According to a new study performed by the Southern Cross University, if the trend of dwindling coral growth continues at the present rate, the coral reefs in the world may stop calcifying by around 2054.
Neil Hodgson05:00, Jun 02 2021
Martin De Ruyter/Stuff
Matias Cacciavillani at Yo Mama’s empanadas food cart in Trafalgar St, Nelson.
By now you will know I am a real fan of food carts that bring authentic flavours from other countries and cultures to our bountiful region. Back in 2018 I told you about Viva la Vaca, and recently Matias Cacciavillani (Matu) and Chelsea Hall have added not just another product but a whole new food concept to their offerings. Yo Mama’s is a food cart located in Trafalgar St that sells authentic empanadas that are hand-crafted by Matu. I have tried the empanadas from Viva La Vaca a number of times and they are delicious, so I’m not surprised the couple have decided to set up a specialty food cart selling them. I caught up with Matu a couple of weeks ago to talk everything empanada – where do they originate from, what are they, what are they made from, and what sort of fillings do theirs have?
22/05/2021
Coral bleaching at Heron Island, February 2016. Photo: stopadani/Flickr, CC BY 2.0
While coral reefs throughout the Indo-Pacific region have been bleaching in response to rising sea temperatures, the reefs around Marovo Lagoon in the Solomon Islands have mostly kept their color. But in March 2021, that all changed: the lagoon’s once-healthy reefs turned ghostly white as the water temperature rose to new highs, much to the distress of conservationists.
Coral bleaching – when rising temperatures push corals to expel their life-sustaining algae – has become a problem in just about every part of the world. Some models predict that 70% to 90% of the world’s coral reefs will be lost in a mere 30 years if action isn’t taken to mitigate the effects of climate change and other anthropogenic pressures on the ocean, such as coastal development and unsustainable fishing practices.