Coral Arks creates electrified framework to help rebuild coral reefs, faster

Posted on September 2nd, 2011 by 7

There is no doubt the growing coral reef destruction is causing a ripple effect with beach erosion on top of the loss of habitat and biodiversity of our oceans. We’ve seen some pretty interesting artificial coral reefs but Coral Arks has one of the more unique solutions using electrified metal structure to build an artificial reef that can grow faster and become more resilient to environmental strains than a normal reef.

These artificial reefs are created using metal Rebar to build a structure of electrically-conductive wire mesh, dubbed a Coral Ark, that is sunken or anchored to the seafloor and a floating solar panel provides a steady current of electricity. The electrically charged structure electrolyzes the saltwater causing calcium carbonate and magnesium hydroxide to form on the structure. The low voltage produced is safe for people coming into contact with the structure as well as marine life.

The Coral Arks produced by a company called Biorock, can produce growth up to 5cm a year as long as the current continues to grow. The Biorocks can be seeded with transplanted coral frags to aid in the growth. The electrical charge is known to grow three to five times faster than their normal growth rates. The electrolysis also significantly increases the coral’s resistance to environmental stresses like pollution and global warming (though these benefits are lost if the power ever cuts out).

As the structures grow, they start to resemble and act more like the natural reefs they are augmenting or replacing. The artificial reefs allow for more resistance to incoming waves to cut down on beach erosion as well as provide grounds for sustainable fisheries for oysters, clams or lobsters. The Biorock reefs also begin to attract more marine lifeforms extending the food chain and biodiversity of the area.

One example of the Biorock reef in action was when the Banyan Tree Ihuru Tourist Resort in the Maldives was experiencing a massive erosion of the entire beach. They to encircle the island resort in sandbags that failed as waves quickly shredded them. With the installation of Coral Arks along part of the seafloor, the beach grew back 50 ft. in two years. The resort is now planning to ring the island with more Coral Arks.

Thanks to Gizmodo for posting the original story. Make sure you go visit the gallery at Gizmodo and check out the great video they has as well.

Posted in Reef News |
Search More:   • • • • • •
 



Top Related Stories:

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_3PQR2S2EAZUDJKVYUCKLCWJ37Q Micheal

    I thought they tried something similar to this in Abu Dhabi or some other place where money flows faster than oil to make a “pretty” area for all their million/billionaire homes.

  • Anonymous
  • Anonymous
  • http://www.AdvancedAquarist.com Leonard Ho

    They’ve been doing this for over a decade.  It’s a neat idea, but it’s got limited application.  You simply can’t do this over enough area for it to be practical.  But I’ve always wondered about applying this technology to mariculture/aquaculture.

  • Jon Hahn

    I thought that CaCO3 that formed when experiencing a current was also more brittle if I remember correctly.  The electrical exposure causes an excited state so the crystal formation is different… more volume is taken up so it appears to grow faster, but its also a more brittle structure.

  • Benjamin Alldridge

    I actually had the same idea literally just then. If the growth rates can be impacted that significantly, someday this concept might just be a genuine saviour of this hobby.

  • Anonymous

    I actually think it has more than a limited application in the wild. Sure, 1 half dome of corals by itself isn’t going to do much at first thought, but they can be used as “seeds” to replenish reefs. The frags that break off will plant in surrounding areas and the spawning will lead to much more replenishment down the road. It won’t be a fast processes, but it seems it would be an exponential growth type scenario as long as the location (water quality) is suitable for it. 

    Every little bit in a positive direction to saving and replenishing the reefs of the world is always a good thing in my mind although this idea right now may have limited uses due to other environmental factors, ie. getting stricter laws in place in regards to run off and other things that led to the decline in water quality. If you don’t address the reason for reefs dying first, there is no point in trying to replenish the reefs with new corals if the end result means they will just die from the same reasons the original reef did.