World sees longest coral bleaching, says study

New Delhi, Jan 5: In the past two years, the world witnessed the longest bleaching event ever recorded, which killed coral on an unprecedented scale, a latest intertiol study says. In India, if emissions reductions become reality the reefs would have at least 25 more years before annual bleaching — a change in climate phenomenon — occurs, said the study published in the jourl ture.

However, reefs near the equator will experience annual bleaching much sooner, even if emissions reduction pledges materialise, said the study, “Local-scale projections of coral reef futures and implications of the Paris Agreement”.

The study was led by Ruben van Hooidonk of the University of Miami and Jeffrey Mayrd. Coral reefs in India are mostly found in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the Gulf of Manr, the Gulf of Kutch and the Lakshwadeep Islands. “These predictions are a treasure trove for those who are fighting to protect one of the world’s most magnificent and important ecosystems from the ravages of climate change,” an official statement quoting UN Environment head Erik Solheim said on Thursday.

“They allow conservationists and governments to prioritise the protection of reefs that may still have time to acclimatise to our warming seas. The projections show us where we still have time to act before it’s too late,” he said. The researchers said if current trends continued and the world failed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, severe bleaching would occur every year on 99 per cent of the world’s reefs within the century.   (IANS)