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Reefcheck:
If
you are a scuba diver, marine scientist, community organizer
or simply someone with a love of coral reefs, we need your
help. Undersea Explorer biologists will coordinate this
reef monitoring program along the Great Barrier Reef. You
may join aboard Undersea Explorer Reefcheck expeditions
or with scheduled programs at other GBR locations. We will
form a team which will video record coral transects, record
fish and invertebrate populations and potentially threatening
disease, breakage and coral predators on the reef.
You
will be part of an effort to make a difference to coral
reef survival worldwide. There will be much more than just
surveying, the dive sites also offer awesome wall dives,
big pelagic fish life and the great visibility of the Coral
Sea. We will be diving the beautiful coral gardens of the
ribbon reefs to complete the range of diving experiences
for your trip and you will enjoy presentations about the
reef life, and the research project of which you play an
important part.
The
Research
Reef
Check is the largest international coral reef monitoring
program involving recreational divers and marine scientists.
In 1997, Reef Check teams completed the first global survey
of coral reefs. Over 750 volunteer sport divers were trained
and led by 100 volunteer scientists in surveys of more than
300 reefs in 31 countries. The results of Reef Check 97
provided the first solid evidence that coral reefs have
been damaged on a global scale. Reef Check 98 covered 40
countries and documented an unprecedented global bleaching
and mortality event (Results of Reef Check 98). In addition
to producing valuable scientific results, Reef Check 97
raised the awareness of scientists, governments, politicians
and the general public about the value of coral reefs, threats
to their health and solutions to coral reef problems. This
message was spread worldwide by TV coverage including CNN
and BBC, and by major newspapers and magazines in a dozen
languages. Due to popular demand, from now on Reef Check
will be repeated every year.
The
more people and countries that participate, the bigger the
media attention will be, and the faster solutions can be
implemented. Reef Check has been selected to be the "community-based"
survey program for the United Nations' Global Coral Reef
Monitoring Network. Reef Check helps local community members
learn how to monitor their coral reefs, providing the information
needed so that they can be managed in a sustainable manner.
Participation in Reef Check is one of the best methods of
changing people's behavior and slowing the damage so that
reefs can recover.
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