Almost all shallow-water coral reefs now face extinction risk, study warns
World authority on threatened wildlife classifies 96 percent of assessed coral reef systems as "critically endangered".
Nearly all of the world's coral reef ecosystems are at high risk of collapse within the next five decades, primarily due to rising ocean temperatures and heatwaves, according to a comprehensive global assessment released on Thursday. Conducted by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the study, presented at a United Nations biodiversity conference in Albania, revealed that 96% of shallow-water reef systems are currently critically endangered and may disappear by 2075.
Among the most iconic reef systems, such as the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, the Coral Triangle in Western Pacific Ocean and Southeast Asia, the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System, and the Red Sea coral reefs, all are classified as critically endangered, representing the highest threat level. Mishal Gudka, the scientific lead of the IUCN Red List of Coral Reef Ecosystems assessment, emphasized that while the risk of coral reef collapse is intensifying, it should serve as a wake-up call rather than instill despair.
Gudka highlighted that coral reefs have demonstrated a remarkable capacity to recover from severe bleaching events.
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- Almost all coral reef ecosystems face risk of collapse in 50 years, study warns koreatimes.co.kr
