UNITED NATIONS (CMC) —  The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) says it is supporting a plan to use satellite imaging to build up a picture of coral reefs in the Caribbean and other places to better understand how to protect them from warming seas brought on by climate change.

UNEP said coral reefs are “crucial to the biodiversity of the ocean,” adding that they foster around a quarter of all marine species, and provide food and livelihoods for at least a billion people around the world.

However, UNEP lamented that pollution, overfishing and ocean warming are “putting their very existence at risk, and it is hoped that, by comprehensively mapping the endangered organisms, future harm can be mitigated.”

To better understand the mysteries of the world’s oceans, UNEP said a team of scientists is using satellite imaging to map out, in unprecedented detail, one of the planet’s most iconic underwater ecosystems: the shallow coral reef.

The researchers are part of the Allen Coral Atlas project, which is led by Vulcan, a philanthropic organisation created by late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen.

UNEP said it is working with Vulcan to build capacities of coral reef practitioners, managers and policy-makers around the world, especially in developing countries, such as those in the Caribbean, on how to use the new Atlas.

“The atlas is meant to improve our understanding of our coral reef systems and drive better evidence-based policies to protect corals,” said Chuck Cooper, managing director of Government and Community Relations at Vulcan.

UNEP said scientists are aiming to monitor, in real-time, these biodiverse underwater worlds to protect and restore them.

“Further, they want to identify patches of coral that are naturally more resistant to climate change,” it said, adding that these “’refugia’ may hold secrets to learning how to mitigate the impact of warming seas on coral reefs.”

UNEP said the atlas, available to the public, uses satellite technology to create high-resolution images of corals that are then processed into detailed maps.

“The maps capture features that will allow scientists and the conservation community to compare coral reef health over time and understand the pressures reefs are facing,” it said. “The atlas will provide baselines for monitoring coral reef bleaching events and other short-term changes, evidence to inform policymaking, and compelling science to capture the public’s interest on the plight of corals.”

Leticia Carvalho, coordinator of UNEP’s Marine and Freshwater Branch, said that “in the face of inaction, coral reefs will soon disappear.

“Humanity must act with evidence-based urgency towards effective ecosystem management and protection to change the trajectory,” she said.

UNEP said the atlas coincides with the launch of two major environmental campaigns: the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development and the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration.

Notable coral reefs that have been mapped include the Great Barrier Reef in Australia, and systems in Fiji, the Bahamas and Hawaii.

UNEP said the project aims to have 100 per cent of the world’s reefs mapped by the summer of 2021.