The Wicked Problem of China's Disappearing Coral Reefs

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	The Wicked Problem of China's Disappearing Coral Reefs
	[Hughes, Terry P. ; Huang, Hui ; Young, Matthew A. L.] James Cook Univ, Australian Res Council, Ctr Excellence Coral Reef Studies, Townsville, Qld 4811, Australia ; [Huang, Hui] Chinese Acad Sci, South China Sea Inst Oceanol, Guangzhou 510301, Guangdong, Peoples R China
刊名	CONSERVATION BIOLOGY
	2013
卷号	27 期号:2 页码:261-269
关键词	climate change coral reef conservation environmental governance marine pollution overfishing South China Sea
ISSN号	0888-8892
通讯作者	huanghui@scsio.ac.cn
中文摘要	We examined the development of coral reef science and the policies, institutions, and governance frameworks for management of coral reefs in China in order to highlight the wicked problem of preserving reefs while simultaneously promoting human development and nation building. China and other sovereign states in the region are experiencing unprecedented economic expansion, rapid population growth, mass migration, widespread coastal development, and loss of habitat. We analyzed a large, fragmented literature on the condition of coral reefs in China and the disputed territories of the South China Sea. We found that coral abundance has declined by at least 80% over the past 30 years on coastal fringing reefs along the Chinese mainland and adjoining Hainan Island. On offshore atolls and archipelagos claimed by 6 countries in the South China Sea, coral cover has declined from an average of >60% to around 20% within the past 1015 years. Climate change has affected these reefs far less than coastal development, pollution, overfishing, and destructive fishing practices. Ironically, these widespread declines in the condition of reefs are unfolding as China's research and reef-management capacity are rapidly expanding. Before the loss of corals becomes irreversible, governance of China's coastal reefs could be improved by increasing public awareness of declining ecosystem services, by providing financial support for training of reef scientists and managers, by improving monitoring of coral reef dynamics and condition to better inform policy development, and by enforcing existing regulations that could protect coral reefs. In the South China Sea, changes in policy and legal frameworks, refinement of governance structures, and cooperation among neighboring countries are urgently needed to develop cooperative management of contested offshore reefs.
学科主题	Biodiversity Conservation ; Ecology ; Environmental Sciences
资助信息	We are grateful to the Australian Research Council (ARC) and Chinese Academy of Sciences for their support and to L. Anderson for technical assistance. We developed this paper during a sabbatical visit by H. Huang, hosted by the ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies. We thank A. H. Baird and M. Fabinyi for their comments on an earlier draft.
原文出处	WILEY-BLACKWELL
语种	英语
WOS记录号	WOS:000316694600005
公开日期	2015-01-22
内容类型	期刊论文
源URL	[http://ir.scsio.ac.cn/handle/344004/11048]
专题	南海海洋研究所_中科院海洋生物资源可持续利用重点实验室
推荐引用方式 GB/T 7714	[Hughes, Terry P.,Huang, Hui,Young, Matthew A. L.] James Cook Univ, Australian Res Council, Ctr Excellence Coral Reef Studies, Townsville, Qld 4811, Australia,et al. The Wicked Problem of China's Disappearing Coral Reefs[J]. CONSERVATION BIOLOGY,2013,27(2):261-269.
APA	[Hughes, Terry P.,Huang, Hui,Young, Matthew A. L.] James Cook Univ, Australian Res Council, Ctr Excellence Coral Reef Studies, Townsville, Qld 4811, Australia,&[Huang, Hui] Chinese Acad Sci, South China Sea Inst Oceanol, Guangzhou 510301, Guangdong, Peoples R China.(2013).The Wicked Problem of China's Disappearing Coral Reefs.CONSERVATION BIOLOGY,27(2),261-269.
MLA	[Hughes, Terry P.,et al."The Wicked Problem of China's Disappearing Coral Reefs".CONSERVATION BIOLOGY 27.2(2013):261-269.