Global Coral Reef Bleaching Hits Historic Extremes

The International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI) report shows that 84% of the world’s coral reef areas are experiencing “Extraordinary Bleaching Events”, 92% of corals in the Pacific Coral Triangle are heavily bleached, and the northern section of the Great Barrier Reef has been bleached for seven consecutive years, with 1,120 square kilometers of new mortality. Seawater temperatures exceeded long-term averages by 1-2°C, and acidification led to a 35 per cent decrease in calcification rates, shortening the coral bleaching-to-death time from 45 days to 18 days. Without mitigation, 70-90 per cent of coral reefs will be extinct by the 2030s.