The world's coral reefs are facing the worst mass-bleaching crisis ever seen.
As much as half of Australia's Great Barrier Reef is sick or dying, while scientists are reporting similar levels of devastating coral destruction around the globe.
Reefs that took centuries to grow are being destroyed in a matter of months. It's all being caused by a global underwater heat wave driven by global warming and an unusually strong El Niño.
Coral reefs are the foundation of the ocean ecosystem, and we must take immediate global action to save them.
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As the coral die off, the overall impact on our oceans is impossible to predict. Fish that rely on the coral ecosystem feed hundreds of millions of people around the world, while reefs themselves provide a critical barrier against tropical storms and hurricanes.
The good news is that coral can survive and recover from mass bleaching -- but only if the threats causing the damage are stopped.
That's why we're fighting to stop the dredging of the Great Barrier Reef to expand coal exports and to block the expansion of tar sands pipelines that climate experts have called "game over for the climate."
Scientists didn't expect to see the level of coral destruction recorded now for decades into the future. But it's happening now, and that means we have no more time to waste.
More information
Scientific American. 13 April 2016.
The New York Times. 9 April 2016.