Andrew Brukner, Chief Scientist, M/Y Golden Shadow. Nuku'alofa, Tonga, 10 September 2013.

The health of Tonga's coral reefs is under investigation in a new study that began this week.

The Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation is on a one-month Global Reef Expedition in Tonga to research the health and resilience of coral reef, compile findings and make recommendations on how Tonga can preserve the resources.

A US based Non-Profit foundation the expedition is carried out on the M/Y Golden Shadow, from September 11 to October 2 in Ha‘apai, Vava‘u and Niuatoputapu.

Andrew Brukner the Chief Scientist said they picked Tonga because there had not been a lot of coral reef research done in the area, as most research focussed on areas close to the most developed easy to access locations.

He said Tonga has a lot of resources in areas difficult to get to but their vessel could get to these remote areas that never been surveyed and collect baseline information.

“We would see how reefs are in a comparable environment with the only difference being the amount of human pressure, their status in these areas and what sort of different stresses affect these areas. When we put this information together we can make recommendations on the type of actions Tonga can take to do to preserve your precious coral reefs so that it continues to provide resources for Tongans far into the future.”

He said they would use the information compiled to create habitat maps to be put into a database geographic information system available for Tonga.

“We want to understand what condition makes coral reef resilient, what condition to grade that resilience, how can we do to help those reefs maintain a high resilience so that they do recover,” he said.

The expedition will also hold outreach programs in schools and villages in the outer islands to educate them about the importance of preserving the reefs.

Global

Bruckner said coral reefs worldwide are undergoing a crisis and their main intent is to try and get more information on the status of the reefs in different countries.

The expedition was launched in 2011 with the primary scientific goals to map, characterize coral reef ecosystems, identify current status and major threats while compiling scientific findings to be shared freely with countries to develop sound management strategies for coral reefs.

"What we are doing is to help Tonga protect your precious resources and ensure that you can still get fish out of the ocean to feed your families and ensure the reefs aren’t damage to serve their important role as a barrier from storm damage….everything that we do here we are going to give it all back to the country.”

He said the expedition is funded by the President and Chairman of the foundation HRH Prince Khalid bin Sultan of Saudi Arabia who is very concerned about the health of the ocean and wants to try and do his part to save the ocean.

The expedition partners with officials from Tonga’s Ministry of Lands, Environment, Climate Change and Natural Resources and the Ministry Fisheries.