Coral reefs around the world are dying, and with them countless fish species that threaten
the very prosperity of humanity itself- but the key to saving our oceans might be… Legos.
That’s right, those tiny blocks that snap together to build a racecar or
the Millenium Falcon may be the answer to saving coral reefs. In Singapore,
a team of marine biologists led by Neo Mei Lin and Jani Tanzil from the National University
of Singapore is doing something incredible with Legos that could change everything.
It is estimated that in Singapore alone around half of the entire coral reefs around the
island have been destroyed by land reclamation, water pollution, and climate change. The crazy
thing is this has all been happening within the last few decades. If things don’t change soon,
entire coral reef ecosystems like Singapore’s may be wiped off the face of the Earth.
But this is where Legos come in. The childhood favorite toy is being used to save the oceans.
But do you know what a coral reef actually is? The answer might surprise you. Corals
themselves are actually made up of thousands, or hundreds of thousands, of tiny organisms,
called polyps. These little organisms work together by connecting their calcium carbonate
exoskeletons to keep them in place. This is what creates the structures we think of as coral.
The polyps use very small tentacles to move food into their mouth and excrete waste that
is used by algae and other organisms as a source of nutrients. Over time they reproduce and build
on one another creating the intricately beautiful coral structures that we have in our oceans today.
But coral reefs are being threatened. The most obvious case of this is when humans purposely
destroy a reef to make room to build an aquatic structure or to extend the land
further into the ocean. But a more dangerous, and less known threat to coral reefs is the
rising temperature and acidity of our oceans. This is due to climate change.
The oceans absorb and store a large amount of the carbon dioxide and pollutants that humans
are putting into the air by burning fossil fuels. They then become part of the aquatic environment.
This along with increased temperatures is poisoning the world’s coral reefs. The most common
damage that occurs is called coral bleaching. This is when the polyps that make up the reef die,
and in turn, the corals lose their vibrant colors. When this happens
it means that the coral itself is dead. All that remains is its bleach-white skeleton.
And this is happening across the planet. Globally coral reefs are on the decline, and in some places
even almost completely gone. Should we lose all coral reefs, we’ll also lose dozens of species of
fish we rely on to feed billions of people- but there’s hope. And that hope can be found in the
research being conducted by Neo Mei Lin and Jani Tanzil by using Legos to regrow coral ecosystems.
Their research is conducted in controlled environments where they can be sure that any
plastic from the Legos does not make its way into the ocean. But on a basic level, they are using
the blocks to build platforms and structures to allow healthy corals to grow and flourish.
There are a couple of aspects to their project. First and foremost Lin and Tanzil are finding
ways to grow and reintroduce healthy corals into ecosystems where they have been destroyed. At the
same time, they are also gathering valuable data on how the coral attaches itself to rocks and
other objects on the seafloor. By understanding the mechanisms that allow corals to grow, the
researchers hope to put corals back in the oceans and give them the best chances for survival.
You may be wondering why Legos? The answer is probably fairly similar to the reason
kids find the blocks so much fun: they can be built into any structure you can imagine.
Think of it like this. The coral needs to grow and spread out. This allows the
polyp colonies that create them to have access to more resources and reproduce
more often. But not all seascapes are conducive to the growth of reefs,
so the scientists in Singapore construct the structures necessary for the corals to thrive.
If a coral needs to grow outwards the researchers can build a Lego platform to help it create
a solid base. Then if the coral needs to grow taller to receive more sunlight, the scientists
can build a lego tower for the corals to grow up like the skeletal frame of a skyscraper.
Not only do the Legos allow the scientists to build any type of structure the corals need,
but they can also be easily moved or removed as needed. And since Legos have such a small margin
of error between different blocks, basically every Lego ever made can connect with one
another to create a scaffold for the coral to grow around. This means there is an infinite number of
designs to support the corals, and each one can be precisely tailored to the needs of the organism.
The way that the team conducts their research and builds their Lego structures is by working at an
offshore facility about an hour from the mainland of Singapore. It is here where conditions can be
controlled, and the best use of the Legos as coral support structures can be built. But
the scientists are not trying to just save corals; they are using Legos to build homes for barnacles,
sea urchins, and giant clams as well. This research will help create entirely
new ecosystems built on the foundation of legos where marine organisms can thrive.
The way that the scientists go about collecting coral is also
interesting. Since they don’t want to damage healthy coral, Neo, Tanzil, and their team
collect coral that has fragmented from the main structure but is still alive.
They then bring the fragments back to their lab to allow them to regrow on the Lego platforms.
They also receive donations from friends and colleagues who have collected coral themselves.
Regardless of how the coral is acquired, the regrowth process can be time-consuming. But it
is all worth it in the end when the coral flourishes on its Lego building blocks.
The process of coral regrowth at the offshore lab varies based on the type of coral and its
size. Normally smaller coral receive one or two Lego blocks to grow from, then more Legos can be
added as needed. The smaller coral fragments are gently lowered into aquariums where they
are allowed to spread out and become healthy before they are transferred back to the ocean.
When re-introducing the coral into the sea, the Lego bricks are removed and the coral
is placed in an area where it can thrive. The best part is that the Legos can then be
reused to help other corals grow. This keeps waste down. Using Lego supports is a fun,
eco-friendly way to grow and reintroduce healthy coral into the oceans. It’s a win all around.
The Legos are also being used as a new way to grow coral by creating structures
for vertical farming. By allowing the coral to grow upwards instead of out,
space can be saved in the lab, meaning more coral can be grown at once. This
is the first time that vertical farming of coral has ever been done in Singapore. And it’s all
thanks to the brilliant minds of the scientists on the project and the Legos they’re using.
Another reason for using vertical farming is to allow more types and colonies of coral to grow
within the same space. This is important to increase the genetic diversity that reefs are
made up of. The more genetic diversity, the more resilient the coral will be to
changes in the environment in the future. What Neo Mei Lin and Jani Tanzil are doing
in Singapore for the coral reefs is amazing. They have found a unique solution to help restore an
ecosystem that could be completely lost without work like theirs and other scientists. Luckily,
projects like this are happening around the world. Our oceans are incredibly important
to maintaining a healthy planet, and if we lose coral reefs, it would be devastating.
Scientists in Hong Kong are using a similar strategy as their colleagues in Singapore,
except instead of Legos, they’re using 3D-printed structures to support the growth of corals. This
is definitely a more high-tech way to help coral reefs, but you can’t argue with the results.
The really cool aspect about what the Hong Kong team is doing is that
the material being used to create the 3D structures for the coral is made of clay.
This is great because it allows the scientists to introduce the growing coral into the ocean while
it’s still connected to its support structure. This helps ensure the stability of the coral.
The 3D printed clay structures can easily be moved with the coral still attached and
placed in an ecosystem where it can thrive. Once the coral outgrows its support structure there
is no need for scientists to collect the leftovers because the clay will eventually
dissolve in the water and be recycled back into the aquatic ecosystem. The benefit to
using Legos is that they can be reused after the coral is introduced back into the ocean,
but other than that, 3D printing of coral support structures may be the future.
Reefs in Indonesia are being grown by the local government and NGOs such as The Nature
Conservancy and Sheba using an idea straight from the urban planning playbook. The coral in
this region of the world is being supported by steel-framed structures known as “reef stars,”
which are reminiscent of the scaffolding used in the early stages of construction projects.
In some regions where these support structures are being used,
coral reef beds have grown from covering just 5% of the ocean floor to around 55%. This is a huge
improvement and only helps make the oceans more biodiverse and healthier.
On the other side of the world in the Bahamas scientists are taking a different approach.
Rather than introducing artificial support structures, they are targeting the genetics
of coral. The scientists identify coral colonies that are the most resilient to extreme weather,
warmer temperatures, and higher ocean acidity and breed them to produce stronger corals.
This is similar to how farmers modified the crops we eat today.
In this circumstance though, scientists are trying to maintain biodiversity while
also giving the coral the best shot of survival.
Regardless of how much time you spend in the oceans or looking at corals, it is important
to remember that the reason the coral reefs around the world are dying is because of problems caused
by humans. This couldn’t be more clear than during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since many countries closed
their borders, and tourism was effectively brought to a halt, some clear conclusions came to light.
There was a noticeable increase in the number of organisms in various marine ecosystems.
In places like Singapore, whale sharks and eagle rays returned to coastal waters where
they were becoming more and more scarce. This was partly due to over-tourism and
unhealthy ocean conditions in the region.
There was also a noticeable increase in new coral growth during the pandemic.
This occurred mostly in regions where the reefs were not completely destroyed yet,
but it became obvious that the lower amount of human interaction
and accidental harm caused by tourism resulted in healthier marine ecosystems.
There is definitely a happy medium where people can enjoy the beauty of coral reefs and our oceans
while also protecting these ecosystems and helping them recover. This is where Legos and other ideas
come into play. As long as humans care about the health of our planet and allow scientists to
implement solutions to help regrow coral reefs, we can reverse the damage that has already been done.
Now watch “What Would Happen To Your Body If You Lived In the Ocean.” Or
watch “Removing 30,000,000 Pounds of Trash Will Actually Have This Impact #TeamSeas.”