ReefBase :: News & Updates

New SocMon website launched on March 2010

Wed, 31 Mar 2010 17:27:48 GMT

New SocMon website launched on March 2010. The new website includes access to site reports through the searchable database.

For more information, visit SocMon website at http://www.socmon.org.

The Secretariat of the Pacific Community Photo Competition

Thu, 04 Mar 2010 17:13:32 GMT

Changing climate and Pacific fisheries
The Secretariat of the Pacific Community (www.spc.int) needs your eye and talent to create awareness and help ensure the Pacific region can continue benefiting from the wealth of its fisheries. Changes in the climate can be expected to affect our lives as they alter life underwater. Your best pictures can help illustrate a book that compiles the work of 70 scientists over the last two years. The winner receives USD 1,000!

Photographs must be sent by email by 30 April 2010 to photo_comp@webmail.spc.int. The winner will be announced on the SPC website on 17 May 2010 and profiled on the website later that month.

Click here for more information.

2nd Asia Pacific Coral Reef Symposium

Tue, 26 Jan 2010 22:27:20 GMT

The 2nd Asia Pacific Coral Reef Symposium will be held in Phuket, Thailand during 20th-24th June, 2010 for greater cooperation among all researchers and managers in the Asia Pacific region. The information of the symposium is now available at
http://www.thaicoralreef.in.th/2ndAPCRS/main.html.

There will be keynote speakers, invited speakers, 23 mini-symposia (oral/poster presentations), workshops, student competition, side events, exhibitions, social activities and tours. The deadline for abstract submission is 1st March 2010.

For more information:
Dr. Thamasak Yeemin
Marine Biodiversity Research Group
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science
Ramkhamhaeng University
Huamark, Bangkok 10240 THAILAND
Tel/Fax: (662) 310 8415
E-mail: thamasakyeemin@yahoo.com
www.thaicoralreef.in.th

“Reefs for People” - helping communities protect their reefs

Sat, 31 Oct 2009 18:04:25 GMT

The tool contains a series of models based on parameters for the Philippines and the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef, but can be adapted to use in other locations worldwide. It is the result of five years of work by the Modelling & Decision Support Group (MDSWG) of the Coral Reef Targeted Research & Capacity Building for Management (CRTR) Program. It is accessible via http://www.reefutures.org and a demonstration CD is now available.

MDSWG Chair Professor Roger Bradbury said the user-friendly tool will help planners, governments, property developers, managers of reefs, non-government organisations and reef scientists understand how models may be used to predict the impact of human activity, coastal development and climate change on their coral reefs. “This is a sophisticated tool which can be easily tailored for any of the world’s coral reefs and which allows users to take a strategic and long-term view of their coral reefs and explore a range of scenarios they might face at both the local and regional levels,” Prof Bradbury said. “For example, it will enable planners to predict economic and conservation consequences of coastal development, and ensure any development undertaken is sustainable. As well as demonstrating any negative consequences, it will open up a range of sustainable possibilities.

“It is also provides policy makers with a public, transparent way to demonstrate they have given proper consideration of the impact of their decisions.” Prof Bradbury said modelling is an important management technology to allow decision makers and reef users to see the dynamics of the whole reef system – including ecological, biophysical and socioeconomic aspects. “Overfishing, water pollution, coastal development, coral bleaching, climate change – all these factors and more impact on coral reefs reducing their value to coastal people,” he said.

The latest version of the model can be accessed via http://www.reefutures.org. Copies of the CD can be ordered from http://www.gefcoral.org

Status of Coral Reefs of the World 2008 now in ReefBase Global Database

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 18:22:10 GMT

The text from the GCRMN (http://www.gcrmn.org) "Status of Coral Reefs of the World Report" (2008) has been integrated into ReefBase. It is now available online through the Global Database section where user can easily search the status report data as organized in various categories (Overview, Status, Threats and Management) and by countries. All data provide links between the ReefBase database, Photo Gallery and online GIS. To start the search, please follow this link: http://www.reefbase.org/global_database/default.aspx

Destructive fishing information

Thu, 04 Jun 2009 20:13:44 GMT

Please follow the instructions below for identifying these areas of destructive fishing. If you have any questions please email Katie Reytar at kreytar@wri.org. Thank you for your contribution to Reefs at Risk Revisited!

Threat categories are defined as follows:
• Low threat (L) – threat not known to occur.
• Medium (M) – threat occurs once a month / threat known to occur occasionally.
• High (H) – threat occurs about once a week / threat occurs frequently.
• Previously blasted or poisoned (PB/PP) – area known to be a former blasting or poison fishing ground (regardless of intensity).

If you do not already have Google Earth installed, you may download it for free from: http://earth.google.com/

Instructions for creating a polygon on Google Earth that identifies areas where dynamite/blast fishing or poison fishing occurs. These instructions will create one polygon per area identified.

1. Download the Google Earth layers by clicking on the link: Destructive_Fishing.zip/. The zip file includes the following three layers: WCMC_Coral_Reefs; Poison_Fishing_Reefcheck; and Dynamite_Fishing_Reefcheck. Save them to your computer.

2. Open the three layers that you previously saved to your computer by clicking on them. The first layer that you click will open Google Earth automatically. Each subsequent layer you click will load to “Temporary Places” in Google Earth.

3. Zoom into the location where you can identify an area of blast or poison fishing. (The zoom tool is the “+” on the right-hand side of the screen.)

4. From the “Add” menu, choose “Polygon.”

5. In the dialogue box and “Name” field, type a title for your polygon. Please specify either blast fishing or poison fishing. Example title: Blast Fishing in Indonesia.

6. In the “Description” field, add a description for the polygon and your best estimate of the level of threat on a scale of low, medium, or high where “low” represents a rare occurrence and “high” represents a frequent or intense occurrence. Example description: Area of blast fishing in the Java Sea – High.

7. Do NOT close the dialogue box yet; do NOT hit OK yet.

8. With the cursor (looks like a box with marks on each edge) draw an outline (polygon) that represents the area where destructive fishing occurs.

9. Click “OK” on the dialogue box.

10. Your polygon is now listed on the menu in the left-hand column. Right click with the mouse on the polygon listed in the menu. Choose “Email…”

11. Select your email program from the dialogue box (if this box appears, it may not).

12. Send the email (the polygon will be automatically attached) to kreytar@wri.org. Please provide your name and organization in the body of the email.

13. Repeat steps 3 through 12 for each polygon that identifies an area of destructive fishing.

If you have any questions please email Katie Reytar at kreytar@wri.org

Map of Marine Managed Areas in the Pacific

Sun, 31 May 2009 16:57:53 GMT

This map presents a summary of data published in that report, as well as additional information that illustrates linkages between coastal communities & livelihoods, critical habitats & biodiversity and MMAs of Pacific Island Countries and Territories. For further information go to http://pacific.reefbase.org.

To download the full report visit
http://www.sprep.org/att/publication/000646_LMMA_report.pdf.
To download the map visit:
http://www.reefbase.org/resource_center/publication/main.aspx?refid=27462

Support the reefs and forests conservation with Sasalu Tawamudu Fiji

Tue, 19 May 2009 21:42:11 GMT

Sustainable Fijian Reef Resources is a non-profit corporation founded by college professors and scientists, whose goals are to enhance awareness of the current perils of the reefs, to disseminate education about the various components of this fragile and beautiful ecosystem, and to generate and target resources for locally managed and locally implemented projects of environmental regeneration and sustainable development. We invite you to explore their site, and to learn about Fiji, the coastal ecosystems, the innovative projects underway to preserve and regenerate the reefs, and the ways that you can help sustain these global resources. For more details: http://sasalutawamudu.org/

Google Earth Training at WOC and IMCC, May 2009

Sat, 18 Apr 2009 18:50:21 GMT

These workshops aim to teach the users to create and edit data in Google Earth using the MPA data as an example. Also in that workshop, users will learn how to edit and upload MPA data, photos, videos and stories to www.planetocean.org. This web portal will be the main source for the best marine conservation information online that allows users to add MPA data and multimedia content that will be displayed in Google Earth. This web portal is made possible through IUCN WCPA- Marine in collaboration with many partners, serves also as a platform to continually improve the World Database on Protected Areas.

Among the technical skills that the attendees will pick up from the workshop are creating and editing placemarks, lines and polygons; creating polygons from GPS and GIS data and also making their very own Google Earth layer. Apart from learning these new technical skills, the attendees may be eligible to receive a free copy of Google Earth Pro (valued at USD400/year).

Attendance to these workshops are free and drop-ins are welcome, but to guarantee a seat, please email iucn_getraining@protectplanetocean.org, specifying your preferred workshop date.

World Ocean Conference
Available dates are May 12, 13, or 14.
Timeslots: 9am-11am; 11am-1pm; 1pm-3pm; 3pm-5pm
Location: IUCN / MPAs in Google Earth / CTI / Reefbase booth, International Ocean Science, Technology & Symposium

International Marine Conservation Congress
Please note that you are required to bring your laptop to get hands-on training, with the installation of Google Earth 5.0 from http://earth.google.com.
Available dates are May 21, 22, 23, or 24
Timeslots: 1:30-4:00 PM on all dates
Location: JC Bistro cafe (150), Johnson Center, George Mason University

GCRMN Status Report 2008

Sun, 21 Dec 2008 22:18:40 GMT

These reports have been produced using the data and information from many coral reef experts around the world. For example 372 experts from 96 countries have contributed to this Status report. Many regional, national and local organisations, governmental, academic, NGO and volunteers have supported the functions of GCRMN. The united goal is to inform the global community on the status of coral reefs, the threats to them and, importantly, to list recommendations to improve coral reef conservation. There is widespread recognition that action is needed urgently, not only to conserve the enormous biodiversity on coral reefs, but also to assist local user communities to improve their livelihoods by ensuring the sustainable use of the reefs. To download the report, click here.