Western Australian (WA) coral reefs have been undergoing horrible bleaching due to high temperatures affecting the coral. Bleaching occurs when high temperatures rise through the ocean, causing heat stress to coral that turns their gorgeous colours to white or quite pale. These once beautiful and vast coral reefs have suffered due to the temperature rising and harming all of the coral nearby.
The bleaching has reached miles upon miles of Western Australian coral reefs – thus far, up to 932 miles across the national coral reefs in WA has been affected. Most of this area has never been bleached before, and this makes it some of the worst bleaching shown in all of WA. All this damage will still have to be assessed for months to fully comprehend all the damage this bleaching has caused.
For two years, coral reefs have had to suffer through the bleaching, and it takes years to recover all the area that’s been bleached. Some corals don’t ever recover and die out. Coral reefs can die up to or after eight weeks of bleaching damage if they do not recover in that time.
Dr. Gilmore stated, “Climate change caused by carbon emissions remains the greatest threat to our coral reefs, and all reefs globally.” The coral reefs have suffered from climate change, and if this continues, more and more coral reefs will die out before they get to recover. The widespread damage is a major problem in today’s age.
