[ RadSafe ] Coral reefs, Global Warming, Earthquakes, etc.

[Brennan, Mike (DOH)]

         "Saw a news-item on Television last night suggesting that
corals and coral reefs are being killed off by warmer than usual water
generated by global warming.  I suggest these researchers should look a
few hundred kilometers north (in the Northern Hemisphere) of their
present research location and believe they will find new coral reefs
growing, where there colder water is now a bit warm."

This is almost certainly true, as the larva of coral disperse widely.
However, even if this is demonstrated, it is a long way from "Problem
Solved".  This is because a reef is not just the coral living today, but
also the millions of tons of stone dead coral that has built up over the
eons.  This provides habitat for animals that don't interact much with
the living coral.  The dead coral builds up and supports the living
coral at the depth it does well at, building up the reef even as the
land it started on sinks (forming atolls).  

While new reefs will eventually form, many coral larva prefer to settle
out on other coral, so in new territory there aren't a lot of prime
places to start new reefs.  The process will take a long time to get to
where anyone is going to go diving to marvel at the beautiful coral and
fish.