NOAA's Reporter's Coral Reef Tip Sheet
November 3, 1997 - Week 44

Information on the health of coral reefs and their social, cultural and economic values is critical to their conservation and sustainable use. Unfortunately, in most cases this knowledge is absent. There is thus an urgent need to increase efforts to assess and monitor coral reefs at national, regional and global levels on a sound scientific basis.

The World Conservation Union (IUCN), the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) and the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP), with support from Vice President Gore, the State Department and NOAA, have released a Strategic Plan for the implementation of a Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (GCRMN) that directly addresses this issue. Putting the network together has been a year-long effort, involving a series of conferences throughout the world that have solidified scientific and institutional support for the project.

The network has already launched a pilot monitoring project with 50 institutes around the world, obtained consensus on monitoring methods and protocols and developed a strategic plan based on needs identified by 84 countries, and developed a manual for assessment of reef status and socio-economic issues of user populations.

The GCRMN will function through 15 independent networks, or sub-nodes, in six regions around the world. These networks will contain many different groups of people, all collaborating to monitor coral reefs and share data. The GCRMN will use existing organizations and networks, integrate existing monitoring programs. Monitoring will continue over time at key national sites, to gather data and develop skills. Experienced marine institutes will assist in training, establishing of databases and problem resolution. A range of reef types will be monitored, assessing easily recognizable lifeforms and total fish counts, with specific counts of 'target' fish of commercial or recreational value.

Monitoring data will be accumulated in each sub-node for distribution within the region and to ReefBase, the international coral reef database maintained in Manila. These will be combined, by the GCRMN Coordinator, into annual global reef status summaries and disseminated to international forums, organizations and the media.

For more information, contact:
Dr. Clive Wilkinson Coordinator,
Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network
c/o Australian Institute of Marine Science
PMB No. 3, TOWNSVILLE MC 4810
AUSTRALIA
Tel: +61 77 534 372 or +61 77 724 314
Fax: +61 77 722 808 or +61 77 725 852
e-mail: c.wilkinson@aims.gov.au
or
Dr. John McManus
ReefBase Project Leader
International Center for Living Aquatic Resources Management,
MCPO Box 2631
0718 MAKATI, Metro Manila
PHILIPPINES
Tel: +63 2 818 0466 or +63 2 817 5255
Fax: +63 2 816 3183
e-mail: j.mcmanus@cgnet.com

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF THE REEF , PLEASE CONTACT: