Coral Reefs and People in a High-CO2 World: Where Can Science Make a Difference to People?
Increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere put shallow, warm-water coral reef ecosystems, and the people who depend upon them at risk from two key global environmental stresses: 1) elevated sea surface temperature (that can cause coral bleaching and related mortality), and 2) ocean acidification. These global stressors: cannot be avoided by local management, compound local stressors, and hasten the loss of ecosystem services. Impacts to people will be most grave where a) human dependence on coral reef ecosystems is high, b) sea surface temperature reaches critical levels soonest, and c) ocean acidification levels are most severe. Where these elements align, swift action will be needed to protect people's lives and livelihoods, but such action must be informed by data and science.
Designing policies to offset potential harm to coral reef ecosystems and people requires a better understanding of where CO2-related global environmental stresses could cause the most severe impacts. Mapping indicators has been proposed as a way of combining natural and social science data to identify policy actions even when the needed science is relatively nascent. To identify where people are at risk and where more science is needed, we map indicators of biological, physical and social science factors to understand how human dependence on coral reef ecosystems will be affected by globally-driven threats to corals expected in a high-CO2 world. Western Mexico, Micronesia, Indonesia and parts of Australia have high human dependence and will likely face severe combined threats. As a region, Southeast Asia is particularly at risk. Many of the countries most dependent upon coral reef ecosystems are places for which we have the least robust data on ocean acidification. These areas require new data and interdisciplinary scientific research to help coral reef-dependent human communities better prepare for a high CO2 world.
Université de Bretagne Occidentale, UMR6308 AMURE, IUEM, Plouzané, France.
Linwood
L
Pendleton
Université de Bretagne Occidentale, UMR6308 AMURE, IUEM, Plouzané, France.
Adrien
A
Comte
RSMAS/MBE, University of Miami, Miami, Florida, United States of America.
Chris
C
Langdon
University of California Davis, Policy Institute for Energy, Environment and the Economy, Davis, California, United States of America.
Julia A
JA
Ekstrom
Ocean Conservancy, Washington, D.C., United States of America.
Sarah R
SR
Cooley
Natural Resources Defense Council, New York, New York, United States of America.
Lisa
L
Suatoni
The Nature Conservancy and the University of California, Santa Cruz, Ocean Sciences, Santa Cruz, California, United States of America.
Michael W
MW
Beck
Institute for Environmental Studies, VU University, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Luke M
LM
Brander
World Resources Institute, Washington, D.C., United States of America.
Lauretta
L
Burke
James Cook University, ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies, Townsville, Australia.
Josh E
JE
Cinner
Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, United States of America.
Carolyn
C
Doherty
Coral Reef Conservation Program, NOAA, Silver Spring, Maryland, United States of America.
Peter E T
PE
Edwards
Ocean Acidification Program, NOAA, Silver Spring, Maryland, United States of America.
Dwight
D
Gledhill
Cooperative Institute for Climate and Satellites, Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, United States of America.
Li-Qing
LQ
Jiang
NOAA Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory, Ocean Chemistry and Ecosystems Division, Miami, Florida, United States of America.|Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies, Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, University of Miami, Miami, Florida, United States of America.
Ruben J
RJ
van Hooidonk
Institute for Oceans and Fisheries, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Louise
L
Teh
Oregon State University, College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Corvallis, Oregon, United States of America.
George G
GG
Waldbusser
National Wildlife Foundation, Washington, D.C., United States of America.
Jessica
J
Ritter
D000818:Animals; D037421:Anthozoa / Q000502:physiology*; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000378:metabolism*; D057231:Climate Change; D003247:Conservation of Natural Resources / Q000379:methods; D057894:Coral Reefs; D017753:Ecosystem; D005398:Fisheries; D005843:Geography; D057232:Global Warming; D006801:Humans; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D008386:Marine Biology / Q000379:methods; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D012623:Seawater / Q000737:chemistry; D013696:Temperature
D002245:Carbon Dioxide