Robin Philippo Installs 3-Foot Artificial Reef Near Pom Pom Island to Revive Coral
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · May 25
Robin Philippo Installs 3-Foot Artificial Reef Near Pom Pom Island to Revive Coral
2 articles · Updated · The New York Times · May 25
Dozens of 60-pound concrete molds were dropped and assembled into a 3-foot-tall, 10-foot-wide artificial reef near Malaysia’s Pom Pom Island.
Three divers bolted the textured pieces together 20 feet below the surface, creating the structure in about an hour as fish and green turtles gathered around it.
The installation is part of an effort led by Robin Philippo of the Tropical Research and Conservation Center to help restore reefs damaged by bomb fishing and climate change.
The project tests whether concrete reef molds can give coral a new base to grow on in waters where natural reef systems have been badly degraded.
As Malaysian corals vanish at an alarming rate, can this small-scale concrete solution ever be enough to turn the tide?
After ten years, how will we know if this structure is a living reef or just an underwater ruin?