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BIODIVERSITY-JAPAN: Climate Change Fosters Coral-Eating Starfish

Suvendrini Kakuchi

TOKYO, May 10 2007 (IPS) - At the Kushimoto marine park, 640 km southwest of the national capital, divers proudly display the coral-eating starfish they pluck away from the famed table coral formations that attract tourists for their sheer beauty.

The divers work on a volunteer basis removing the crown-of-thorns starfish under a project supported by the local government through the provision of diving gear, and expertise from marine biologists.

”The ocean around Kushimoto has become one degree warmer compared to the 1970s, and this is causing the proliferation of coral-destroying starfish. Removing the animals is hard work but our divers are eager to help,” says Keiichi Nomura, biologist at the marine park.

Nomura, who heads the project to exterminate the starfish, gets his divers to pry the animals off with tongs right down to their suckers. Although this may result in tearing away bits of coral it is considered safer than resorting to chemicals.

The effort is worth it. Kushimoto has Japan’s largest colonies of scenic table corals, which also happen to be the northernmost of the world’s coral communities. The special value of the site was recognised in November 2005 by the Ramsar Convention that helps preserve internationally important wetlands and ecosystems.

While Kushimoto supports commercial and leisure fishing and activities ranging from tourism to scientific research, its delicate marine ecology is considered endangered by climate change, linked not only to warming, but also the retreat of the warm sea currents that endow the site with a wealth of coral and other tropical fauna. Both processes call for scientific study.

”Japan is developing a much needed action plan to protect endangered coral reefs at home. The focus is on getting things done through a global partnership based on coordination between governments and other sectors,” explained Keisuke Takahashi, of the biodiversity policy section at the environment ministry.

Along with Palau, Japan hosted the April 2007 International Coral Reef Initiative in Tokyo, where the action plan was launched, so as to be ready to meet targets set for 2008 when the world marks the International Year of the Reef.

Data presented at the conference was dismal not just for Japan, but showed that 30 percent of Asia’s coral reefs, home to amazingly rich marine life and biodiversity, will disappear within 30 years unless corrective measures are taken urgently.

Almost 80 percent of Japan’s coral reefs are situated close to Okinawa and the surrounding islands, and these face threats from tourism and the United States military bases there.

Human activities that result in the flow of red soil into the sea and warmer waters around Japan are said to be responsible for the rapid growth of starfish that, in many places, have begun to cover the reefs and suffocate them.

Biologist Kazuhiko Sakai, an expert on reef larvae at the Ryukoku University’s biodiversity research section, believes that the situation of coral reefs is critical: ”Various problems, such as a lack of expertise on coral reefs and the effect of global warming on them, as well as reluctance to develop ecologically sound land management policies, haunt Japan’s conservation projects.”

Experts at the Tokyo conference, aware of the uphill struggle before them, discussed a conservation framework based on participation by various stakeholders. For example, the involvement of the agricultural and construction industry could help check the flow of red soil into the sea.

”The best way to combat the destruction of corals is to bring together various sectors. We hope this measure will lay the groundwork to enable Japan to play a leading role in protecting coral reefs in the Asia-Pacific region,” explained Takahashi.

As part of the initiative, the environment ministry will soon launch a national promotion committee for the International Year of the Reef 2008, which is to embody the new conservation model. Japan is already involving experts of other relevant ecosystems such as mangroves and tropical timber, when implementing reef conservation.

Japan’s 96,000 hectares of heavily damaged coral reefs illustrate how large-scale development and political issues have taken precedence over ecological concerns. Rapid economic expansion in the 1970s and 1980s caused havoc because it was not accompanied by stringent environmental protection laws, such as the establishment of protected nature reserves.

An important example of cooperative work is Sango Mura (Coral Village) on a southern island close to Okinawa. This community project is a scheme jointly undertaken since 2005 by the environment ministry, officials at the Okinawa local government and World Wildlife Fund-Japan.

Satoshi Maekawa, a WWF officer who works with an education project to raise awareness among local communities on the need to protect coral reefs, says success can only come from ”developing a balance between protecting livelihoods and protecting coral reefs”.