OT: Can giant fans save the Great Barrier Reef?

[Oxylebius]

Article:
https://reefbuilders.com/2017/12/12/can-giant-fans-save-great-barrier-reef/

Um, okay. They estimate the fans could help reduce average surface temperatures by 0.7°C during potential bleaching conditions in the summer months. Seems a temporary fix in the short-term w/o addressing the issue behind the bleaching in the first place. And how will they plan to keep smaller organisms (e.g. fish, turtles, etc.) from the propeller blades? Anyone know if a pilot project of this has already occurred in Australia or anywhere else? And if so, anyone know the results of what that pilot provided?

 

[DaveK]

I have to admit that I'm a skeptic about such a plan. When you are dealing with the ocean, you need to consider just how vast it is. It's really hard if not impossible to build anything that's going to have an effect on something as vast as the great barrier reef.

In addition a 0.7 C change isn't that much. Consider that our reef systems usually change more than that during the course of a day, and most of the corals do fine.

 

[Oxylebius]

I agree @DaveK I'm skeptical as well. The article does say that it will only affect one reef in the area, so I'm not really sure this will amount to saving a whole lot for the effort involved. I know of other efforts where they are taking corals from warm waters and essentially fragging them and placing them at other locals where the waters used to be cooler but are now warming up to assist corals in the transition faster then coral spawning events would have.