BAHRAIN’S coral reef wealth is at risk from extreme marine heat waves which are becoming more common in the Gulf, an expert has warned.
Mass coral bleaching caused by unusually high temperatures in summer 1996 killed more than 95 per cent of Bahrain’s coral reefs, pointed out UAE-based marine biologist John Burt.
The Canadian scholar said transplantation and restoration efforts could help alleviate the problem to some extent. However, the pace of climate change could pose a challenge to the long-term sustainability of these measures.
Bahrain’s coral reefs were once among the most extensive in the Arabian Gulf’s southern basin. However, studies show significant decline of these reefs in the past four decades mainly due to large-scale coastal development and elevated sea surface temperature events.
The GDN reported in 2018 that the Supreme Council for Environment was drawing up a detailed plan to preserve Bahrain’s marine environment, which included coral reefs and pearl oyster beds.
This followed experts identifying the kingdom’s six protected reserves – Tubli Bay, Dohat Arad, Mashtan Islands, Hawar Islands, Bulthama Reef and the Northern Marine Reserves covering Najwat Bulthamat and the Hayr pearl oyster beds – as being under threat from human interference.
“Past coral reef declines were almost entirely due to extreme sea temperatures during marine heat waves, with some more limited areas of reef loss likely due to sedimentation associated with coastal development,” Mr Burt explained, in an exclusive interview with the GDN.
“During the 1980s and early 1990s, coastal development and dredging resulted in the loss of corals from some nearshore areas around Manama and western Fasht Al Adham.
“The most tragic coral loss, however, occurred in 1996, when a Gulf-wide mass coral bleaching event occurred as a result of unusually high temperatures that summer.
“This resulted in the almost complete loss of corals across Bahrain (with more than 95pc dying off), mirroring losses reported in other areas in the region.”
When corals are stressed by changes in environmental conditions such as temperature, light, or nutrients, they expel the symbiotic algae that live in their tissues, causing them to turn completely white, a condition known as coral bleaching.
“Unfortunately, while reefs in Saudi Arabia’s Gulf waters and parts of the UAE, such as Dubai, were able to recover in the subsequent decade, recovery in Bahrain was negligible because the water is so shallow and thus so thermally extreme,” added the 47-year-old, who has been studying reefs in the region for the past 17 years.
He emphasised that Bahrain was one of the first countries to have nearly complete annihilation of its coral reefs due to coral bleaching caused by climate change.
“But such losses are now starting to occur in other nations as well,” he said.
“Over time, it is anticipated that we will see a shift from coral-dominated reefs to ecosystems that are far less vibrant, productive and diverse than they once were, into skeletal reef habitats that are instead dominated by algae.”
The researcher and chair of Mideast Coral Reef Society who published more than 120 scholarly articles conducted surveys along with Bahrain government institutions in 2010, which revealed that live coral remained near non-existent on most fasht (shallow reefs) around Bahrain.
He pointed out that the coral reefs of Bahrain were described by residing or visiting scientists in the 1980s and early 1990s.
“At the time, coral was common on the fasht that surrounded Bahrain, even including more sensitive branching coral species, with coral occurring across Bahrain waters with the exception of the Gulf of Salwa, where salinity is too extreme,” he explained.
“Our survey revealed that the only significant coral growth is occurring at Bulthama reef, which is located approximately 70km offshore from Manama.
“My understanding from several divers over the years is that there has been no discernible recovery of these reefs.
“Unfortunately, marine heat waves in the Arabian Gulf have become more frequent and severe.
“While transplantation and restoration efforts might provide some opportunity to help reefs recover, the rapid pace of climate change raises questions about the long-term sustainability of such approaches.”
Coral reefs which cover only about 0.2pc of the ocean floor, support 25pc of marine life. Around a billion people worldwide depend on them for food and income, according to the World Economic Forum. However, climate change, overfishing, and land-based pollution are causing these reefs to perish quickly.
raji@gdnmedia.bh
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