Reviving the underwater gardens of life
Seagrass meadows are fields of seagrass that sit in shallow waters along the coast of most of the worlds’ continents and are one of the most important systems in our biosphere. However, because they are vulnerable to many threats, we have lost an enormous amount of seagrass during the past decennia.
What is seagrass?
Seagrasses are the only flowering plants that can live underwater. Just like plants on the land, they have leaves, stems, roots, and photosynthetic activity. The plants’ long but strong leaves form dense meadows under the sea.
With the seagrass meadow restoration project, we are trying to rebuild damaged seagrass meadows and expand the meadows already existing. This is vital, because just like the coral reefs and rainforests of the tropics, these underwater gardens are full of life, hosting many animals of different shapes, colours and sizes.
Seagrasses occupy 0.1% of the seafloor, yet are responsible for 11% of the organic carbon buried in the ocean. Seagrass meadows are true carbon sinks and capture carbon at a rate up to 30 to 50 times faster than tropical forests.
Seagrass benefits
- Biologically rich and highly productive
- Weaken storm surges
- Nursery for many juvenile species of sea animals
- Stabilise the bottom
- Services to coastal communities
- Filter sediments, pathogens, bacteria, and pollution out of seawater
- Capture carbon and release oxygen
- Provision of food and habitat for turtles, seahorses, manatees, fish, and foraging sea life
Seagrass threats
- Increased water temperatures
- Poor water quality
- Diseases
- Coastal erosion
- Natural phenomena limiting the photosynthetic activity
- Urban, industrial, and agricultural run-off
- Coastal development
- Unregulated fishing and boating activities
