December 5, 2023 — NOAA Fisheries has proposed a rule to designate critical habitat for five threatened reef-building coral species in the Pacific Islands region. This rule refines an earlier proposal in 2020 for Endangered Species Act-listed Indo-Pacific coral species following the inclusion of new data and information received from the community during the previous public comment period.
“Pacific coral reefs play an important role in shoreline protection, while also supporting the local economy and serving as biodiverse ecosystems,” said Dawn Golden, assistant regional administrator for NOAA Fisheries Pacific Islands Regional Office. “Despite facing threats – including temperature rise and pollution – designating critical habitat aims to minimize the impacts of these threats and promote coral resilience.”
Under the Endangered Species Act, NOAA Fisheries is proposing to designate areas containing habitat characteristics where Acropora globiceps, A. retusa, A. speciosa, Euphyllia paradivisa, and Isopora crateriformis reproduce, disperse, settle and mature. These include select locations in the waters around 16 islands and atolls.
Read the full story at Maui Now