APNewsBreak: Experts demand more effort to save coral reefs

HONOLULU (AP) — As the largest international gathering of coral reef experts comes to a close, scientists and policy makers are moving ahead with plans for action to save the world's reefs, which are being rapidly damaged.

A call to action from three Pacific island nations whose reefs are in the crosshairs of the largest and longest-lasting coral bleaching event in recorded history was presented Friday at the conclusion of the International Coral Reef Symposium in Honolulu.

In response to the letter, the scientific community at the conference said: "We pledge to take up the 13th ICRS Leaders' Call to Action, and will work together with national leaders of the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of Palau, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the world to curb the continued loss of coral reefs."

Bleaching is a process where corals, stressed by hot ocean waters and other environmental changes, lose their color as the symbiotic algae that lives within them is released.

The researchers focused on the economic and social benefits coral reefs contribute to communities across the globe, saying the critical habitats generate trillions of dollars annually but conservation efforts are not proportionately or adequately funded.