Reporter's Tip Sheet #3
January 20, - Week 3
1997 International Year of the Reef

New Global Monitoring Network to Monitor Trends in Coral Reef Health

There is a dramatic global decline in coral reef ecosystems, in particular, those close to human populations and therefore stressed by such human activities as over fishing, sedimentation, marine pollution from land-based sources, and recreational damage. Global Climate Change may directly impose new stresses on reefs, or it may interact synergistically with other more direct human pressures to cause new or accelerated environmental change.

A Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (GCRMN) has been launched to improve management and sustainable conservation of coral reefs by assessing the status and trends in the reefs and how people use and value the resources. It will do this by providing many people with the capacity to assess their own resources, within a global network, and to spread the word on reef status and trends. The GCRMN goals are to:

  • Link existing organizations and people to monitor biophysical and social, cultural and economic aspects of coral reefs within interacting regional networks;
  • Strengthen the existing capacity to examine reefs by providing a consistent monitoring program, that will identify trends in coral reefs and discriminate between natural, anthropogenic, and climate changes;
  • Disseminate results at local, regional, and global scales through annual reports on coral reef status and trends to assessing environmental management agencies and development of predictive global climate change models.

    The methods for reef monitoring have been chosen so that high school children, fisherfolk and community groups can gather valid data to feed into the global network database, along with more rigorous assessments carried out by scientists.

    The major theme of the GCRMN is to combine current science and management experience and skills on coral reefs and make these available to reef user communities. In this way, we want to build partnerships to improve reef management and put the emphasis on guardianship by local communities.

    The Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, United Nations Environment Programme, and World Conservation Union/IUCN are co-sponsoring GCRMN, which is hosted jointly by the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) and the International Center for Living Aquatic Resources Management (ICLARM).

    BACKGROUND DOCUMENTS
    Can be found on at: NOAA's Coral Reef Home Page
    Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network: Gathering information for the protection of coral reefs worldwide. Click on Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network home page.
    State of the Reefs: Regional and Global Perspectives: An International Coral Reef Initiative Executive Secretariat Background Paper, May 1995

    Additional resources available from:
    Matt Stout
    Office of Public Affairs
    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration - Room 6013
    Department of Commerce
    14th and Constitution Avenue, N.W.
    Washington D.C. 20310
    email: coralreef@www.rdc.noaa.gov

    Experts:

    Dr. Clive Wilkinson, Coordinator
    Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network
    c/o Australian Institute of Marine Science
    PMB No.3, Townsville MC 4810
    Australia
    tel: 61 77 534 372 or 61 77 724 314
    fax: 61 77 722 808 or 61 77 725 852
    email: c.wilkinson@aims.gov.au

    Dr. John McManus
    ReefBase Project Leader
    International Center for Living Aquatic Resources Management,
    MCPO Box 2631
    0718 Makati, Metro Manila
    Philippines
    tel: 63 2 818 0466 or 63 2 817 5255
    fax: 63 2 816 3183
    email: j.mcmanus@cgnet.com

    Dr. Mark Eakin
    Program Officer
    Office of Global Programs
    NOAA
    Suite 1210
    1100 Wayne Avenue
    Silver Spring, MD 20910
    tel: 301-427-2089 x19
    fax: 301-472-2073
    email: Eakin@ogp.noaa.gov
    He is a coral reef ecologist and member of the Scientific Technical Advisory Committee of the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network

    Professor Bernard Salvat
    Centre de Biologie et d'Ecologie Tropicale et Mediterraneenne
    Universite de Perpignan, 52 Av. de Villeneuve, F-66860 - PERPIGNAN CEDEX
    tel.: +33 4 68 66 20 55
    fax: +33 4 68 50 36 86
    e-mail: pol@univ-perp.fr
    Professor Salvat heads France coral reef research, directs the Research Station in Moorea, French Polynesia chairs the Scientific Technical Advisory Committee of the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network and is a senior advisor to the French Government

    NOAA's Coral Reef Home Page

    Other NOAA Resources

    NOAA Public Affairs