[Coral-List] Could foreign coral save dying reefs?

Thu Jan 18 05:00:05 UTC 2024

Our lifestyles are quite incompatible with the survival of coral reefs.  I
completely agree.  But almos no one is vulunteering to give up anything.
The big things are the big greenhouse gas emissions.  Electricity
generation, transportation, heating, agriculture, cement making, and
several others are important contributors.  Likely the big users of
electricity in the computer world are cryptocurrency mining and the NSA.
And then all the other computers together.  But all computer usage together
is a small part of electricity consumpion, I'd be willing to guess.
      If we ask people to give up things they like, I think almost no one
will do it.  Everybody wants someone else to do it.  If we can find ways to
let people still get what they want without harming the world very much,
they may be willing to change as long as they can still get what they
want.  Essentially, that's what we're trying to do with renewable energy,
produce electricity without burning fossil fuels, as far as possible.
People are screaming against banning fossil fuels.  But if we build enough
renewable energy, the power companies will stop buying fossil fuels.  If
electricity is generated from renewables, then electric cars will get
people where they are going and not generate greenhouse gases.  I rented my
first electric car, never even been in one before, on Maui.  It was
FABULOUS.  there are things to be fixed.  When the temperature gets cold
enough, you can't recharge batteries and batteries lose all power.  So
there will be many problems and hiccups along the way.  But if electricity
is generated by renewables and cars are all electric, much less fossil fuel
will be purchased, and if the fossil fuel companies can't sell it, they
can't sell it, they're out of business (surely they will just have much
smaller business and profits.  Oil will still be used for chemical
feedstock that doesn't get burned, and coal will still be used to make
ashfault for roads, and natural gas will still be used to make ammonia
fertilizer (which actually produces CO2, so we'll need ot switch fertilizer
production to a sustainable mechanism.)  It can all be done, it will all be
done, and it HAS to not require any significant sacrifice or people simply
will not do it.
        It will not be easy, but it can and will be done, and it HAS to be
done, and we darn well better do it fast enough not to lose reefs.
        That's my view.  It is oversimplified for SURE.  And there are
loads of other things we have to do too.  But if we don't stop
climate change, we can't save coral reefs no matter what other things we
do.
         That said, we do know corals can acclimate and adapt SOME.  What
we don't know is how much and how fast.  And if we continue with the most
rapid warming it is sure they won't survive.  At the low end of possible
warming, there is a good chance some will survive and hopefully replenish
the reefs.  Best not to bet the farm that they will, though, best to be
ready for the worst possible scenario, and do all we can to avoid it.

On Wed, Jan 17, 2024 at 12:32 PM Damien Beri via Coral-List <
coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov> wrote:

> Steve,
>
> How do we stop the deterioration in time? Just by sitting here and typing
> on this computer, we acknowledge that the lifestyle we have chosen to live
> with contradicts global reef wellbeing. E.g. manufacturing ever faster,
> cheaper, computers. Building new internet infrastructure, servers, cables,
> plastic, metals, etc you get my point. I love corals with all my heart and
> want them to live pristine for 1000000000 more years, but deep down we need
> to get a new iPhone in 2 years our is too slow and can't take a 50mp
> picture. Also, AI will save coral reefs too ;)......
>
> I think it may be good to start the research on trans-oceanic introductions
> primarily for coralivore issues and disease.
>
> On Tue, Jan 16, 2024 at 6:04 AM Steve Mussman via Coral-List <
> coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov> wrote:
>
> >
> > Hi Doug,
> >
> > Can foreign corals save a dying reef?
> >
> > I would suggest that the simple answer to that question is an emphatic
> > “NO”.
> >
> > One of the scientists in the Nature article is quoted as lamenting “How
> > far do you go? When do we just give up?” she says. “I don’t know.”
> >
> > All this angst leads me to pose a responsive question.
> >
> > When will the coral sciences stop focusing on trying to find or develop
> > corals that can survive in increasingly adverse conditions and finally
> > realize that the only real solution is to address causation?
> >
> > Stop wringing your hands and focus on what we all know are the central
> > issues at play; water quality, over-fishing and climate change.
> >
> > Such an approach might not create as many exciting opportunities to
> > experiment with the manipulation the natural world, but it is becoming
> > increasingly obvious that it is the last best chance we have to save it.
> >
> > Regards,
> >
> > Steve Mussman
> >
> > Sent from EarthLink Mobile mail
> >
> > On 1/15/24, 8:16 PM, Douglas Fenner via Coral-List <
> > coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov> wrote:
> >
> > "Scientists are considering a desperate attempt to use non-native coral
> to
> >
> > restore long-struggling reefs in the Caribbean that were devastated by
> last
> >
> > year’s heatwave. It’s a controversial proposal
> >
> > that
> >
> > comes after efforts to rescue reefs with native corals have failed.
> Certain
> >
> > Indo-Pacific coral species easily colonize reefs, and might be able to
> >
> > survive pollution, heat extremes and diseases. But they could also
> disturb
> >
> > the local ecology in unpredictable ways. “It’s an 11th-hour solution,”
> says
> >
> > coral geneticist Mikhail Matz, who presented the idea at a conference.
> “And
> >
> > it is now 11:45.”" Nature Briefing
> >
> > Radical idea sparks debate
> >
> > https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-00102-y
> >
> > open-access
> >
> > Cheers, Doug
> >
> > Lynker Technologies, LLC, Contractor
> >
> > NOAA Fisheries Service
> >
> > Pacific Islands Regional Office
> >
> > Honolulu
> >
> > and:
> >
> > Coral Reef Consulting
> >
> > PO Box 997390
> >
> > Pago Pago, American Samoa 96799-6298 USA
> >
> > Costanza, R. 2023. To build a better world, stop chasing economic growth.
> >
> > Nature 624: 519-521. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-04029-8
> >
> > Fossil fuel air pollution kills 5 million people world-wide per year
> >
> >
> >
> https://www.yahoo.com/news/research-shows-disturbing-between-millions-200000257.html
> >
> > World's richest 1% emit as much as 5 billion people
> >
> > https://makerichpolluterspay.org/climate-equality-report/
> >
> > Huge expansion of fossil fuels planned, will be very destructive
> >
> >
> >
> https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/nov/08/insanity-petrostates-planning-huge-expansion-of-fossil-fuels-says-un-report
> >
> > "without policy changes, the world will heat up enough by the end of the
> >
> > century that more than 2 billion people will live in life-threatening hot
> >
> > climates" Will you be in that area???
> >
> >
> >
> https://www.yahoo.com/news/scientists-sounding-alarm-dangerous-problem-123000792.html
> >
> > World subsidies for fossil fuels reached an all-time high of over $1
> >
> > TRILLION in 2022, the last year for which data is available. The
> subsidies
> >
> > MUST end.
> >
> >
> >
> https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/fossil-fuel-subsidies-must-end/
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> >
> > Coral-List mailing list
> >
> > Coral-List at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> >
> > https://coral.aoml.noaa.gov/mailman/listinfo/coral-list
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > Coral-List mailing list
> > Coral-List at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> > https://coral.aoml.noaa.gov/mailman/listinfo/coral-list
> _______________________________________________
> Coral-List mailing list
> Coral-List at coral.aoml.noaa.gov
> https://coral.aoml.noaa.gov/mailman/listinfo/coral-list