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How to mitigate coastal development impacts?
Published on 06 Feb ‘18
How to mitigate coastal development impacts?
How to mitigate coastal development impacts?

The Maldives has been hit so far by three major coral bleaching events between 1998 and 2016, causing a spiral of coral death and reef decline. Each of the three bleaching events was due to changes in weather patterns, resulting in increased seawater temperatures. During subsequent years, new corals settled on the damaged reefs and recovery proceeded relatively well, but the problem is that impacts keep on increasing – sedimentation, pollution, ocean warming, overfishing and ocean acidification, to name a few. This year, for example, 7 kilometers of land was reclaimed to build tourist islands similar to The World islands in Dubai. Dredging and dumping of millions of tons of sand will kill off many more corals, turning reefs into dead coral wastelands.

The Maldives archipelago only exists because corals – called the rainforests of the sea – built it. These coral rainforests are the bedrock for coral islands, fisheries, the country’s culture, economy and well-being. Without the corals, there is no economy, country or basis to live on.

Our marine environment is a valuable asset for coastal resorts, tourist attractions and other developments, and needs careful and sensitive management. While climate change requires global strategies and cooperation, there is much we can do immediately to mitigate against local pressures caused by coastal development, pollution and other human impacts.

At every stage of the coastal development cycle, from development and infrastructure through to operation and maintenance, we can use more sustainable marine solutions to avoid detrimental ecological impacts. Silt curtains, containment booms and sand-filled geosynthetic containers are just a few examples of materials that offer protection to the marine environment against particular types of impacts.

How to mitigate coastal development impacts?

Want to know more? Do you have questions about our solutions that protect and support coastal development? Contact us here, or participate into our survey to let us know in which solutions you are interested. We are planning to organize a couple of free seminars and workshops this year, and it would be good to know which ones you have interest in attending. Participate here. 

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