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Published online 29 June 2009 | Nature | doi:10.1038/news.2009.608

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Vital marine habitat under threat

Destruction of seagrass on a par with loss of rainforests and coral reefs.

While the world has focused on the destruction mankind has brought to coral reefs, the massive loss of an equally important ecosystem has been widely ignored.

Now the first comprehensive assessment of the state of seagrass meadows around the world has revealed the damage that human activities have wrought on these economically and biologically essential areas.

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  • The citation link doesn't work for me.

    • 30 Jun, 2009
    • Posted by: Robert Wilson
  • Interesting to know a world study about seagrasses situation. I´m involved into sea desalination and in Spain my country we are very concerned with posidonia seagrass , an endemic mediterranean one.Because Spain is one of the most experienced sea desalination countries in the world,we design our plants to avoid that brine flows affect the seagrass life. Would be possible to share experiences!

    • 30 Jun, 2009
    • Posted by: Francisco Urrutia