[Coral-List] Bleaching Havens

Phil Dustan dustanp at cofc.edu
Wed Apr 12 09:31:30 EDT 2006


Dear Alex and Todd,
	In the light of the latest issue of Science and all the other 
information concerning the REALITY of global warming, Caribbean reefs as 
we know them are not really going to survive for much longer. I think 
their response to last summer's heat is just a taste of things to come.
	So why not try to think outside the box. Maybe we can redirect a little 
bit of cooler water up onto the shelf.  Sinking ships to divert people 
from reefs has been successful nad they also seem to become rather 
vibrant places in a few years.  So why not strip out an aging nuclear 
aircraft carrier and position its 1000+ ft flight deck so it pushes a 
bit of water up into the shallows?  Might be a neat experiment.....All 
it would take is a lot of money which could be scavanged from the money 
collected for reef damage which is usually used to add more rocks to 
already dying reefs.
	Perhaps we could embed large generators into the flight deck and 
generate electricity at the same time. Wouldn't that be a kick!

			Phil



Phillip Dustan  Ph.D.
Department of Biology
College of Charleston
Charleston   SC  29424
(843) 953-8086 voice
(843) 953-5453 (Fax)



Brylske at aol.com wrote:
> In a message dated 4/11/06 4:47:30 PM, reefball at reefball.com writes:
> 
> 
> 
>>Hi Alex,
>>
>>Seriously, are you advocating the sinking of dirty ships as a way of
>>reducing coral bleaching?  Come on, let's think about this....are you saying
>>Miami should have accepted PBCs in excess of EPA standards, the risk of a
>>large ship moving and destroying nearby natural reefs, and spent millions of
>>dollars, all in hopes that it would redirect some cold water (likely
>>disturbing the natural environment)  to stop corals from bleaching?  Even if
>>that would work (which I am NOT saying it would) who in their right minds
>>would want to have a ship that could move in a storm close enough to a coral
>>reef to have an effect?
>>
>>If you want ships for diving opportunites in Miami, then just say so...you
>>don't have to hide it by trying to justify how a ship would stop coral
>>bleaching.  Whatever we do to our oceans, we need to be clear about the real
>>goals we are trying to achieve otherwise we will just confuse the public.
>>If you want to support ship sinking, then do so for the right
>>reasons....diving opportunities, economic enhancement but don't exagerate
>>the uses.
>>
>>Thanks,
>>
>>Todd Barber
>>
> 
> 
> Todd:
> 
> I'm not advocating anything, and completely agree with your desire to be 
> honest and forthright. The idea was floated by Phil Dustan, whom I have the utmost 
> respect for. Even he isn't "advocating," just making a suggestion to maybe 
> think outside the box. Shipwrecks will always be a huge draw for dive tourism, 
> whether we like it or not. If they can be used for purposes that could actually 
> help promote reef conservation, if seems that we should take a look at it 
> before dismissing it. Don't you think?
> 
> Alex
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