HORIZON INTERNATIONAL SOLUTIONS SITE

A team of scientists went to the Western Pacific Island chain of the Republic of Palau to unlock the mysteries of species that may contain a secret of adaptation for survival. The film “Coral: Glimmer of Hope” summarizes their journey and findings to date. The Republic of Palau is a country comprised of hundreds of islands.

Scientists are studying coral reefs in areas where low pH is naturally occurring to answer questions about ocean acidification, which threatens coral reef ecosystems worldwide. A new study led by scientists at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) found that coral reefs in Palau seem to be defying the odds, showing none of the predicted responses to low pH except for an increase in bio-erosion--the physical breakdown of coral skeletons by boring organisms such as mollusks and worms.

Expanded protections near the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument in the south-central Pacific Ocean will add to the Pacific Marine Protected Areas, Marine National Monuments, designated by President George W. Bush, and the declaration of the Phoenix Islands a protected area to ensure its biological diversity and sustainability by small Pacific Island nation of Kiribati.