Early-stage outcomes and cost-effectiveness of implementing tourism-led coral propagation and outplanting in the Whitsundays (Great Barrier Reef) DOI Creative Commons
R. Scott, David J. Suggett,

C. Lynn Hayward

et al.

Frontiers in Marine Science, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 11

Published: Oct. 4, 2024

Implementation of coral restoration practices within reef management strategies is accelerating globally to support resilience and recovery. However, full costs underpinning project feasibility have historically been underreported yet are critical informing cost-benefit decision-making. Such knowledge especially lacking for Australia’s Great Barrier Reef (GBR), where a program led by tourism operators, Coral Nurture Program (CNP), was initiated in 2018 (northern GBR) continues scale. Here we describe the early outcomes implementing similar tourism-led asexual propagation outplanting new region, Whitsundays (central through CNP. Specifically, detail local operational environmental context CNP Whitsundays, implementation continuation activities, as well evaluate survivorship outplants across three sites nine months after establishment (August 2022 June 2023). Baseline benthic surveys revealed relatively low hard cover at (ranging from 3.22-8.67%), which significantly differed composition collection 16.67-38.06%), supporting strong motivation operators undertake activities. Mean fate-tracked plots between 267 days 23.33-47.58%), with declines largely driven detachment. Early-stage cost-effectiveness (costs relative outplant survival) associated activity varied widely US$33.04-178.55 per surviving (n = 4,425 outplants) depending on whether ‘in-kind’ costs, (outplanting only vs. total encompassing planning monitoring), site-based survivorship, or combination these factors, were considered. As projects continue be established globally, our results highlight need ongoing, long-term monitoring that can inform adaptive practice, fully transparent cost-reporting understand improve any given project. We further inherent context-dependency importance considering social-environmental contexts their cost-benefits economic rationale projects.

Language: Английский

Principles for coral reef restoration in the anthropocene DOI Creative Commons
Terry P. Hughes, Andrew H. Baird, Tiffany H. Morrison

et al.

One Earth, Journal Year: 2023, Volume and Issue: 6(6), P. 656 - 665

Published: June 1, 2023

Language: Английский

Citations

59
An integrative framework for sustainable coral reef restoration DOI Creative Commons
David J. Suggett, Melissa Edwards, Deborah Cotton

et al.

One Earth, Journal Year: 2023, Volume and Issue: 6(6), P. 666 - 681

Published: June 1, 2023

Language: Английский

Citations

35
The critical role of coral reef restoration in a changing world DOI
Raquel S. Peixoto, Christian R. Voolstra, Iliana B. Baums

et al.

Nature Climate Change, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: unknown

Published: Nov. 29, 2024

Language: Английский

Citations

10
Navigating the Environmental Pitfalls of Overtourism and Finding Sustainable Solutions DOI

Mandeep Kaur,

Amrik Singh,

Amandeep Kaur

et al.

Advances in hospitality, tourism and the services industry (AHTSI) book series, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: unknown, P. 61 - 84

Published: Jan. 21, 2025

Over-tourism exacerbates several crucial challenges, including soil erosion, deforestation, pollution, and biodiversity loss. Furthermore, the demand for resources such as water, energy, food rises dramatically, resulting in scarcity increased competition between tourists local populations. addressing these environmental effects is critical not just conserving popular places' natural beauty biological integrity, but also ensuring tourism industry's long-term survival. Thus, reducing repercussions of over-tourism to strike a balance growth preservation. This chapter will focus on consequences propose ways mitigating impacts. By over investigating practical mitigation strategies, this aims provide comprehensive guide policymakers, industry professionals, navigate challenges promote sustainable practices.

Language: Английский

Citations

1
Cost‐effectiveness of tourism‐led coral planting at scale on the northern Great Barrier Reef DOI Creative Commons
R. Scott, John Edmondson, Emma F. Camp

et al.

Restoration Ecology, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 32(4)

Published: March 13, 2024

Stakeholder‐led coral reef restoration efforts, aimed at locally retaining or rebuilding populations, have rapidly grown over the last two decades. However, cost‐effectiveness—and in turn viability—of projects remains rarely reported. We therefore evaluated planting (often termed “outplanting”) cost‐effectiveness across first 3.5 years of Coral Nurture Program (CNP), a approach integrated within tourism operations on Australia's Great Barrier Reef. CNP operator activity reporting forms (63,632 corals planted, 5 operators, and 23 sites) were used to opportunistically calculate costs (PC; US$ −1 trip ) for “routine” versus when additional stewardship activities—that regulate effectiveness—were undertaken (e.g., nursery maintenance). Mean PC (±standard error) was US$2.34 ± 0.20 (ranging US$0.78–6.03, 5th–95th percentile), but increased 2‐ ‐6‐fold trips where propagation, site maintenance, staff training conducted support efforts. The “realized” cost (PC R establishing biomass subsequently determined by evaluating survivorship planted space (9 sites, single survey timepoint, n = 4,723 up 3 old) time (2 9–12 months, 600 corals), resulting increasing from 25–71%. demonstrate how integration practices into creates potential cost‐effective “high‐value” discuss important steps improving cost‐accounting stakeholder‐led programs that may be similarly positioned routinely determine their cost‐effectiveness.

Language: Английский

Citations

4
Assessing how metal reef restoration structures shape the functional and taxonomic profile of coral-associated bacterial communities DOI Creative Commons
Paige Strudwick, David J. Suggett, Justin R. Seymour

et al.

Frontiers in Marine Science, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 11

Published: April 26, 2024

Significant threats to the long-term persistence of coral reefs have accelerated adoption propagation and out-planting approaches. However, how materials commonly used for structures could potentially affect coral-associated bacterial communities remains untested. Here, we examined impact metal on communities. Fragments species Acropora millepora were grown aluminium, sand/epoxy-coated steel (Reef Stars), uncoated (rebar) structures. After 6 months, functional taxonomic profiles propagated corals reef colonies characterised using amplicon (16S rRNA gene) shotgun metagenomic sequencing. No differences in phylogenetic structure or profile observed between colonies. specific genes pathways (e.g., lipid, nucleotide, carbohydrate metabolism) overrepresented different materials, taxa indicative materials. These findings indicate that may lead individual potential communities, but these contribute changed holobiont fitness presents a key question be addressed.

Language: Английский

Citations

2
Loss of coral thermotolerance following year-long in situ nursery propagation with a consecutively high summer heat-load DOI Creative Commons
Rachel Alderdice, Christian R. Voolstra, C. Isabel Nuñez Lendo

et al.

Coral Reefs, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 43(4), P. 919 - 933

Published: June 8, 2024

Abstract Exposure to more frequent ocean warming events is driving the loss of coral reef cover as window recovery between episodes bleaching reduces. Coral propagation via in situ nurseries and subsequent outplanting have increased worldwide support replenishing on degraded reefs. However, challenges identifying fast-growing bleaching-resistant target corals limited how informative we can be regarding resilience outplanted corals. Here, employed short-term thermal stress assays using Bleaching Automated Stress System (CBASS) assess threshold a pre- post-propagation nursery frames. We show that year-long nursery-propagated exhibit statistically significant reduction thresholds (i.e., ED50s) compared their corresponding reef-based donor colonies based dose–response modelling dark acclimated photosynthetic efficiency. RNA-Seq was then used underlying drivers this thermotolerance reduction, processes involved metabolic oxidative management were disrupted versus heat-treated Whether trade-offs during potential growth-focused phases (post-fragmentation), conditions, and/or consecutively high summer heat-load drove lower capacity remains determined. expressed genes associated with telomere maintenance, which are typically stress-sensitive under seasonal environmental stress, suggesting heat-loading contributed observed patterns. Our results highlight tolerance (i) variable (ii) subject acclimation varying degrees across colonies. Thus, path forward for practitioners improve efforts may entail initial screening larger population from thermally superior selected propagation.

Language: Английский

Citations

2
Exploring coral reef benefits: A systematic SEEA-driven review DOI Creative Commons

Mei-Hua Yuan,

K.C. Lin,

Shu-Yuan Pan

et al.

The Science of The Total Environment, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 950, P. 175237 - 175237

Published: Aug. 5, 2024

Coral reefs are among the most diverse and valuable ecosystems on planet, providing numerous benefits to human societies, including fisheries, coastal protection, biodiversity conservation. In order effectively manage conserve coral reefs, it is essential understand value of ecosystem services they provide. The System Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA) framework offers a comprehensive approach for accounting services, which can be useful assessing natural environments. While validity SEEA many marine increasingly acknowledged, there remains scarcity studies that have investigated in context reef ecosystems. To bridge this gap, study extensive examination investigates evolution service research under over nearly three decades, rich dataset understanding trends gaps. findings reveal interdisciplinary methodological integration research, incorporating remote sensing, environmental science, ecology, economics, ecological computer citizen science. Across different time periods, within shared focus health sustainability, has been transition from concerns about impacts activities concentration climate change, supported by empirical evidence case studies. These results contribute our better

Language: Английский

Citations

2
Population and clonal structure of Acropora cf. hyacinthus to inform coral restoration practices on the Great Barrier Reef DOI Creative Commons
Lorna Howlett, Emma F. Camp, Nicolas S. Locatelli

et al.

Coral Reefs, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 43(4), P. 1023 - 1035

Published: June 17, 2024

Abstract A key goal of coral restoration is to re-establish self-sustaining populations and ensure resilience future stressors, which requires that genetic diversity maximised. However, genotypic (clonal) variable across reef sites via success sexual recruitment, cryptic species can complicate breeding efforts. Assessing colonies be used in therefore critical avoid founder, inbreeding or outbreeding effects. Considering recent efforts upscale propagation on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR), we examined species, population clonal structure a commonly out-planted tabular Acropora species— hyacinthus (Dana, 1864). total 189 were sampled from six systems throughout northern-central GBR genotyped using an Acropora- specific Affymetrix microarray, resulted 1387 variant passed quality control. Cryptic readily resolved all A. represented unique genotypes within at three reefs. At reefs contained multi-ramet genets (clonal genotypes), mean maximum between-ramet distances 0.68 1.99 m, respectively. Therefore, sampling > 2 m apart increases likelihood these represent distinct genets. Such design maximises when sourcing for out-planting. Based sites, found no between-reef divergence based locality. Furthermore, through unintentional non-target Acroporid show how this genotyping method may resolving taxonomic uncertainty as well dynamics.

Language: Английский

Citations

1
Coral Propagation in Substrates Obtained Through Additive Manufacturing: Influence of Mortar Formulations on Seawater Parameters DOI
Ilse Valenzuela Matus, Joaquim Góis, Paulo Vaz‐Pires

et al.

ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 12(37), P. 13721 - 13740

Published: Sept. 5, 2024

Language: Английский

Citations

1