BLEACHING EFFECT
All three reef systems -- the Great Barrier Reef, the Mesoamerican Reef and the Coral Triangle -- are jeopardized by the threat of global warming, which kills coral and leads to a bleaching effect. And while tourism cannot solve the problem of rising sea temperatures, the industry's cooperation to eliminate specific pressures -- by establishing a well-enforced no-take zone, or reducing wastewater pollution, for example -- helps reefs recover from bleaching and disease. The contribution of conservation fees to support the protected areas, which many businesses have long resisted, is also important.
To keep coral reefs from disappearing as quickly as they have in recent years, people need to be involved and educated on every level from local government to hotel developers to cruise lines, Sweeting said.
"It took Cancun 35 years to develop to this massive size, and it took less than a decade for the Riviera Maya," he said. "But nature will not let you get away with it."
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