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Hope Elize A. Due CHEM 1 J #17
Chasing Coral
Chasing Coral is a Netflix documentary film chronicling the lives of corals for over two months using manual timelapses every single day. The team behind this decided to document the coral reefs found in Lizard Island and New Caledonia after failing to get good images in Hawaii and the Great Barrier Reef. The whole documentary centered on the death of coral reefs due to the warm temperatures of the oceans brought about by climate change. One of the greatest factors of warm oceans is the greenhouse gases transferred in the ocean which includes carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide, which humans emit in the atmosphere, has the capacity to trap heat and 93% of this goes to the oceans.
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Their flesh gradually becomes clear and their white skeleton becomes visible. Moreover, their whole body would be covered by fuzzy microalgae. Second, some corals in New Caledonia were found fluorescing with vivid colors. This is in fact a chemical sunscreen they secrete in order to protect themselves from the heat they are experiencing. In a way, their brilliance can be a tool for people to notice them and their current situation or as what one scientist said in the film, it is an “incredible and beautiful face of death”. Another point explicitly stated in the film was that corals didn’t really have a life expectancy. However, because of climate change, they die early. It was discovered that some corals were turning white after six months which is definitely fatal to our planet because we may witness the eradication of an entire ecosystem in our lifespan as said by Doctor Ruth Gates. In addition to this, there is a big heat wave travelling near the planet which leaves dead corals in its trail and in 25 years, all of the world’s corals wouldn’t be able to keep up with this heat and they will all eventually …show more content…
These are conflict, poverty, instability, migration, unrest, collapse, capacity, and dependency. This film serves as a wakeup call to the audience because climate change is a very critical problem that people should address as soon as possible. It also explicitly shows that climate change is in fact in our midst and is not just a myth or a theory as some would say. The whole documentary tackled consequences which also have consequences. This in turn somehow forms a chain reaction of consequences which are also interrelated. As a result of these, climate change is considered as an accelerant to instability and a catalyst for conflict. Climate change impacts the basic resources needed by nations to continue and for humans to survive and continue on with their lives. For this reason, civil unrest occurs and wars happen. Militant groups and radicals such as ISIS control and secure their access to what is left of these resources like water so as for people to join their cause. There are also uprisings all over the world where protesters demand food due to starvation from lack of food which resulted from drought and food price increases which affects the global market significantly. Moreover, poverty is also a result of
The GBR, “listed as a World Heritage Area,” resides in protection by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (Wachenfeld 8). Working for this organization, employees have the ability to enforce laws to preserve the Reef as best they can. Another way the GBR gets the attention it needs is through publicity. Many people do not know that the GBR needs help and the word needs to be spread to save the Reef. The documentary, Chasing Coral, by Jeff Orlowski explains that “[w]hen you look at our planet, its unique in the known universe because we’ve got an ocean that is the source of life. It controls everything” (“Chasing Coral”). The film, focusing on coral bleaching, encompasses the widespread impacts on the GBR. It won many major film festivals around the world, showing how important reefs are, and by doing this, people are more aware what is happening and are more likely to help. Although there are efforts to aid the GBR, more needs to be done to truly save it from
By using the information found in this book, I will be able to write about the severity of the ongoing issue of climate change. With all the dangerous effects of climate change Kahrl and Roland-Holst point out on just a single state, it becomes clear that other places around the world are experiencing the same. In fact, since Cali...
All over the world coral reefs play an important part in our environment. Not only are the reefs colorful and beautiful to look at but the coral reefs house several different types of fish and other sea creatures. Coral reefs have started to decline over the years due to “climate change, El Nino events, overfishing, pollution and other pressures” (Newnham 1). A healthy coral reef can also collapse due to a natural disaster (Newnham 2). There can be several different reasons why a coral reef has started to decline or has been destroyed.
A coral reef is a ridge formed in shallow ocean water by accumulated calcium-containing exoskeletons of coral animals, certain red algae, and mollusks. Coral reefs are tropical, forming only where surface waters are never cooler than 20° C (68° F).
A big change that has occurred in the oceans all over the world is the Coral Reefs are dying and are predicted to be dead by the end of the century due to the rising acidity of the oceans caused by many different threats to marine ecosystems. Coral reefs cover less than 0.2% of our oceans but they contain 25% of the world’s marine fish species according to Endangered: Biodiversity on the brink, 2010: pg.45). If this is the case that means by the time the end of the century comes around we will have lost close to 25% of the worlds marine ecosystems.
Coral reefs, which are underwater structures created by calcium carbonate secretions, are some of the richest interdependent ecosystems on Earth. According to Wikipedia, coral reefs occupy less than 0.1% of Earth’s ocean surface, yet they provide a home for 25% of all marine species. Often referred to as the “rainforests of the ocean,” coral reefs are home to thousands upon thousands of species of plants and animals (“Coral Reef”). Not only are they an important part of ocean environments, but coral reefs are also extremely important and beneficial to humans; these reefs protect shorelines and provide countless people with food, jobs, and income sources. However, coral reefs are disappearing at an extremely alarming rate. From overfishing to pollution to sedimentation, the world’s coral reefs are in grave danger and humans must actively work to protect and restore these oceanic rainforests.
Imagine a lush underwater place. Beautiful structures colorful animals and places that would never have been thought of before. In reality that's not what it really looks like, really the ocean is a desolate place that is barren like a desert. Many marine species have been lost by as much as 49%.(seeker) A big part of that reason is because of coral bleaching which causes as stated above a decline in species that depend on the coral as there home. Coral bleaching is a serious problem that could cause problems for everyone if we don’t fix it.
Oceans cover 71% of the earth’s surface. The talk of climate change can often seem to focus on what is happening in our atmosphere, but there is a lot of change going on in our oceans. The oceans have absorbed 90% of the excess heat and 28% of the carbon pollution generated by human consumption of fossil fuels (Nuccitelli 2015). The purpose of this paper is to show how the effects of climate change effect the coral reefs in our oceans, with a focus on the coral reef systems in the Caribbean and of the Great Barrier Reef. The Caribbean coral reefs are well known to have suffered more damage between the two reef systems. That’s not to say that the Great Barrier Reef has not suffered its own damage. It has and will continue to suffer in the future.
This means that a social breakdown can occur due to fear and anxiety being instilled in our somewhat fragile technology-dependent society, and with that grave economic and political implications can also be expected to follow. Furthermore, I do believe in climate change but I feel that the more adverse effects of climate change will come from the societal effects of the alerting circumstances of climate change because if chaos and terror were to be instilled within people, that in itself would be detrimental to our society and the
This website gives a large historical overlook and possible conclusion to the issue of coral reef bleaching. Since the 1980’s episodes of coral reef bleaching and death have occurred almost every year in one or more of the world's tropical or subtropical seas. Bleaching happens in episodes, with the most severe typically accompanying coupled ocean–atmosphere phenomena. Bleaching episodes have resulted in loss of coral
There is little doubt that the current international regime is not effectively protecting coral. The statistics speak for themselves. 19 percent of the earth’s coral reefs have already been “seriously degraded or lost.” Over 60% are under “immediate and direct threat.” 90% are expected to be at risk by the 2030s. And by 2050, nearly all coral reefs will be in danger.
This reef is off the coast of Queensland, Australia. It stretches more than 1,800 miles and tops 40 miles wide in some areas of the coral reef. This reef is so massive that you could see parts of the reef from outer space! This reef is made up of over 600 types of hard and soft corals; and over 3,000 individual reefs systems. This coral has 30 species of whales and dolphins; 1,625 species of different types of fish, 33 species of sharks and rays. There are over 100 islands making up the coral reef; here are 6 out of the 100 islands that make up this reef. Haggerstone Island, Heron Island, Brampton Island, Bedarra Island, lizard Island and, Hayman Island. This reef has many different cities that surround the coral, here are 4 out of the many cities that surround the reef; Cairns, Townsville, Rockhampton, and
Nestled in tropical ocean waters, coral reefs provide valuable resources to both human and marine life. Coral reefs are estimated to contain one-quarter of the undersea world's diverse species while covering less than 0.2 % of the ocean floor. However, coral reefs are in serious danger due to both natural and man-made causes (Edmonds, 1998).
Located in tropical ocean waters, coral reefs provide priceless resources to both human and marine life. They exist in an area about 30 degrees on either side of the equator. Coral reefs are home to more species than any other marine ecosystem. This includes over 1500 types of fish and 500 different types of algae. (Encarta) However, nearly 60% of coral reefs are in serious danger due to both natural and man-made causes.
In conclusion, I would like to say that before writing this paper, I had no idea how important coral reefs were to the earth. I have learned a lot and I think that if more people were informed about the positive capabilities of them, humans wouldn't be so careless about them.