Facts for Prelims (FFP)
Context: The International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI), in collaboration with the Global Fund for Coral Reefs (GFCR) and the High-Level Climate Champions (HLCC), has launched the Coral Reef Breakthrough.
- This initiative aims to safeguard at least 125,000 square kilometres of shallow-water tropical coral reefs by 2030 through investments of at least US$12 billion.
The Coral Reef Breakthrough will focus on four action points:
- Mitigating local drivers of loss, including land-based pollution, coastal development, and overfishing.
- Doubling the area of coral reefs under effective protection by aligning with global coastal protection targets.
- Accelerating restoration efforts to impact 30% of degraded reefs by 2030.
- Securing investments of at least USD 12 billion by 2030 from public and private sources to conserve and restore coral ecosystems.
Coral reefs are underwater ecosystems made up of colonies of tiny corals called polyps. These marine invertebrates have hard exoskeletons made of calcium carbonate. They are sessile, meaning they are permanently fixed in one place.
Coral reefs are massive structures made of limestone deposited by coral polyps. They are sometimes called the “rainforests of the sea” because they support approximately 25 per cent of all known marine species.
