Coral Reef Bleaching

By: Pablo Gonzalez

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Coral reefs are so beautiful. The sad thing about coral is that it is dying fast. I’m talking about coral bleaching. What is coral bleaching? Coral bleaching, according to oceanservice.noaa.gov, is “When water is too warm, corals will expel the algae (zooxanthellae) living in their tissues, causing the coral to turn completely white.” The water temperature is increasing because of the greenhouse gases, which cause the ocean to increase in temperature. What are the effects if we don’t help to prevent it from getting worse? According to reef-world.org, about 25% of marine life would lose their habitat. Another very important impact would be that coastal fishing industries would collapse. According to worldwildlife.org,

 “More than 3 billion people in the world rely on wild-caught and farmed seafood as a significant source of animal protein.” That would be a lot of people without their main source of food. Coral is very important. Coral also helps with breaking down waves during harsh weather. Coral reefs help prevent shorelines from eroding, and if we didn't have coral, the sea levels would rise. If the sea levels rise, the people living near coastal areas would have to move out, losing their homes. These are just a few of the things that will happen if we don't do anything about coral bleaching. Are we going to just let it happen, or are we going to help this cause?