SINGAPORE: The National Parks Board (NParks) on Tuesday (Dec 10) launched an initiative, dubbed as Singapore’s "most extensive coral restoration effort", to plant 100,000 corals.
Known as the 100k Corals Initiative, the aim is to plant the corals in Singapore's waters over the next 10 years and beyond.
The plan was first announced by Minister for National Development and Minister-in-charge of Social Services Integration Desmond Lee during the 5th Asia-Pacific Coral Reef Symposium last year.
NParks then said that this will scale up existing coral restoration efforts to substantially improve the resilience of coral communities and reefs.
As part of the initiative, a new coral culture facility will also be established at the Marine Park Outreach and Education Centre on St John's Island, NParks said in a media release on Tuesday.
It is targeted to be fully operational and open to the public in the second quarter of 2025.
At the facility, corals will first be cultivated by coral restoration experts and researchers from the National University of Singapore at the St John’s Island National Marine Laboratory.
They will then be transplanted into the marine environment to restore degraded reefs or establish new communities.
Launching the initiative at St John's Island on Tuesday, Mr Lee said that climate change and human action pose a significant threat to Singapore's coral reefs.
Coral bleaching is also happening "a lot more frequently", he said, pointing to the fourth global coral bleaching event, which is the second in the last decade.
The minister said that Singapore has taken steps to conserve its coral reefs such as monitoring them for signs of coral bleaching.
He also pointed to the enhanced Sisters’ Islands Marine Park, which has a coral habitat and research site, as well as reef enhancement units to promote coral growth.
"While much has been done to monitor and restore our corals, we can do much more to ensure the long-term survival of our reefs," he added.
Also in attendance at the launch was English zoologist Jane Goodall, who is known for her long-term research on chimpanzees. Dr Goodall shared on marine conservation during the event.
An NParks staff member lifts up an adult coral, Cyphastrea sp, displayed in a tank at a coral culture facility at St John’s Island National Marine Laboratory. (Photo: CNA/Jeremy Long)
Various species of adult corals on display in a tank at a coral culture facility at St John’s Island National Marine Laboratory, which may used for restoration purposes as part of the 100k Corals Initiative (Photo: CNA/Jeremy Long)
The coral species cultivated at the new facility include those under NParks' Species Recovery Programme such as the Staghorn and Plate Acropora corals.
The recovery programme, which was introduced in 2015 as part of NParks' Nature Conservation Masterplan, aims to conserve native flora and fauna by targeting rare or threatened species.
Serving as an "ex-situ coral nursery", the facility houses six tanks that can rear up to 600 coral nubbins - small fragments produced from adult colonies - each at any one time.
The nubbins will be attached to a specially designed frame that maximises the number of corals that can be cultivated in the tanks and grown under controlled conditions.
Once the nubbins have grown large enough, they will then be transplanted to damaged reefs for restoration purposes or inserted into other areas to establish new communities.
Lionel Ng, a marine biologist with NUS, holds up a vertical column of Plate Acropora corals which are placed on mini cement tiles, cultivated for the 100k Corals Initiative at St John’s Island National Marine Laboratory. (Photo: CNA/Jeremy Long)
Lionel Ng, a marine biologist with NUS, holds up a vertical column of Plate Acropora corals which are placed on mini cement tiles, cultivated for the 100k Corals Initiative at St John’s Island National Marine Laboratory. (Photo: CNA/Jeremy Long)
Other sources of transplant include "corals-of-opportunity", which are naturally fragmented corals lying free on the floor that may not survive without external intervention, said NParks.
"Altogether, this will aid species recovery efforts for rarer coral species and increase coral cover and diversity in Singapore, complementing efforts under NParks' Marine Conservation Action Plan to protect the natural heritage of our City in Nature," it added.
The action plan, launched in 2015, sets out strategies to protect, restore and enhance Singapore's coastal and marine habitats.
The six tanks in the facility will also be installed with a smart coral culture aquaculture system set up by Delta Electronics. This is part of a two-year research programme between NParks and Delta established to kickstart the 100k Corals Initiative.
The system monitors water conditions using various instruments and transmits data to researchers, which enables remote monitoring and timely intervention.
For example, if the temperature of the tanks is too high, the automated system will send an alert, allowing for a quicker response that can minimise adverse impact such as coral bleaching, said NParks.
A marine biologist lifts up an adult coral, Caulastrea echinulata, which sits on display in a tank in a coral culture facility at St John’s Island National Marine Laboratory. (Photo: CNA/Jeremy Long)
As part of the research programme, NParks will also work with experts to develop a nationwide coral reef restoration plan as well as a citizen science monitoring programme for the transplanted corals.
Volunteers will be trained to assist with coral husbandry - a practice of raising corals in a controlled environment to help them reproduce and grow - as well as underwater monitoring requirements.
The 100k Corals Initiative has received more than S$2 million (US$1.4 million) in support of the Garden City Fund, NParks' registered charity and Institution of a Public Character (IPC), and from donors such as Delta Electronics, GSK-EDB Trust Fund, Deutsche Bank, Takashimaya Singapore and KPI OceanConnect.
Thanking the donors, Mr Lee said Singapore will continue to press on with its coral conservation and research efforts.
"And together, let's conserve our precious marine and coral ecosystems for current and future generations to come," he added.
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Known as the 100k Corals Initiative, the aim is to plant the corals in Singapore's waters over the next 10 years and beyond.
The plan was first announced by Minister for National Development and Minister-in-charge of Social Services Integration Desmond Lee during the 5th Asia-Pacific Coral Reef Symposium last year.
NParks then said that this will scale up existing coral restoration efforts to substantially improve the resilience of coral communities and reefs.
As part of the initiative, a new coral culture facility will also be established at the Marine Park Outreach and Education Centre on St John's Island, NParks said in a media release on Tuesday.
It is targeted to be fully operational and open to the public in the second quarter of 2025.
At the facility, corals will first be cultivated by coral restoration experts and researchers from the National University of Singapore at the St John’s Island National Marine Laboratory.
They will then be transplanted into the marine environment to restore degraded reefs or establish new communities.
Launching the initiative at St John's Island on Tuesday, Mr Lee said that climate change and human action pose a significant threat to Singapore's coral reefs.
Coral bleaching is also happening "a lot more frequently", he said, pointing to the fourth global coral bleaching event, which is the second in the last decade.
The minister said that Singapore has taken steps to conserve its coral reefs such as monitoring them for signs of coral bleaching.
He also pointed to the enhanced Sisters’ Islands Marine Park, which has a coral habitat and research site, as well as reef enhancement units to promote coral growth.
"While much has been done to monitor and restore our corals, we can do much more to ensure the long-term survival of our reefs," he added.
Also in attendance at the launch was English zoologist Jane Goodall, who is known for her long-term research on chimpanzees. Dr Goodall shared on marine conservation during the event.
An NParks staff member lifts up an adult coral, Cyphastrea sp, displayed in a tank at a coral culture facility at St John’s Island National Marine Laboratory. (Photo: CNA/Jeremy Long)
Various species of adult corals on display in a tank at a coral culture facility at St John’s Island National Marine Laboratory, which may used for restoration purposes as part of the 100k Corals Initiative (Photo: CNA/Jeremy Long)
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The coral species cultivated at the new facility include those under NParks' Species Recovery Programme such as the Staghorn and Plate Acropora corals.
The recovery programme, which was introduced in 2015 as part of NParks' Nature Conservation Masterplan, aims to conserve native flora and fauna by targeting rare or threatened species.
Serving as an "ex-situ coral nursery", the facility houses six tanks that can rear up to 600 coral nubbins - small fragments produced from adult colonies - each at any one time.
The nubbins will be attached to a specially designed frame that maximises the number of corals that can be cultivated in the tanks and grown under controlled conditions.
Once the nubbins have grown large enough, they will then be transplanted to damaged reefs for restoration purposes or inserted into other areas to establish new communities.
Lionel Ng, a marine biologist with NUS, holds up a vertical column of Plate Acropora corals which are placed on mini cement tiles, cultivated for the 100k Corals Initiative at St John’s Island National Marine Laboratory. (Photo: CNA/Jeremy Long)
Lionel Ng, a marine biologist with NUS, holds up a vertical column of Plate Acropora corals which are placed on mini cement tiles, cultivated for the 100k Corals Initiative at St John’s Island National Marine Laboratory. (Photo: CNA/Jeremy Long)
Other sources of transplant include "corals-of-opportunity", which are naturally fragmented corals lying free on the floor that may not survive without external intervention, said NParks.
"Altogether, this will aid species recovery efforts for rarer coral species and increase coral cover and diversity in Singapore, complementing efforts under NParks' Marine Conservation Action Plan to protect the natural heritage of our City in Nature," it added.
The action plan, launched in 2015, sets out strategies to protect, restore and enhance Singapore's coastal and marine habitats.
The six tanks in the facility will also be installed with a smart coral culture aquaculture system set up by Delta Electronics. This is part of a two-year research programme between NParks and Delta established to kickstart the 100k Corals Initiative.
The system monitors water conditions using various instruments and transmits data to researchers, which enables remote monitoring and timely intervention.
For example, if the temperature of the tanks is too high, the automated system will send an alert, allowing for a quicker response that can minimise adverse impact such as coral bleaching, said NParks.
A marine biologist lifts up an adult coral, Caulastrea echinulata, which sits on display in a tank in a coral culture facility at St John’s Island National Marine Laboratory. (Photo: CNA/Jeremy Long)
As part of the research programme, NParks will also work with experts to develop a nationwide coral reef restoration plan as well as a citizen science monitoring programme for the transplanted corals.
Volunteers will be trained to assist with coral husbandry - a practice of raising corals in a controlled environment to help them reproduce and grow - as well as underwater monitoring requirements.
The 100k Corals Initiative has received more than S$2 million (US$1.4 million) in support of the Garden City Fund, NParks' registered charity and Institution of a Public Character (IPC), and from donors such as Delta Electronics, GSK-EDB Trust Fund, Deutsche Bank, Takashimaya Singapore and KPI OceanConnect.
Thanking the donors, Mr Lee said Singapore will continue to press on with its coral conservation and research efforts.
"And together, let's conserve our precious marine and coral ecosystems for current and future generations to come," he added.
Continue reading...