Unfortunately……..we now know from first hand experience that the coral bleaching in the Pacific you hear about is a very real thing. But don’t fall under the impression that it is happening everywhere.
We did not experience it in Palau, Papau New Guinea, Maldives, Truk Lagoon, Indonesia and many other places.
AAAAHHH……BUT….. Australia is another story. And now Thailand.
Last fall we spent 3 nights on a live aboard on “THE REEF”. To get to the boat we flew for a very exciting hour, very low over the Great Barrier Reef. Magnificent! But diving the outer reef was terribly disappointing. The El Ninos over the years have taken a toll on the reef system by warming the water beyond the norm and killing the corals. It was also heavily polluted by the origin sugar cane growers for many, many years. With the corals dying the storms come through and decimate their skeletal structures which are left behind. The fish population dwindles and very few critters can survive. The boat actually chummed for the cod fish at the famous Cod Hole.
Our group in Thailand has reported back that the over diving of the Andaman Sea as well as poor conservation practices (and who knows what else) has left the face of decay resulting from the coral dieing.
YET – all is not lost! Get this! Travel Warnings placed by the US Government on various regions of the world – like Thailand – has lead to a decrease in divers allowing some of the bigger animals to make a come back, which in turn starts the cycle of life over.
So the question has been asked……do we live in fear and not travel? Well, our Tri-State divers are out there doing it, reporting on the dives and then heading on to the next place in the quest for the world’s best diving! Cu-dos to you gang!
