Gland , Switzerland , 14 March 2006 (IUCN) – Most Indian Ocean coral reefs escaped serious damage and could naturally recover within five to ten years if damage from human activities can be reduced. This is according to “Status of Coral Reefs in Tsumani Affected Countries: 2005”, the most comprehensive report to date on the impacts of the devastating December 2004 tsunami on Indian Ocean coral reefs.

While a small number of coral reefs may take 20 or more years to recover, and some individual coral reefs may not recover at all, the major threats to the reefs of the Indian Ocean continue to be from human activities. “These human activities include over-fishing, deforestation and climate change,” says Clive Wilkinson, one of the editors of the report and Global Coordinator at the Australian Institute of Marine Science.

The tsunami, equivalent to a 100-gigaton bomb, caused unprecedented devastation, killing between 229’000 and 289’000 people, displacing more than a million and causing several billion dollars’ worth of damage. Unparalleled in modern times, the wreckage engendered major economic disruption for the countries of the Indian Ocean and serious, although short-term damage to tourism, primary and secondary industry sectors.

Yet, the dramatic effect of the tsunami and the damage to the coral reefs in the Indian Ocean was patchy, depending on the distance of the country from the source of the tsunami, the local bathymetry and the health condition of the reef. Most of the damage to coral reefs resulted from backwash of debris and sediment from land, including from waste disposal sites.

However, the tsunami has caused less damage to coral reefs than the cumulative direct anthropogenic stresses such as over-fishing, destructive fishing, sediment and nutrient pollution, and unsustainable development.

The report raises a new concern about potential economic damage caused by the ongoing rehabilitation efforts. While immediately after the disaster the main concern was about the potential tsunami damage to coral reefs and the associated livelihoods for millions of people, the unsustainable reconstruction efforts are now moving into the spotlight.

Many of the replacement boats, motors and general fishing equipment use different technology, often leading to inappropriate use and increasing fishing effort.

“There is a major need to sit back and assess what was successful during the whole rehabilitation process and what needs improvement, what lessons can be taken from this experience and what still needs to be put into place before the next coastal disaster,” says Wilkinson.

ENDS

Notes to the editors

GCRMN - Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network

The GCRMN was formed in 1995 as an operational unit of the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI).

The GCRMN seeks to encourage and coordinate three overlapping levels of monitoring:

• Community: monitoring by communities, fishers, schools, colleges, tourist operators and tourists over broad areas with less detail, to provide information on the reef status and causes of damage using Reef Check methodology and approaches;
• Management: monitoring by predominantly tertiary trained personnel in government environment or fisheries departments, and universities for moderate coverage of reefs at higher resolution and detail using methods developed in Southeast Asia or comparable methods; and
• Research: high resolution monitoring over small scales by scientists and institutes currently monitoring reefs for research.

The GCRMN is in partnership with ReefBase, Reef Check, Coral Reef Degradation in the Indian Ocean (CORDIO) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which constitute the central direction. The GCRMN is sponsored by IOCUNESCO, UNEP, IUCN, CBD, the World Bank, AIMS, World Fish Center , the ICRI Secretariat, and central coordination is supported by the U.S. Department of State and NOAA through contributions to UNEP. IUCN currently chairs the Management Group of the GCRMN, and the Global Coordinator is hosted at AIMS and IMPAC and interacts closely with the World Fish Center .

Central Coordination contact:
Clive Wilkinson Global Coordinator at the Australian Institute of Marine Science, in Townsville (c.wilkinson@aims.gov.au); or Jamie Oliver at WorldFish Center in Penang, Malaysia (j.oliver@cgiar.org); or Gregor Hodgson, Reef Check Los Angeles (rcheck@ucla.edu); or Olof Linden (Olof.Linden@wmu.se). www.gcrmn.org

For more information contact:

Jerker Tamelander, IUCN-CORDIO Marine coordinator for South Asia
Tel +94 (11) 2682470; E-mail jetiucnsl.org

Carl Gustaf Lundin, Head of IUCN Marine Programme
Tel: +41 22 999 0204; Email: marineiucn.org

Carolin Wahnbaeck, IUCN Global Media Relations Officer
Tel: +41 22 999 0127; Email: carolin.wahnbaeckiucn.org; www.iucn.org;

For more information about IUCN’s marine activities, please visit www.iucn.org/marine