Future Prospects

This ecosystem will be dead within the next decade if actions are not taken to preserve and repair its current state. Belize’s barrier reef has been declining at a significant rate since the late 1900’s, but even more significantly in the past decade. A majority of the reef is already dead and will continue to die due to human activity. This ecosystem was named a World Heritage Site in 1996 but a decade later it is listed as a World Heritage Site in Danger due to the damages accumulated over those ten years. The reef was not in pristine shape when it was admitted by UNESCO, but it was noticeably better than it is today. For example, Glover’s Reef coral cover was estimated at 80% in 1971 but in 2005 it dropped to a mere 20.72% and even lower in 2008 to 11.8%. The almost 10% decline in a 3 year period shows the dangerous rate at which human activity has influenced the reef. The future outlook for this ecosystem is bleak and there have been cynical reports of this ecosystem disappearing in 2012. Belize’s barrier reef may be in terrible condition but it is not to the point of no return. There is still hope for this reef, if not to reverse the damages then to try to maintain and prevent it from decaying even further. If actions are not taken in attempts to preserve this ecosystem, it will disappear within the next decade or possibly sooner.