Reef use and the time element

[John McManus]

Regarding reef use and reef health, it is important to account for the
time element. In a study of a large number of reef areas in the
Philippines, we found very little relationship between coastal density and
reef health at first. Then we determined that recent settlements tended to
be alongside healthier reefs, and older settlements tended to be along
reefs in less good health. An analysis based on this showed good
correlations. This supported the idea that people move to healthy coral
areas, and then those areas degrade over time. The same would be expected
with the dive industry. However, one would need to demonstrate this in a
place with a long legacy of dive tourism.

see:

Pollnac, R.B., McManus, J.W., del Rosario, A. E., Banzon, A.S., Vergara,
S.G. and Gorospe, M.L.G. 2000. Unexpected relationships between coral reef
health  and socio-economic pressures in the Philippines: ReefBase/RAMP
applied. Marine & Freshwater Research 51:529-533.

Cheers!

John

John W. McManus, PhD.
Director
National Center for Caribbean Coral Reef Research (NCORE)
Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science (RSMAS)
University of Miami, 4600 Rickenbacker Causeway
Miami, Fl. 33149
Phone: 305-361-4814
Fax:   305-361-4910
Email: jmcmanus at rsmas.miami.edu
Website: www.ncoremiami.edu

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