How Coral Researchers Are Coping With the Death of Reefs – The Atlantic

While not specifically Olympic Peninsula News, many of us venture to places during our lives expecting to see coral. Whether you have gone to Hawaii, Belize, Mexico or any other beautiful tropical setting, the ability to snorkel the local reefs has been an experience that often creates environmental protection support. But there are warning signs everywhere. Anyone that has gone to a reef lately has seen the bleached coral and the lack of diversity of species. Even the scientists are getting depressed. Why post this? Because it is going to take all of us to eventually *demand* we take the radical steps needed to save the planet before it’s too late. By saving it, I mean that we are going to, at some point in the lives of people alive today, need to demand and take steps that will be extremely painful and life altering for every single person on this planet. That day is not far off. We have just lost Puerto Rico, drowned much of Houston, have seen three Category 4 storms land in the U.S. in one year, burned up much of the part of California that produces hundreds of millions of dollars of wine products, burned up huge amounts of Canadian western forests, and more. Our President that refuses to believe the trouble we are in seems simply incompetent rather than in the know. In fact, a concerted effort to destroy any scientific knowledge of the issue  is underway by his administration. This rivals the Nazi rewriting of German science in the 30s.  We are experiencing a similar situation to the German people then.  Some of us will flee. But the question all of us should be asking is, “what more can I do than I’m doing now?”

“The drumbeat of devastating news can take its toll on the mental health of people who have devoted their lives to coral.”

https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/11/coral-scientists-coping-reefs-mental-health/546440/

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