Philippine Coral Reefs Affected by Global Warming
- Thread starter shandy_say
- Start date
Large parts of Thailand,Malaysia,The Maldives,Indonesia,Western Pacific and the Philllipnes have had the largest bleaching since the mass bleaching events of 1998 and 2002.
This year is looking like it will be the warmest on record.
We were warned about this happening years ago.
This year is looking like it will be the warmest on record.
We were warned about this happening years ago.
49.35 North
New member
It's an ecological disaster of global proportions, and an economic disaster for the Philippines - no reefs = no tourists = no income.
shandy_say
New member
I think it affects more than just the Philippines. Dying coral reefs can and will affect the world.
fcmatt
Member
how often did mass bleaching occur in this region in the past?
I see another poster mentioned 1998 and 2002 from the article.
Is this something that happened in the past every so often only to have the corals
rebound time and time again?
The article is trying to be shocking, which it achieves, but is light on past events from 20+
years ago. How often did this happen 30, 50, or 100 years ago?
I see another poster mentioned 1998 and 2002 from the article.
Is this something that happened in the past every so often only to have the corals
rebound time and time again?
The article is trying to be shocking, which it achieves, but is light on past events from 20+
years ago. How often did this happen 30, 50, or 100 years ago?
bleedfire
New member
I wouldn't say that is the only attraction in the Philippines, yes its called a 1000 island for a a reason,
I love the Philippines reef or no reef.
shandy_say
New member
It happens usually during the el nino phenomenon when temperatures go as high as 34C - 36C. But this year has been a record high here in the Philippines hence the mass bleaching. Hopefully they recover.
49.35 North
New member
Absolutely - "It's an ecological disaster of global proportions"
Tourism is important, but I would say food (fish) comes before tourism dollars. No?
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Marine biologists have not found evidence of mass bleaching events like ones of the last two decades. 1000 year coral heads have been destroyed across the globe. In 1998 the planet lost about 15% of reefs forever. A lot of the time reefs can't recover.
We are now reaping what we have sowed from not taking action on global warming,which we have known is a very real threat for decades and decades. This is just the start.
greenbean36191
Premium Member
The first records of mass bleaching anywhere only date back to the late 70s and they have increased in frequency since then. Part of that increase is likely due to reporting bias- now that people are concerned about bleaching they're more likely to report events. However, the late 70s is well within the SCUBA era and well-within the modern period of reef studies, so there were plenty of people out there looking at the reefs who would have likely made note of something like this if it was happening. These types of events are extremely obvious, even from a boat at the surface, so it's unlikely that they were occurring as often as they are now and just going unreported. Also, the ecological changes occurring after some of these events suggests that at least on those specific reefs these types of events are unprecedented in recent history.
T Diddy
Happy to be here
It is possible that no evidence of past bleaching exists because the reef recovered, and the bleached corals are now covered by new healthy growth. Quantifiable documentaion of weather, temp, etc. has only existed for a blink of the eye in the grand scheme of things. How can we as humans be certain that fluctuations in climate are unnatural or caused by humans? Certainly, combustion engines emit CO and CO2 exhaust (plant food), but there is also evidence of higher temperatures well before the industrial revolution. IMO, global warming and cooling is something that is cyclical, and will occur with or without human intervention. The reefs of the world have survived eons of temperature fluctuations, global warming and cooling events, ice ages, etc.. I imagine that they will be here long after we are all gone. No need to call Al Gore just yet...
Try reading some proper science instead of fox news or some junk science blogs and you might find that as well as plants using co2 for photosynthesis, it's also powerfull green house gas. This was discovered in the 1850's.
No one is saying there hasn't been past climatic changes (some of these changes have been due to changes in atmospheric compounds like co2 and sulphur dioxide from volcanoes). There is a mountain of evidence supporting man made warming with no other credible explantion for the recent warming.
T Diddy
Happy to be here
Rossini,
I apologize if I have offended you in some way...this is a sensitive topic to many. I am well aware of greenhouse gases, and I do not get scientific information from fox news. My background makes me more than qualified to speak to these issues.
Do humans impact the global environment? Yes!
Does burning fossil fuels introduce greenhouse gases into the atmosphere? Yes!
IS climate (and consequently weather) in a constant state of flux? YES!
Is the ocean home to some of the oldest life forms on the planet? YES!
Have these organisms survived global climate changes in the past? YES!
Is a bleaching event tragic? Yes!
Will these bleached reefs recover??? Based on a few billion years of existence and evolution and temperature changes and chemistry changes and so on...YES!
Now, I will not question anyone on this forum about their so-called scientific sources. It is the duty of every one of us to find information on our own. Let's not get caught up in bickering over who's facts are more factual. All I'm saying is that oil spills, chemical pollutants, cyanide fishing, dynamite coral fragging, etc. etc. are doing more harm to the world's reefs than my F-150 ever will. One day, humans will be gone, temperatures and climate will still fluctuate, and Nemo will still live happily on his reef.
I apologize if I have offended you in some way...this is a sensitive topic to many. I am well aware of greenhouse gases, and I do not get scientific information from fox news. My background makes me more than qualified to speak to these issues.
Do humans impact the global environment? Yes!
Does burning fossil fuels introduce greenhouse gases into the atmosphere? Yes!
IS climate (and consequently weather) in a constant state of flux? YES!
Is the ocean home to some of the oldest life forms on the planet? YES!
Have these organisms survived global climate changes in the past? YES!
Is a bleaching event tragic? Yes!
Will these bleached reefs recover??? Based on a few billion years of existence and evolution and temperature changes and chemistry changes and so on...YES!
Now, I will not question anyone on this forum about their so-called scientific sources. It is the duty of every one of us to find information on our own. Let's not get caught up in bickering over who's facts are more factual. All I'm saying is that oil spills, chemical pollutants, cyanide fishing, dynamite coral fragging, etc. etc. are doing more harm to the world's reefs than my F-150 ever will. One day, humans will be gone, temperatures and climate will still fluctuate, and Nemo will still live happily on his reef.
Not your single F 150 but collectivley with all the other millions of F 150's then yes it is contributing to the bleaching of coral reefs around the world.
T Diddy
Happy to be here
Wow,
Is there anyone who truly believes that reef bleaching does not occur without humans? I am the first to admit when I am wrong, but I still feel that bleaching is a naturally occuring event, and would take place with or without humans. Now, if we are truly to blame, and all of the world's reefs die as a result...should I keep my corals in my tank as a reminder of what once was? or should I take them back to the nearest reef to repopulate?
...keeping in mind that I'll take them there in my F 150:uzi:
Is there anyone who truly believes that reef bleaching does not occur without humans? I am the first to admit when I am wrong, but I still feel that bleaching is a naturally occuring event, and would take place with or without humans. Now, if we are truly to blame, and all of the world's reefs die as a result...should I keep my corals in my tank as a reminder of what once was? or should I take them back to the nearest reef to repopulate?
...keeping in mind that I'll take them there in my F 150:uzi:
Luiz Rocha
Salty Dog
Wow,
Does bleaching occur without humans? Yes!
Does bleaching on the scale seen in the last 30 years occur without humans? No!
As mentioned before, mortality has been seen in 1,000+ year old coral colonies around the globe. Corals are like trees, if you cut a section through them (or through a skeleton of a dead coral) you can pretty much write a complete history of the climate to which that particular coral head was exposed. There is plenty of data to confirm the above statement.
Climate is warmer now than it has been in the current interglacial period (last 10k years), that's undeniable. CO2 is a greenhouse gas that increases global temperature, that's undeniable. CO2 is being released to the atmosphere on rates very rarely seen, that's undeniable. Did it happen before? Maybe during cataclysmic events like what led to dinosaur extinctions.
Do humans as a species want to be responsible for the next mass extinction just because the Earth has survived many mass extinctions in the past? I would say at the very least 80% of the humans in the world do (consciously or not). Now, I do understand uneducated people going dynamite fishing to feed their families. What I do not understand is educated people not caring about the single biggest threat to coral reefs, global warming.
Will corals survive us? They sure will. Are your grandkids or even kids going to see the same coral reefs we did? Absolutely not.
Does bleaching occur without humans? Yes!
Does bleaching on the scale seen in the last 30 years occur without humans? No!
As mentioned before, mortality has been seen in 1,000+ year old coral colonies around the globe. Corals are like trees, if you cut a section through them (or through a skeleton of a dead coral) you can pretty much write a complete history of the climate to which that particular coral head was exposed. There is plenty of data to confirm the above statement.
Climate is warmer now than it has been in the current interglacial period (last 10k years), that's undeniable. CO2 is a greenhouse gas that increases global temperature, that's undeniable. CO2 is being released to the atmosphere on rates very rarely seen, that's undeniable. Did it happen before? Maybe during cataclysmic events like what led to dinosaur extinctions.
Do humans as a species want to be responsible for the next mass extinction just because the Earth has survived many mass extinctions in the past? I would say at the very least 80% of the humans in the world do (consciously or not). Now, I do understand uneducated people going dynamite fishing to feed their families. What I do not understand is educated people not caring about the single biggest threat to coral reefs, global warming.
Will corals survive us? They sure will. Are your grandkids or even kids going to see the same coral reefs we did? Absolutely not.
HippieSmell
Occupy Reef Central
Clearly.
T Diddy
Happy to be here
C'MON Guys! :beer:
Can't we just get along?? We have hijacked a thread here...and for what? I have already stated that I agree with you all. CO2 is a greenhouse gas, rising temps cause reef bleaching, blah blah blah. My background actually does qualify me to speak to this.
All I'm asking is that you read the article in its entirety...there haven't been any seasonal typhoons this year to aid in cooling the water. Now, that might be due to global warming and my F 150 as you guys have suggested, or it might be due to the natural ebb and flow of CLIMATE CHANGE which occurs over tens of thousands of years.
At any rate, what do you guys suggest that we as a global community do to curb the effects of these greenhouse gases and global warming? Rather than take out aggressions on a fellow reefer, tell me what YOU are doing to save those reefs (and the planet)?? and I don't want to hear about your overpriced electric/hybrid vehicle. The majority of the world's electricity comes from burning coal. The only way to reverse the effects of releasing CO2 back into the atmosphere that was removed from that same atmosphere millions of years ago is to require that all nations go nuclear, solar, and wind for power.
HippieSmell
Occupy Reef Central
What is your background?
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