"<h2>Reef-Dependent Population</h2>In the Pacific region, 9 million people benefit from coral reefs, including 6.5 million people who are likely highly dependent on reefs for their food or livelihood.(Estimated using WorldPop and World Vector Shoreline. People within 30 km of reefs and 10 km of the coast were considered \"highly dependent,\" while those within 100 km of reefs \"benefit.\")&nbsp;"

"<h2>Tourism</h2>Coral reef-associated tourist expenditure in the Pacific is valued at $2.3 billion annually. This includes on-reef recreation (snorkeling, diving, recreational fishing, glass-bottom boat tours, etc.) as well as reef-adjacent benefits (such as white, sandy beaches and sheltered waters)."

Value

Vulnerability

Infrastructure

Habitat

Value and Importance of Coral Reefs

"25–27% of the world's coral reefs are in the Pacific region. Different sources offer different figures for the total area of reef cover: Source &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Area (km²)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Global Share <a href=\"https://data.unep-wcmc.org/datasets/1\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Global Distribution of</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;36,984&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;24.8%<a href=\"https://data.unep-wcmc.org/datasets/1\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Coral Reefs (UNEP-WCMC)</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href=\"https://gcrmn.net/products/reports/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Global Coral Reef Monitoring</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;69,424&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;26.7%<a href=\"https://gcrmn.net/products/reports/\\\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Network (GCRMN) Report</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 30 percent of Pacific coral reefs are located within marine protected areas; 16 percent in “Fully or Highly Protected” areas."

"<h2>Mangroves</h2>The Pacific region possesses about 2.3% of the world's mapped mangroves. Between 1996 and 2016, the region lost over 2% of its mangrove area (a net loss of 49 km²). This net change included both 75 km² of loss and 26 km² of gain. As of 2016, the region had 3,159 km² of mangrove forest."

Ecosystems

Protected Areas

Region

Coral Reefs, Mangroves, and Protection

"<h2>Local Threats</h2>Local activities and pollution threaten over 45% of reefs in the Pacific, with overfishing being the most pervasive threat. Land-based sources of pollution and coastal development are also important threats in many locations."

"<h2>Coral Bleaching Conditions</h2>In the Pacific, most coral reefs will experience severe coral bleaching conditions at least twice per decade by the 2030s. By the 2040s, such conditions will occur annually (on average) for 90% of Pacific reefs."

"<h2>Ocean Acidification</h2>By the 2030s, most reefs in the Pacific will be situated in conditions considered marginal for coral growth, based on ocean acidity and the availability of aragonite. By the 2040s, 90% of all reefs will be in areas rated poor."

Habitats

Local Threats

Global Threats

Local and Global Threats to Coral Reefs

"<h2>Live Hard Coral Cover</h2>Prior to 1998, the modelled average live hard coral cover in the Pacific was relatively high and stable, ranging between 37.0% and 37.7%. Since 1998, there has been a general decline in live hard coral cover corresponding with global-scale coral bleaching events in 1998, 2014, 2015 and 2016. These successive bleaching events provided limited opportunity for corals to recover between events, except between 2009 and 2011. Coral loss accelerated between 2015 and 2017, declining to 31.3% in 2019."

"<h2>Algae Cover</h2>Algal cover has been increasing in the Pacific over the past 15 years from 12% in 2004, to 16% in 2014, with a steeper increase to 20% in 2019, mirroring the decline in live hard coral cover."

"Modeled cover of live hard coral (left) and algae (right) for the Pacific region. The solid line represents the predicted marginal mean and ribbons represent 80% (lighter shade) and 95% (darker shade) credible intervals. Grey areas of the temporal series represent times for which no observed data were available."

"The Pacific region includes about one-quarter of the world’s coral reefs. Dependence on coral reefs is high to very high in most of the&nbsp;17&nbsp;countries in the region, particularly for fisheries and shoreline protection services,&nbsp;though tourism is also important in most of these island nations.&nbsp;Local threats are relatively low compared to the global average, but ocean&nbsp;warming&nbsp;and coral bleaching have taken their toll. Since 1998, live hard&nbsp;coral cover has declined from 37% to 31%, while algal cover has increased from 12% to 20%. The frequency of coral bleaching and threat of ocean acidification are both projected to increase.&nbsp;&nbsp;Although the proportion of reefs in MPAs is low compared to the global average, the proportion in Fully and Highly Protected Areas is high at 16%.&nbsp; For more detail on the&nbsp;Pacific&nbsp;region and its subregions see the GCRMN global report&nbsp;<a href=\"https://gcrmn.net/2020-report/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color: rgb(0, 0, 255);\">Status of Coral Reefs of the World: 2020</a>, and the&nbsp;<a href=\"https://gcrmn.net/resource/status-trends-coral-reefs-pacific-2018/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\" style=\"color: rgb(0, 0, 255);\">GCRMN 2018&nbsp;regional report for the&nbsp;Pacific</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;"

The Pacific region stretches from Japan in the northwest to French Polynesia in the southeast. It also includes American Samoa, Cook Islands, F.S. Micronesia, Fiji, Guam, Kiribati, Marshal Islands, Nauru, New Caledonia, Niue, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Wallis and Futuna, and the US State of Hawaii.

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Coral Reefs: Pacific

Importance, status and outlook for coral reefs in the Pacific region

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