For divers it’s an underwater paradise but the coral reefs circling the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius are in serious danger. Higher sea temperatures combined with a strong El Nino effect could put these reefs at risk of coral bleaching — which could kill both the reefs and the marine life they sustain.
“In fact we saw that the temperature in the month of December was virtually the same as the temperature in February and March last year. And February to March is the hottest time of the year, so we can see that the hottest period has come forward over time,” according to Celine Miternique, of Reef Conservation.
Corals rarely survive in waters above 30 degrees centigrade and once they die, it takes years for them to regrow.
“If ever that phenomenon reaches Mauritius it will take us 15, 20, 30, 40 years for us to recover. This is a (are) global phenomenon. We have seen, for example, that El Nino starts in the Pacific, but with the south equatorial current, with overall circulation in the oceans, the impact will also be felt in the Indian Ocean after a few months delay,” said Vassen Kauppatmuthoo, an oceanographer.
Mauritius’ underwater world is its main attraction – bringing in a million tourists a year. And as the threat of El Nino looms, worsened by rising sea temperatures, conservationists hope, even if it’s against scientific principles, that the coral reefs will be spared.
