In Florida, ocean restoration groups help preserve reefs

DW (English)

High temperatures have put Florida's coral reefs in jeopardy. Scientists and activists are collaborating to save them. DW's Ines Pohl went to Key West to find out more.

Transcript

00:00 The brilliant white of the corals might look pretty, but it is a sign of decay and death.

00:04 Several times a week, members of the Coral Restoration Foundation

00:09 check the condition of the nurseries where they breed corals. When they have reached a

00:14 certain size, they are planted in the damaged reefs to ensure their survival.

00:20 "Our team has poured our hearts and soul into building this nursery over the last two years.

00:26 This is our newest nursery, kind of our baby, our little project. It's really heartbreaking to see

00:32 years and years of work be derailed in the matter of a few days."

00:36 But Bailey and her team don't give up. In exceptional cases, they try to save what they can.

00:44 "So when we're pulling these corals out, we did it from our nurseries,

00:47 through all of the nurseries throughout the Keys. And so we just cut those corals

00:51 off of the coral trees that we have, put them into crates."

00:54 From there, they are placed in large containers that are brought ashore by boat

00:59 to cold storage facilities.

01:01 "Hopefully we can hold them there for the rest of the summer. But the goal is to

01:06 bring them back to our nursery setting at the end of the summer once temperatures cool down.

01:10 They are so stressed and between the bleaching and the temperature and the transport to there,

01:16 it's probably going to be a survival thing for the next three months until we can get

01:20 them back in the ocean." Corals have been bleaching in response to rising temperatures

01:25 for a long time. But this year, the situation is extreme. Because it was so hot so early,

01:32 the bleaching period is very long and many corals will not be alive when temperatures drop again.

01:39 "These animals are hundreds and hundreds of years old and they can die in a matter of days or weeks.

01:46 Coral reefs are one of the most vital and biodiverse ecosystems that we have on this planet.

01:50 Corals themselves are responsible for one in ten breaths that we take. The animal,

01:57 the algae that lives inside of the corals photosynthesizes and produces oxygen for us.

02:02 So they are just as important for us as trees." Although temperatures may drop a bit in the fall,

02:08 it's only a matter of time before they rise again and become life-threatening for corals

02:13 in the boiling oceans. Climate change is no longer a theory here in South Florida.

02:19 Its deadly force can be seen everywhere.

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