Successful Coral Reef Restoration Projects in the Philippines

Successful Coral Reef Restoration Projects in the Philippines The Philippines is geographically located at the apex of the Coral Triangle, an area recognized by marine ecologists as a global center of marine biodiversity. The coastal waters of this vast marine expanse contain a wider variety of corals and reef fishes than anywhere else in the world. Millions of Filipinos depend on coral reefs and their associated ecosystems for both food and income. The recreational, educational, and aesthetic value of these reef ecosystems contribute significantly to the country’s tourism sector. However, the degradation of the reef ecosystem is apparent, due to the high number of activities that cause it. These include overfishing; use of destructive fishing practices like fish bombing, unsustainable development along the country’s coastline, pollution from agriculture, tourism activities, transport, and others. Climate change has further exacerbated these impacts. In view of this, many government bodies and non-profit organizations have been implementing programs and coral restoration projects to prevent further degradation, rehabilitate damaged habitats and, conserve biodiversity. The Coral Triangle Initiatives and The Protected Areas and Wildlife Bureau of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in the Philippines are collaborating in the establishment and effective management of marine protected areas (MPA) to ensure further damage to the coral biodiversity that will give room for coral regrowth and restoration. Around 270,000 ha (2,700 km2) or 0.1% of the Philippines’ coral reefs are under some form of protection. An assessment performed by the Marine Protected Area Support Network in 2011 showed that 1,620 MPAs have been established, and are managed locally. It is crucial to implement a regular assessment and monitoring of the MPA, usually with the help of conservation specialists to ensure efficiency. The Coral Clay Conservation (CCC) is one of the renowned conservation specialists and expedition providers that have been running in Philippines since 1994. In 2002, the Southern Leyte Coral Reef Conservation Project (LRCP) by CCC was established in collaboration with the Provincial Government of Southern Leyte with a clear aim to provide ecological indicators and management recommendations for the coral reefs and associated systems Southern Leyte. In addition to the collection of ecological indicators, such as Scleractinia hard coral cover and biomass of commercially important fishes, CCC utilized the Marine Protected Area Management Effectiveness Assessment Tool (MEAT) to highlight important threshold indicators focusing on the enforcement, implementation, and maintenance of the protected areas. The implementation of MPA thus allows for an extensive coral rehabilitation effort. One such project is a coral restoration project in Pagatalan Island. This area has been suffering from an intense human stressor, along with extreme weather conditions brought about southwesterly monsoons, which harmed the coral reefs colonies. The Pagatalan Island, which forms part of the Palawan Biosphere Reserve (Philippines), operates as an effective living laboratory for conservation and sustainable development through cooperation between the Palawan Council for Sustainable Development and the Sulubaai Foundation (SEF). The Pagatalan Marine Protected Area is the site of successful coral reef restoration processes based on innovative techniques developed by the Sulubaai Environmental Foundation. The coral reef restoration program aims to restore severe damage to coral reefs around the island and increase the resilience of this vital ecological system.

Two complementary techniques are used depending on the existing conditions. Where solid structures are available, nails and steel wire are used to attach corals to natural pavements. In their absence, the program uses an innovative Sulu-Reef Prosthesis (SRP), a durable module made of reinforced concrete, steel bars which were designed and engineered by SEF in 2016. There are three models corresponding to different sizes, all of which have been designed and manufactured on Pangatalan Island using a unique and durable steel molder. The SRP functions as a structural prosthesis for coral reefs that have experienced a prominent level of mortality and have lost structural strength. Their use promotes resiliency among natural reefs and coral regrowth. They are not designed to create artificial reefs or new reefs. The SRPs are dispersed in groups to cover a larger area and then integrated into the natural relief. Depending on the species and environmental conditions, coral tissue overgrowth takes place after one to two months and skeleton overgrowth after two to four months. As a result, through this method, SEF has been able to work with 15 coral genera, mostly Acroporids and Pocilloporids, varying between branching (e.g., bush, plate, digitate, etc.) along with massive and thin forms of the coral genus. It has been reported that the attaching rate of corals within all the sites is 70.97%, with 14.32% of the fragments resulted fused to the concrete, 27.32% to the steel bar, and 29.02% grown over both, steel bar and concrete. Another coral rehabilitation method reported that the transplantation of a fragmenting coral, Montipora digitata that was conducted in Bolinao, northern Philippines shows a success. The Scleractinia coral Montipora digitata is a common reef flat species that thrive under prominent levels of light and water turbulence and propagates successfully by natural fragmentation. It was used for transplantation experiments to restore a degraded lagoon environment in the northwestern Philippines. Coral branches about 5 cm high from a natural Montipora population in the lagoon were transplanted to dead coral outcrops or knolls in two locations, caused by fish bombing and coral bleaching. Both locations show significant growth and survival of the transplanted coral colonies which affected greatly by water motions and environmental conditions. These results demonstrate the potential of coral transplantation to initiate the establishment of natural communities in degraded reef areas, a concern for coastal managers in developing countries. Despite success in restoring coral colonies through the method of transplantation and coral prosthesis along with the implementation of MPAs, the efforts are facing challenges from environmental conditions such as harsh monsoon wind, natural catastrophe, and global warming. The establishment of large-scale coral nurseries must include effective management measures to adapt to a constantly changing environment due to the combination of continuous anthropogenic and worsening global changes. A community-based effort in combating the degradation of the coral reef can also be helpful by providing education and outreach efforts, inspiring children, students, and communities to challenge detrimental activities and adopt sustainable practices.