Climate Change’s Impact on Coral Reefs Threatens Millions of Lives

Hundreds of millions of people depend on coral reefs for “jobs, livelihoods, food, shelter, and protection for coastal communities and the shorelines along which they live.” Implementation of the Paris Agreement would help to preserve these shallow, warm-water ecosystems from the devastating effects of increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The two primary environmental stresses that place these people at risk are elevated sea surface temperature (that can cause coral bleaching and related mortality), and ocean acidification. The Boston Globe reports on the research published Wednesday in the scientific journal PLOS that explains the science behind this global threat.

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