Dredging in the Spratly Islands: gaining land but losing reefs

Mora, Camilo, Caldwell, Iain R., Birkeland, Charles, and McManus, John W. (2016) Dredging in the Spratly Islands: gaining land but losing reefs. PLoS Biology, 14 (3). e1002422.

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Abstract

Coral reefs on remote islands and atolls are less exposed to direct human stressors but are becoming increasingly vulnerable because of their development for geopolitical and military purposes. Here we document dredging and filling activities by countries in the South China Sea, where building new islands and channels on atolls is leading to considerable losses of, and perhaps irreversible damages to, unique coral reef ecosystems. Preventing similar damage across other reefs in the region necessitates the urgent development of cooperative management of disputed territories in the South China Sea. We suggest using the Antarctic Treaty as a positive precedent for such international cooperation.

Item ID: 58915
Item Type: Article (Research - C1)
ISSN: 1545-7885
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Copyright Information: © 2016 Mora et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC x 4.0).
Date Deposited: 25 Jul 2019 01:48
FoR Codes: 31 BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES > 3103 Ecology > 310305 Marine and estuarine ecology (incl. marine ichthyology) @ 100%
SEO Codes: 96 ENVIRONMENT > 9608 Flora, Fauna and Biodiversity > 960808 Marine Flora, Fauna and Biodiversity @ 100%
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