Coral reefs are in danger all over the world. In an old blog post in August 2022, I talked about how the coral reefs are dying. We are throwing marine wastes and various other type of wastes into the ocean water. Marine pollution is increasing day by day and it’s impacting the coral reefs. But recently, this coral cryopreservation technique has come up to preserve the coral reefs from dying. So here are some updates about it.
What is Coral Cryopreservation?
in 2020, the scientists at Australian Institute of Marine Sciences (AIMS) conducted a cryopreservation research on the coral reefs at The Great Barrier Reef. It was the first time when this type of preservation research was conducted on the coral reefs. The research started with the collection of tiny pieces of corals from the coral reefs and was kept freezing with liquid nitrogen.
This entire project was named as The Great Barrier Reef Restoration and Adaptation Program, where the frozen corals were placed in the dead portion of the reefs. They kept monitoring those frozen corals that how they are performing over the period of time and how its bringing the dead reefs to life. Climate crisis and marine pollution are the major reasons for the destruction of coral reefs.
The coral cryopreservation is an innovative method to revive the dead coral reefs all over the world. With the help of liquid nitrogen, scientists are preserving the eggs and sperms of the coral tissues or gametes and keeping them in a low temperature. The ultimate goal is to preserve the dying coral reefs to maintain the genetic diversity for future.
Advantages of coral cryopreservation:
Scientists found that coral cryopreservation is something which can revive the coral’s genetic diversity, maintain biodiversity and can propagate coral population. Coral reefs are life to maintain a wonderful ecosystem and also helps to maintain the biodiversity. But with this coral cryopreservation research project, there’s a huge chance for the dead coral reefs to revive. Though the success rate of this project is very slow and highly money consuming, but it could be a big breakthrough to save the marine ecosystem.
Also check the old coral related blog post link: https://worshipveganism.wordpress.com/2022/08/08/__trashed-2/
Disadvantages of coral cryopreservation:
The cost is very high in terms of research and engaging the scientists. The scientists need to visit the coral reefs every now and then to monitor the progress of this project and it’s pretty much obvious that it will consume big chunk of money. Since it is a very innovative and unique research method, the success rate is very limited and very time taking too.
Presently, this project is being conducted in Australia, but if this is successful then it can be conducted in other parts of the world too. But due to the weather conditions and environmental conditions, this research could be difficult to conduct in those parts of the world. Ethical considerations can also play a huge role in this scientific study. There is a long list of questions about the limit of humans’ role in conserving the environment. Restoring the marine ecosystem for the corals are really important if we really want to revive them.
Why do we need coral reefs?
Now after reading all of the above mentioned points, you all must be thinking that why do we need oral reefs. Coral reefs help the coastline to stay intact and protects from marine erosion. It is also attracts tourists from all over the world due to its colourful creation. In many countries of the world, corals are considered as a great source of medicines. The fluid secretion and sperms of corals can help in creating various innovative medicines. Tourists who love fishing and scuba diving, they enjoy a lot around the coral reefs. The total economic value of the world’s coral reefs is estimated to tens of billions of the US dollars. So now you can imagine that how huge is this business across the world.
Conclusion
Not just coral reefs, but there are numerous things are part of our entire planet. We all should take necessary steps to conserve our planet. It is our job to keep it habitable for us and for our coming generation. Without giving a second thought we throw marine pollution into ocean water and don’t care how the marine ecosystem suffers to sustain. Along with the coral reefs, marine flora and fauna gets polluted and eventually they die. Let’s not be the murderer of the marine ecosystem and coral reefs. Let’s be the helper here to help the marine ecosystem to revive and stay healthy.
P.S — I’m also publishing the link of my old blog post which was about the coral reefs: https://worshipveganism.wordpress.com/2022/08/08/__trashed-2/