ReefBase: Improving coral reef management and securing livelihoods in Asia Pacific

ReefBase:
Improving coral reef management and securing livelihoods in Asia Pacific

WorldFish's ReefBase ( www.reefbase.org ) is the world's largest repository of information on coral reefs. The website is a dynamic resource with quality information on the location, status, threats and management of coral reefs in nearly 100 countries and territories, and is therefore a valuable tool for managers, policy makers, researchers, conservationists, educators and students.

ReefBase, which has dedicated staff and resource, was developed in collaboration with the International Coral Reef Action Network (ICRAN). The first online version was launched in April 2002. A new and more powerful version came onstream in August 2003, providing better access to more information.

ICRAN is a global partnership of coral reef experts working to arrest and reverse the decline of the world's coral reefs. It was launched in 2000 with funding from the United Nations Foundation. WorldFish is a major partner in this initiative.

ReefBase is the central repository for the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network. This impressive collaboration brings together people, governments, institutes and non-governmental organizations monitoring coral reefs and the communities that rely on them in over 80 countries. The GCRMN is hosted jointly by WorldFish and the Australian Institute of Marine Science. The Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO, the World Bank, and the United Nations Environment Program are among its sponsors.

Since being online in 2002, ReefBase has developed an easy-to-use Geographic Information System (GIS) that allows users to view coral reef data on state-of-the-art interactive maps. This includes information on marine protected areas and monitoring sites.

Coral bleaching continues to increase due to warming waters. ReefBase is developing extensive information on bleaching events in collaboration with the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The information is combined in the GIS with monthly updated maps of ocean temperatures around the world, providing an early warning system for this dreaded phenomenon.

A sound understanding of communities and how they use coastal resources is critical for effective management. ReefBase will also work closely with NOAA to develop important socioeconomic information to help managers identify potential problems and the best management strategies. Currently, such information is limited and poorly organized.

Partnerships have also been developed with the Coral Reef Degradation in the Indian Ocean Project and Reef Check to strengthen information sharing with monitoring programs around the world.

ReefBase has also helped the Coral Reef Rehabilitation and Management Project (COREMAP) develop a web-based GIS in Indonesia , home to the largest coral reef area in the world. This is part of efforts to help local managers and scientists develop proper databases and management systems. COREMAP is funded in part by the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank.

Looking ahead, ReefBase is preparing thematic CD-ROMs on coral reef issues, and a regional coral reef information system for the Pacific based out of the WorldFish office in New Caledonia (ReefBase Pacific) is planned for 2005.

ReefBase is an important part of WorldFish's strategy to improve coral reef management and so secure and sustain the livelihoods of the poor who depend on it.

Coral reefs can provide food, income, coastal protection and building materials. Some 500 million people who live in the tropics have some dependence on reefs. Reefs have been estimated to provide the world with US$375 billion in goods and services.

Further, up to 50 per cent of chemicals for new drugs come from the sea, many of which come from reef organisms. They could be a goldmine for novel chemicals and powerful new drugs, given the richness of life on reefs and the fact that species have evolved several tricks to survive the rigors of the marine environment.

Many invertebrate animals produce chemicals that make them taste bad or toxic to predators. These compounds can be very attractive to drug companies. Reefs rival rainforests in their biodiversity. Because about 90 per cent of the species are unknown, there is a very high likelihood that there are untapped biomedical resources.

But the economic and other benefits of these resources are being depleted as a result of reef degradation. The global coastal zone is most stressed place on the planet, and the majority of the world's reefs are under imminent threat. In Southeast Asia alone, which accounts for over 30 per cent of the world's reefs, some 88 per cent of all reefs are at risk.

The chief causes of coral reef degradation are overexploitation of fisheries, pollution, excess sediments from deforestation, rock mining, and bleaching due to global warming.