The Rainforests of the Sea

Coral reefs are large and important underwater structures that protect coastal areas by reducing the power of waves hitting the coast by 97%, provide shelter for small fish, and even allows jobs for people. Coral reefs are full of diverse ecosystems, like fish and other small creatures. Did you know that like plants providing oxygen for the earth, coral reefs do the same? They provide oxygen for the ocean to keep many species alive. Earth has already lost 50% of its coral in the last 30 years…

Coral reefs also help keep our oceans clean from any pollutants and ocean debris. Because plastic is nearly indestructible, plastic bags and other trash end up in the ocean and stays there for thousand of years, clinging on the coral. This hurts many oceanic animals and environments, and ultimately harming us in the long run.

A four-year study says that plastic pollution is harming our coral reefs. Coral reefs in Australia, Thailand, Indonesia, and Myanmar are contaminated with plastic and that it is making the reefs sick and slowly killing them. Thus, killing species because the ocean becomes more polluted and unkempt.

Senior author Drew Harvell at Cornell University says the plastic could be harming coral: There are many bacteria and harmful microorganisms from the already dirty plastic. When the coral is creating new openings, it is inviting pathogens onto the coral and essentially harming them.

Coral reefs are keynote species, meaning they have a larger impact on the ecosystem. If coral reefs disappeared, shelter for fish and other marine organisms would cease to exist, and biodiversity would greatly suffer as a consequence. This is a great video of what would happen if all of the coral reefs died.