Sea Desertification Sign Found in South Sea
By Bae Ji-sook
Staff Reporter
A whitening occurrence, one of the representative signs of sea desertification that destroys marine eco systems, was found in the South Sea.
The National Fisheries Research and Development Institute said that the phenomenon was found at the sea off Yeosu, South Jeolla Province, earlier this year. There were several reports on the sea albinism before, but this is the first time the government confirmed it in the area.
As the sea off Jeju Island and the East Sea was found with the phenomenon from 1992, it indicates that all the sea surrounding the peninsula might be suffering from one of the most well-known symptoms of global warming.
The albinism is said to cover under-sea rocks with calcareous plants that threaten the entire marine eco system as well as fishing grounds as fish and shellfish do not eat the plants.
Specific reasons as to the cause has not yet been clarified, but global warming is said to be the largest factor. High temperatures of the sea kill seaweed and attract only certain plants, disrupting the balance of the food chain.
Professor Seo Sung-ho, a researcher at the institute, said that the temperature in the region for the past few years has increased more than one degree Celsius, and the figure is expected to grow drastically. ``The seas surrounding Korea have increased in temperature an average of 2.8 degrees, which is one of the highest numbers in the world,'' he said. Considering that the research was done in limited areas, the whitening occurrence might exist in more areas and possibly in the West Sea where research has not been conducted yet, he added.
For the past decade, the government has tried to plant seaweeds and other plants in the affected area, to balance the eco-system. ``What we need to do is to constantly manage the temperature to the current level,'' the researcher said.