The swimmer may not know that just touching the live coral can create scars on it that open a pathway for predators, disease and death, but ignorance is no excuse to Moore. Killing the reefs is like taking food off his table. That's why Moore takes it personally when he sees someone damaging the reef and why he worries about the other problems threatening what once was one of the most productive and beautiful spots in the world. The results present a painful lesson in what happens when the delicate connections between wetlands and coastal fisheries are disrupted, and they'll provide a test case for society's ability to restore them. Surveyors with the Army Corps of Engineers hack through underbrush to monitor changes in a project that unstraightened the Kissimee River.
Fish glide around a coral head suffereing from black band disease.
The disease, which might be exacerbated by pollution from Florida Bay and the Everglades, is spreading through the Florida Key. After years of court fights and skirmishes over who has responsibility for reviving the Everglades, the U.S. government and the sugar industry, whose plantations ring the marsh, are coming to terms on what will likely be a multibillion-dollar effort to heal the system. The cleanup efforts may also provide clues to the future of other valuable Gulf Coast ecosystems, including Louisi ana's disappearing wetlands. About 1 million people come to South Florida each year to dive near the coral reef and marvel at the colorful fish and marine life it attracts. But divers venturing into the waters these days often find their view clouded by algae and pollutants.