Beijing to restore coral reefs ‘damaged by island building’ in South China Sea
- China says recovery work started in contested Spratlys at new year
- Ministry says natural and artificial methods will be used to revive environment
China is working to restore the ecosystem of coral reefs in the disputed South China Sea, the Ministry of Natural Resources said, amid concerns that its land reclamation operations have damaged the environment.
Facilities to protect and recover coral were installed on Fiery Cross, Subi and Mischief reefs, the three biggest of China’s seven artificial islands in the Spratly group, and operations began at the start of the year, the ministry said.
On Tuesday, its website announced surveys to identify more areas where coral would be protected and restored involving a “natural recovery” approach to help the reefs repair themselves complemented by artificial methods, and techniques developed especially for the Spratlys.
In July 2016, an international tribunal ruled that China’s land reclamation and construction of artificial islands “had caused severe harm to the coral reef environment”.
The tribunal said China had “violated its obligation to preserve and protect fragile ecosystems and the habitat of depleted, threatened, or endangered species” and “inflicted irreparable harm on the marine environment”.
Beijing dismissed the ruling and said its construction was a “green project”.