© Greenpeace / Jack Noble
]It's nearly two years since the 2004 tsunami that caused such devastation in the Indian Ocean. After the terrible loss of human life, it's easy to forget the environmental damage, and how it can affect the lives of tsunami survivors who were once dependent on the reefs for food and income. In Phuket, Thailand, divers from around the world are working to restore the ruined coral reefs. And here's how they're doing it.
"The technique requires tiny fragments of coral to be grown in netted cages suspended in the sea, protected from grazing fish and strong currents. This improves the coral’s chances of survival. The first crop has been transplanted onto badly damaged reefs at Koh Phai, a small island near the resort of Krabi on the west coast. The divers will now apply the method to other reefs off the islands of Phuket and Phi Phi, where thousands of holidaymakers died. They have also created an artificial reef and may use specially designed concrete cylinders with many crevices to create beds for coral larvae to grow." The Times(UK): Coral transplants rebuild reefs wrecked in tsunami »
Phuket Marine Biological Centre
Rebuilding the reefs in Thailand »
Climate change and coral bleaching »
Wikipedia: coral reefs »