Over one-half
Coral
of the world's population lives
ReefTargeted Research &
within 100 kilometres
Capacity Building for Management
of the sea.
Coral Reef Targeted Research
& Capacity Building for Management
Remote Sensing Working Group
The role of remote sensing in supporting
coral reef management
Goals
The RSWG has four main goals with its
Until now, the remote sensing of coral reefs Targeted Research:
Implications for Coral
has been conducted on an ad-hoc basis
1. Creating decision-support and analysis
with little consistency or general insight
software for monitoring the health of
Reef Management
into its limitations. We know that some
coral reefs using remote sensing.
aspects of coral reef health can be resolved 2. Developing methods to detect changes in
on shallow reefs (for example, in French
the coastal environment.
Coral reefs are complex systems, affected
Polynesia) but we cannot predict whether
by multiple natural and human processes.
3. Applying remote sensing to the inventory,
this would be a realistic expectation in, say,
Remote sensing provides the only practical
monitoring, and management of
Jamaica, where coral reefs have a different
way to measure meaningful large-scale
biodiversity of coral reefs (and associated
structure and species composition, are
variations.
systems).
located in deeper water, and where light
Recent developments in remote sensing
penetration is slightly reduced because of
4. Creating an Ocean Atlas and tools to
should make reef management more cost-
higher suspended sediment concentrations
help as an early warning, and to manage
effective. Remote sensing data can:
in the water column.
impacts from coral bleaching.
· Provide better information for managers by
Without a generic understanding of the
developing and testing the tools needed
limitations of reef remote sensing, the
to measure and monitor the status of coral
technology may continue to be oversold
reef ecosystems at various spatial and
or deployed for unrealistic management
temporal scales.
objectives, resulting in an inappropriate use of
financial resources. The CRTR Remote Sensing
· Improve the use of spatial information
Working Group (RSWG) aims to improve both
by developing the application of remote
the science and application of remote sensing
sensing products for conservation science
to address management concerns.
and spatial decision-making.
· Critically examine the cost-effectiveness
of new methods to ensure the best use of
information.
Progress to date
More information
We have already begun making
· begun detecting changes in
progress towards several of our goals.
habitat from archived imagery
The University of Queensland is the
In this second year of the program we
Project Executing Agency (PEA). More
· started modelling the grazing of
have:
information about the CRTR Program
invertebrates & fishes
can be obtained from the PEA:
· developed a Radiosity model
· established a website
that propagates incoming
C/O Center for Marine Studies
www.reefvid.org which offers
radiation to scale of coral
The University of Queensland
over 500 free video clips of
St Lucia QLD 4072
polyps, have identified levels
coral reef phenomena
Australia
of cloud and optical water
for educational purposes.
properties that reduce radiant Also, in the first two years of the
Telephone: +61 7 3365 4333
stress, and have begun
Email: info@gefcoral.org
modelling the dynamics of
program, the working group
radiant stress
has engaged and is supporting
The CRTR Program is a partnership
5 international PhD students
between the Global Environment
· begun monitoring coral cover
to work with coral reef remote
Facility, The World Bank, The
in selected areas, and through
sensing as a dedicated area of
University of Queensland (Australia),
application of a rapid reef
specialisation.
the United States National Oceanic
assessment
and Atmospheric Administration
(NOAA) and approximately 40
· started identifying "good"
research institutes and other third
fish habitat through the
parties around the world.
use of remote sensing. We
The four sites or Centers of
are also identifying nursery
Excellence are Southeast Asia:
habitat (based on the red
Marine Science Institute of Bolinao,
alga, Laurencia) for Caribbean
University of the Philippines; East
Africa: Institute of Marine Sciences,
lobster and grouper
University of Dar es Salaam, Zanzibar,
Tanzania; Mesoamerica/Western
Caribbean: Unidad Academica
Puerto Morelos, Universidad Nacional
Autonoma de Mexico, Mexico; and
Australasia/South Pacific: Heron
Island Research Laboratory, Centre
for Marine Studies, The University of
www.gefcoral.org
Queensland, Australia.

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