"If climate change continues apace, 96 percent of shallow coral reef ecosystems may collapse within 50 years, including in Australia’s Great Barrier reef."
"Almost all of the world’s shallow-water coral reefs, famous for their riot of color and life, have now been classified as critically endangered by experts who assess ecosystem collapse.
Heat stress because of climate change is the overwhelming reason for the finding, announced Thursday by the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Ecosystems.
It was the group’s first global assessment of shallow-water reef ecosystems. The scientists grouped reefs into 127 regions based on location and the unique species present. They found that 96 percent were critically endangered, including those in the Great Barrier Reef off Australia, the Coral Triangle in the western Pacific, the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System in the Caribbean and Florida’s reefs.
The classification means that they face an extremely high risk of collapse within 50 years. The I.U.C.N. defines collapse as the near or complete loss of living hard corals, leaving reefs unable to sustain themselves."
Catrin Einhorn reports for the New York Times October 22, 2026.
