© Jessica Kendall-Bar
Coral reefs do an incredible service to our shoreline, by absorbing 97% of wave power and shielding 1000 miles of coastline in the US alone. 1 meter of reef degradation ALONE can QUADRUPLE wave power unleashed on the shore and DOUBLE of the cost and severity of coastal flooding, which would result in the considerable monetary costs in the US and worldwide. This will be the case even in ABSENCE of sea level rise and increasing extreme weather events,
While this may seem like a staggering and upsetting statistic, we can do something about this. Reef conservation efforts have commenced in low lying atolls like the Maldives, where this work will be presented in a ministerial forum organized by the Asian Development Bank. The cost effectiveness of reef conservation efforts has been shown scientifically as part of collaborations between UCSC, USGS, and the University of Cantabria and our team is exploring new financing opportunities with the insurance industry (e.g., Swiss Re, Munich Re, Lloyd's, and Risk Management Solutions), including the first ever reef insurance policy in Mexico.
