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© 2019. This work is licensed under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.

Abstract

Coral reefs support a biologically rich ecosystem and are economically invaluable. Unfortunately, due to several reasons including, but not limited to, human activities, global warming effects, and both biotic and abiotic stressors, coral reefs are gradually disappearing from Hawaii’s shorelines. This study introduces novel coral husbandry techniques to help restore injured coral reef habitats. The techniques presented in this work are focused on saving whole coral colonies detached from their bases (via wave action or other physical disturbances) instead of fragmenting existing colonies. Design, fabrication, assembly and installation details of an in-water Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic (FRP) coral nursery structure are discussed in this work. Material selection and novel design of the coral nursery were specifically adapted to physical ocean conditions of the south shore of O’ahu, Hawaii. Factors such as safety, practicality, cost-efficiency, transportation, installation, and attachment of coral colonies for systematic restoration efforts, while maintaining minimal environmental impact, were considered to design and build the coral nursery. Structural fatigue was investigated via finite element methods considering underwater loading and boundary conditions. Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic (FRP) was chosen for the material by a trade-off comparison method. This structure was built, assembled and deployed in south shore O’ahu, Hawaii in April 2018. This study demonstrated the design, engineering and build of a durable coral nursery structure.

Details

Title
Design, Fabrication, Installation, and Population of a Novel Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic Coral Nursery Structure Off the South Shore of O’ahu, Hawaii
Author
Konh, Bardia; Parry, Matthew
Section
Original Research ARTICLE
Publication year
2019
Publication date
Sep 24, 2019
Publisher
Frontiers Research Foundation
e-ISSN
2296-7745
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
2296716766
Copyright
© 2019. This work is licensed under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.