Why are coral reefs of such a great importance? Coral reefs not only provides a living habitat for many species, they also serve as a resource for people in many ways. In South-east Asia, more than 350 million people live close to the coast.
“Why reefs matter?”
Credit: WTTC
The coral areas are important for the economic health of the countries. Tourism is a major source of income and is quickly grown in the last 5 year. Reefs attract divers, snorkelers, fishers and beach lovers. In addition, people depend on reefs because of food security, reef fish species are high in their proteins and the areas can yield 15 tonnes of fish per square kilometre a year. The tourism and fishing industry offers a lot of employment as a positive side-effect.
“Just guess how many jobs are linked to the tourist industry….
….more than 30.000.”
Moreover, reefs provide shoreline protection in multiple ways. They expel wave energy, reduce erosion, decrease the change of flooding and lessen wave damage caused by storms. The coast areas including human habitats and infrastructure are safer by having coral reefs. Another benefit of coral reefs is pharmaceutical research, it is known that some coral chemical compounds can be convert in medicines for cancer, HIV and malaria. Only a little piece of the reef is investigate, so there is potential for other pharmaceutical discoveries.