THATTA: Experts have called for declaring Churna Island a ‘marine protected area’ to protect its rich biodiversity and pristine environment in the wake of reports of bleached corals found near the island.

WWF-Pakistan’s Sindh and Balochistan regional head Dr Tahir Rasheed disclosed on Thursday that it was the first time that the bleaching of corals had been reported near the island.

He said in a statement that negative environmental conditions such as abnormally warm or cool temperatures, high light, and even some microbial diseases could lead to breakdown of relationship (symbiosis) between corals, called colonial marine animals, and zooxanthellae, from which corals obtain most of their energy and nutrients.

“In such conditions, corals expel the zooxanthellae living in their tissues causing the coral to turn completely white. This process is called coral bleaching and leads to the death of corals,” he explained.

Dr Rasheed said that Khizar Sharif, a certified diver, noticed serious bleaching of corals along the island while on a diving expedition around the island in the last week of October. WWF-Pakistan considered this bleaching a grave threat to coastal biodiversity in Pakistan, he said.

Bleaching of corals found near the island: WWF-P

Mohammad Moazzam Khan, technical adviser (marine fisheries) of WWF-Pakistan, said that of the many possible reasons for bleaching of corals in Pakistan, the major one might be rise in seawater temperature due to industrial activities as there was a thermal power plant, an oil refinery and a single point mooring in the area near the island.

He warned that “If development activities are carried out at Churna Island, then they will not only negatively impact the corals but may wipe out most of the rich biodiversity from the area”.

The only recourse to protecting the island was to declare it a ‘marine protected area’ (MPA), he said, adding that a decision to this effect was pending with the government of Balochistan.

Published in Dawn, November 27th, 2020