Coral reefs across the world are in extreme danger. Over the past fifty years, the health of coral worldwide has plummeted with some regions losing as much as 50% of their coral reef coverage. Reefs have been perishing at a previously unheard of rate, primarily due to global warming, ocean acidification, and direct human interaction with the coral reef environment. While climate change is one of the primary causes of the decline in coral health, direct human interaction, such as overfishing, dynamite and chemical fishing, ecotourism, and coastal develop have been shown to produce some of the most destructive results. One of the most widely and generally accepted methods of providing coral reefs with a chance at rehabilitation and resurgence is the establishment of Marine Protected Areas or MPAs, which incorporate a specified region of the coral reef environment and the surrounding ocean, imposing restrictions on human activity within the established area.
But in many areas, these Marine Protected Areas are ineffective due to a lack of enforcement, leaving the supposedly protected regions open to destruction by humans, through anchor dragging and overfishing. Guardians of the Reef hope to improve enforcement of these MPAs by developing a Smart Buoy system to track and deter marine traffic from entering the area.
