Will the death of the coral reefs cause more Global Warming?

Question

Invertebrate Thinking

Answer 1

In the long run I would think so. Unlike trees, which sequester carbon in wood only temporarily, as long as the wood doesn't decay, coral sequesters it in stone for millions of years.

Answer 2

At the moment, everything is caused by Global Warming or is a not caused by Global Warming.

Answer 3

I did not know the coral reefs were sick. If they die who would build the coffins? I think we should cremate them and throw them back in the ocean and they might reincarnate as coral reefs.

Answer 4

As far as I know, the idea that coral reefs are carbon sinks is incorrect: http://coralstory.blogspot.com/2007/12/r...

However, they do provide many other benefits to mankind (and life in general, as one of most rich and diverse ecosystems in the world), including food, tourism, and coastal protection, without which our coasts are likely to be at greater risks from climate change's other effects, i.e. rising sea levels, stronger storms, etc. The Nature Conservancy estimates it would cost between $250,000 and $15 million per kilometer of coast to duplicate the protection granted by coral reefs with man-made structures: http://www.nature.org/initiatives/climat...

This is an interesting and thorough article on the risks to coral reefs, the benefits of reefs, and some possible reason for optimism: http://www.eoearth.org/article/Coral_ree...

Answer 5

nay

Answer 6

no, coral dies and is reborn all of the time, the 'death of the coral reefs' is a natural and expected process...you should do some research instead of listen to enviro/ultraleftist/greenies...

Answer 7

global warming doesnt exsist

Answer 8

Yeah coral dies all the time, but if they are being killed at a rate much faster than they are being created (like now), this is a problem.  Global warming raises sea level and when this happens, coral reefs lose the light that gets penetrated through shallow water.  Coral reefs act as barriers to waves so their disappearance may also harm civilization on coastal areas.  The loss of coral reefs will not cause more global warming (that's the greenhouse gases' role), but it will intensify global warming's effects on coastal areas.