Sewage from anchored ships laying waste to coral reefs in Spratlys — reportMANILA, Philippines — Raw sewage from hundreds of anchored ships in the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, including West Philippine Sea, have damaged coral reefs in the area, according to a report from a US-based geospatial imagery and data analysis company. According to the report, chlorophyll-a concentration in water is a measure of phytoplankton. What is worse is that overfishing in the waters near coral reefs have removed the primary-algae eaters, increasing the population of fleshy algae. Coral reefs in the Spratlys matter as fishes from the area supply 85% of coastal inhabitants. "Damaging these reefs directly affects the fish stocks of the entire South China Sea and can lead to a hunger crisis in coastal regions and a collapse of commercial fishing in the South China Sea," Simularity said.

Source: Philippine Star July 12, 2021 07:07 UTC