Survey of Current Coral Reef Restorative Methods on the Great Barrier Reef

Coral reefs are hot spots for marine biodiversity and provide coastal ecosystems with protection from storm damages, thereby supporting other valuable coastal ecosystems like mangroves and seagrass beds. They are also large revenue sources through ecotourism, recreation, and fishing. The Great Barrier Reef is the largest reef network in the world and its importance to the Australian economy can't be overlooked. It is estimated that the reef's worth is $95 billion total, including $4.3 billion total annually from ecotourism. In the last few decades however, due to climate change, the reef has been experiencing mass bleaching events, followed by die-off, effectively shrinking the reef. In addition, increased populations of the crown-of-thorns sea star, a corallivorous predator, have further contributed to a decline in corals. As a result, about half of the coral cover has been lost since 1995. These issues have called for more restorative efforts on the reef. Several new methods of coral restoration have been piloted in the past decades, such as larval based restoration, coral gardening, and substrate stabilisation. In this study, I will compare past and more recent approaches to restoration and discuss the advantages and limitations of each.