeed, they can be worse without 
>>> > oversight
>>> because
>>> > they have few constraints. Accountability also matters.
>>> >
>>> > Best Regards
>>> >
>>> > Steven
>>> >
>>> > On Fri, Jun 30, 2023 at 11:38 AM Todd Barber via Coral-List < 
>>> > coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov> wrote:
>>> >
>>> >> Hi Sebastian,
>>> >>
>>> >> I am not suggesting that building the airport over coral is a 
>>> >> good idea.....all other alternatives should always be considered.  
>>> >> However
>>> in
>>> >> the case that coral relocation is chosen, there are ways of 
>>> >> achieving
>>> at
>>> >> least mitigation of the loss using a combination of coral rescue,
>>> coral
>>> >> propagation, genetic rescue, and habitat reconstruction.  We have 
>>> >> done this successfully many times in many countries although you 
>>> >> won't find much scientific work on projects like these because 
>>> >> they are almost always conducted under non-disclosure agreements 
>>> >> as is typical for most mitigation projects.
>>> >>
>>> >> I can tell you that because they are usually under NDAs, the 
>>> >> quality
>>> of
>>> >> the
>>> >> work (and restoration results) are highly variable and often
>>> substandard.
>>> >> If they do choose mitigation, your community would be well suited 
>>> >> to
>>> make
>>> >> SURE they use reputable and transparent folks to perform the
>>> mitigation.
>>> >> Because a good restoration is multi-goaled, it normally requires 
>>> >> partnerships with multiple organizations to achieve good results.
>>> NGOs
>>> >> (that are typically required to be transparent) with university
>>> oversight
>>> >> partners (that are rigorous in evaluating goal achievements) are 
>>> >> much better suited than private firms that are tied to 
>>> >> engineering or development of the project.
>>> >>
>>> >>
>>> >> I hope that helps in your approach.
>>> >>
>>> >> Thanks,
>>> >>
>>> >> Todd R Barber
>>> >> Chairman, Reef Ball Foundation
>>> >> 712 Portia Street North, Nokomis, FL 34275 <
>>> https://www.google.com/maps/search/712+Portia+Street+North,+Nokomis,
>>> +FL+34275?entry=gmail&source=g
>>> >
>>> >> 941-720-7549 (Cell & Google Voice) www.reefballfoundation.org 
>>> >> www.reefbeach.com (Reefs for Beach Erosion) Reef Ball World 
>>> >> Mapping System <
>>> >>
>>> https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1KrENaH-kJn_LCDrzCbgtW_1aW-ci
>>> Y-M&usp=sharing
>>> >> >
>>> >>
>>> >>
>>> >> On Fri, Jun 30, 2023 at 4:14 AM Sebastian Szereday via Coral-List 
>>> >> < coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov> wrote:
>>> >>
>>> >> > Dear Coral List,
>>> >> >
>>> >> >
>>> >> >
>>> >> > For many years a new airport in Tioman Island (Malaysia) has 
>>> >> > been
>>> in the
>>> >> > discussion and planning. The proposed runway would result in
>>> significant
>>> >> > damage to the adjacent coral reefs, as the runway construction 
>>> >> > would require substantial land reclamation and it would be 
>>> >> > built on top
>>> of an
>>> >> > existing coral reef. The airport would also negatively impact 
>>> >> > the livelihood of the local communities and result in many 
>>> >> > further socio-economic and sustainability challenges - all in 
>>> >> > all it is
>>> safe to
>>> >> say
>>> >> > that the airport does not benefit the people nor the environment.
>>> >> >
>>> >> >
>>> >> >
>>> >> > Last week, the EIA report was released for public review, and
>>> members of
>>> >> > the public are invited to give feedback on the proposed project 
>>> >> > and mitigation measures. One such measure is to (quote) 
>>> >> > ‘relocate and rehabilitate the corals’. This is of course by no 
>>> >> > means a viable
>>> option,
>>> >> > and the EIA has not gone to lengths to identify suitable sites
>>> based on
>>> >> > common site selection criteria.
>>> >> >
>>> >> >
>>> >> >
>>> >> > I was hoping that members of this list could point out specific 
>>> >> > case studies that detail the efficacy of relocating coral 
>>> >> > colonies to
>>> >> mitigate
>>> >> > the impacts of large infra-structure construction projects.
>>> Although my
>>> >> > organisation is not involved in the direct opposition of the
>>> project,
>>> >> > summarizing existing studies would help to put together a 1-2 
>>> >> > pager
>>> for
>>> >> > further circulation with the media, stakeholders, and the 
>>> >> > public, to ultimately provide a summary of existing studies and data.
>>> >> >
>>> >> >
>>> >> >
>>> >> > Any input would be much appreciated. There is also a petition
>>> >> circulating
>>> >> > against the proposed airport, please do sign and share:
>>> >> >
>>> >> >
>>> >> > Petition · Reject the Proposed Tioman Airport · Change.org <
>>> >> >
>>> >>
>>> https://www.change.org/p/tioman-villagers-reject-the-proposed-tioman
>>> -airport
>>> >> > >
>>> >> >
>>> >> >
>>> >> >
>>> >> > Best wishes,
>>> >> >
>>> >> > Sebastian
>>> >> > _______________________________________________
>>> >> > Coral-List mailing list
>>> >> > Coral-List at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
>>> >> > https://coral.aoml.noaa.gov/mailman/listinfo/coral-list
>>> >> _______________________________________________
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>>> >
>>> >
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>>
>> --
>> *Nicole L. Crane*
>> Executive Director, Smith Fellows Program 
>> <https://conbio.org/mini-sites/smith-fellows>, Society for 
>> Conservation Biology Senior Conservation Scientist, Project co-lead, 
>> One People One Reef <https://onepeopleonereef.org> Faculty, Cabrillo 
>> College, Natural and Applied Sciences
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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