A coalition of 45 countries pledged Tuesday to raise $12 billion by 2030 for the conservation and restoration of coral reefs threatened worldwide by climate change.
This project, announced by the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI) created in 1994 and entitled “Coral Reef Breakthrough”, brings together countries which are home to three-quarters of the world’s coral reefs.
This is a commitment to double the areas of coral reefs placed under protection from the approximately 60,000 km2 current and restore approximately 10,500 km2.
In total, the project provides for a commitment for investments totaling $12 billion in public and private funds by 2030.
“This investment will allow us to more effectively manage coral reefs, including water quality, coastal areas and local and regional regulations,” the group announced.
In 2020, a study estimated the funding needs to ensure more general protection of the oceans at $174.5 billion per year.
This new commitment comes as coral reefs are threatened around the world due to record heat in the seas this year. The frequency and intensity of marine heatwaves have increased.
“The initiative is important and timely,” David Booth, professor of marine ecology at the University of Technology in Sydney, commented to AFP.
However, “$12 billion is very little to have a global impact; they will have to be used judiciously,” he said.
“Initiatives to reduce the use of fossil fuels are most important for coral reefs,” he said.
The oceans absorb 90% of the Earth system’s excess heat caused by human activity during the industrial era, and this accumulation of energy continues to increase as greenhouse gases accumulate in the atmosphere.
Warming sea temperatures cause bleaching which can be fatal for corals.
Massive bleaching has already been noted this year in Florida, with fears that the worst is yet to come with the El Niño weather phenomenon.