Coral reefs restored at Mars in South Sulawesi with the Reef Stars – credit The Ocean Agency.
Today’s good news story is from the Good News Network.
Full Recovery for Coral Reef Within 4 Years–The Speed of Restoration They Saw was ‘Incredible’
In a truly monumental discovery, scientists studying coral restoration in Indonesia found that artificially restored coral reefs can regrow as fast as naturally occurring reefs just 4 years after the initial transplantation.
With many reefs around the world believed to be threatened by stronger storms and acidic seas, the finding shows that as long as corals can survive in the water, humans can quickly rebuild reefs that are damaged.
The study was conducted at the Mars Coral Reef Restoration Program in South Sulawesi, Indonesia, one of the largest restoration projects in the world, and included an international team of marine biologists. The site was turned from a colorful reef to rubble 30 to 40 years ago from dynamite fishing.
At the project site, “reef stars” are first affixed to the seafloor. These small, recycled metal scaffolds provide a foundation for the coral larvae to glom onto and begin building their hard bodies.
“Corals constantly add calcium carbonate to the reef framework while some fishes and sea urchins erode it away, so calculating the overall carbonate budget basically tells you if the reef as a whole is growing or shrinking,” says Ines Lange of the University of Exeter, UK.
“Positive reef growth is important to keep up with sea-level rise, protect coastlines from storms and erosion, and provide habitat for reef animals.”
Four years after coral transplantation onto the metal reef stars, net carbonate budgets have tripled and are indistinguishable from healthy control sites. The only drawback is that because branching coral is preferred for reef restoration, the overall species diversity is lower in restored reefs than in natural ones.
“The speed of recovery that we saw was incredible,” said Lange. “We did not expect a full recovery of reef framework production after only four years.”
The carbonate budget method of calculating reef restoration has never been used before, and the team believes it offers a simple, surefire way to assess whether a reef is growing, static, or in decline.
Tim Lamont, a study co-author at the Lancaster University Environment Center, UK, said that while a longer-term assessment of restored reefs is needed to fully understand its capability, the success at Mars shows that if humanity can stabilize the climate, we have the tools to undo some of the damage that climate change has wrought on coral reefs.
The good news in Today’s story is that even fully destroyed coral reefs can be regrown. Today’s JohnKu talks about humankind’s responsibility to repair damage caused by human behavior. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.
Step Up by John W. Howell © 2024
Humans devastate,
Fixing the devastation . . .
Is human duty.
Fiction Favorites 
Dear John,
thanks for forwarding this news story. What a great success.
Happy weekend
The Fab Four of Cley
🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
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Thank you so much for the lovey comment. F4oC. 😁
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We can reseed forests, so this makes sense. Likely a bit more complicated, but I’m glad someone is doing it.
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And I’m glad it is working. Thanks, Craig.
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That is fantastic news. I hope they can do the same for the massive coral bleaching at Australia.
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I’ve read where they are having good results there. Not the same process but still the reef is making a comeback.
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Awesome!
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I agree.
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Good news, indeed, very exciting!!
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Can you imagine using dynamite to catch fish.
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No, I can’t. It seems you’d just get fish parts to grind up for fish sticks.
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😳
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Wonderful story and JohnKu. If we set our minds to it, there’s so much good we can do. 😊
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Someone has to take the lead to get it done. Thanks, Gwen.
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Great story, John and I like the tone of your poem. It is our duty to fix this place.
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We really need to do that but need to be thoughtful and not create economic hardships for people.
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It’s good to see science helping the environment.
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I think so too, Tim. Thank you.
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John, Big Tuna loves a nice coral reef🐳
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Yes sir. Look at you. Nicely done.😁
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I’m old, retired, and still consider you my boss…so you told me to sign up again and that’s what l did. Thank you for the kind encouraging words, my liege 🐳
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Yes but you still have to log in.
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Don’t bother me with specifics, I’m putting lime in my coconut and plan on drinking it ALL up!
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Okay then
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Thank you for sharing this article. Fantastic news over the success. I’ve never scuba’d but I can surely appreciated the gift that corals bring.
Great hiaku!
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So much life is attracted to coral reefs. We need to save them. Fishing with dynamite. What were they thinking?
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Your JohnKu is very appropriate this morning — thanks for sharing this interesting story!
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Always a pleasure, Debbie. Thank you.
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This is fantastic news because we’ve heard so much doom and gloom about coral reefs. Life is indomitable!
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Given half a chance things can be set right again.
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Agreed!
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This is great news! And your JohnKu really says it all. 🙂
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Thank you, Kymber. I think this is the kind of news we love to read. 😊
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Something like half happy. Like the glass of water question except not quite like the glass of water question. Is the reef half empty or half full ? I am very glad the coral in the reef is able to repair in four years. What the article comments about at the end is the diversity – the community of reef dwellers takes longer to come back. So the reef full situation would be to avoid the reef die off conditions and the need for restoration. Now that would be really good news…
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Yes and I think it will take more time for the diversity.
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We should never underestimate the power of human ingenuity.
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That recovery is absolutely amazing. Good to see things were able to recover, despite human interference.
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Fishing with Dynamite? Come on.
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You just can’t account for certain people and what they think is ok. I’m just glad the coral reef is beginning to recover.
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So true
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This is very encouraging news, especially in light of all the bad tidings we hear about disappearing coral reefs. Great share, John!
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I thought so too, Mae. Thanks
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This is great news!
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Yes it is. Thank you Deborah.
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Such good news, John – have a great weekend!
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It is Teri. Have a good weekend as well.
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Another confirmation here if we just stop trashing the Earth, it can work towards healing itself in many ways. Good news to be sure, John.
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I agree, Bruce.
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I love this! And I wholeheartedly agree with your JohnKu!
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Holy cow! This makes my heart smile. 🙂
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Mine too.
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Your JohnKu says it perfectly and beautifully.
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Thank you, Jennie
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You’re welcome, John.
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😊
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Some really great news for the ultimate survival of life on Planet Earth, John! The key words here, though, are “if humanity can stabilize the climate” … Thanks for sharing this!
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Sadly third world countries do not have the same priority and represent a large percentage of the problem. Fishing with dynamite? Really?
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Sadly, indeed. 😞
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A wonderful outcome John thank you for sharing.. hugsx
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Yes it is, Sally. Thank you.
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Great news, John! Thanks for sharing, and I love your John-Ku, too! So true! 😊
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thank you, Marcia.
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I wonder how many people truly understand the integral part that coral reefs play when it comes to protecting our shorelines while also acting as source of food and medicine for so many.
It’s a good thing there are people who really get it and are doing something about it.
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I feel the same as you. I’m glad there are some that are doing something. Thanks, Pilgrim.
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Me too Sheriff
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That is indeed fantastic news, John. All hope is not lost after all. Coral is so important to the ecosystem so finding a way to help it regenerate is a wonderful thing.
Wonderful JohnKu!
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I agree. I was amazed it only took four years to regenerate at least one species.
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It’s mind-boggling
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So happy to see them fixing the reefs!
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Me too, Denise.
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Duty is the right word.
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Thank you, Pam.
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Truly wonderful news!
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It is. 😁
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As your JohnKu states, It is our responsibility.
This is one positive step, in a world of many negative steps.
We need to take many more for our posterity.
🪸ꭓ 🪸ꭓ 🪸ꭓ 🪸ꭓ
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Yes we do. Many more. ⏱🛠 ⏱🛠 ⏱🛠 ⏱🛠
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We need bigger feet!
…and the oxen work hard too!
⏱🛠 🐂 🐂 ⏱🛠
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⏱🛠 🐂 🐂 🐂 ⏱🛠
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⏱🛠 🐂 🐂 🐂🐂 ⏱🛠
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A winner. 😊X
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Thank you! This calls for an espresso. My treat.
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Wonderful. Thank you. 😊X
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I love your good news reports, John! ❤
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I’m glad you like them Mar. Thanks for letting me know. 😁
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Wonderful share John. Those reefs are so important for protection. I love that they can be remedied. 🙂
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I do too, Debby. Thanks.
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🙂
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Yay! Coral is so beautiful!
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It is.
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