Maldives faces elevated risk of coral bleaching

The MRC said in a statement Monday that the Maldives has been classified at the ‘watch’ level by a satellite monitoring programme of the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which categories regions by No Stress, Watch, Warning, Alert Level One and Alert Level Two.

“Coral bleaching status of Maldives could jump to warning level and even to Alert Level One in some parts of the country,” the centre warned.

“Human activities may contribute a slower recovery of bleached corals. Activities such as dredging, land reclamation and beach nourishment projects, which are done at very large scale in Maldives, is damaging the environment of the coral reefs.”