Embattled Olympic Judging Tower In Tahiti Draws Condemnation From Scientists
After a construction barge collided with a coral reef at Teahupo’o in Tahiti, site of the Paris 2024 Olympic surfing event, earlier this week, at team of scientists in Hawaii have come forward to call for the halt of any new judging platform on the reef at Teahupo’o. Drs. Haunani Kane, Cliff Kapono and John Burns from the MEGA Lab in Hawaii point to a recent study that illustrates the adverse impact that development could have on the reef ecosystem.
“We hope the International Olympic Committee, appropriate government officials and the greater international community can see how devastating this impact will be to not only the valuable coral reef habitat, but also the local community who depend on this reef for their livelihood and well being,” reads a statement from the group.
“The structure is proposed to be built directly on a lagoon reef ecosystem, less than 500 meters offshore from land. We used 3D photogrammetry techniques to create high resolution maps of the reef habitat at the current judging tower location and the lagoon area where the reef will be dredged to transport the tower materials,” they explain.
The study indicated that in the 3,500 square feet that the development would impact there are over 1,000 corals from 20 different species.
“Based on US valuations used by the Hawaii Division of Aquatic resources, our preliminary data show the value of just the corals and algae at this small portion of the reef is estimated to be worth at least $170,000,” the group reports.
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“The dredging for the barge path and tower construction can potentially impact 2,500 square meters of the reef and it is still unknown how fringe damages may affect the surrounding reef ecosystem. If this were to occur, it could cause a direct financial impact of at least $1,300,000 by damaging the live reef habitat,” they continue.
The science team from the MEGA Lab have submitted their research for peer review and publication.
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With more than 25 years of writing about surfing, the ocean and action sports, Jake Howard continues to share stories, profiles and issues that shape the surfing world. One of the premier subject-matter experts in the field today, he's savvy in the ways of print, digital and social media, his breadth of work is expansive. Getting his start writing Surfline surf reports and recording the phone reports for 976-SURF in the late '90s, Jake served as the managing editor for Surfer Magazine in the early 2000s before moving on to launch RedBullSurfing.com and cover surfing for ESPN and the X Games. Over the years, Jake has also enjoyed time behind the edit desk at The Surfer's Journal, as well as the World Surf League, where he worked as the Senior Editor for a number of years. Beyond producing editorial content, Jake has served as a digital marketer and copywriter for iconic surf brands such as Quiksilver, Roxy and Rip Curl. Writing thousands of pages of copy for Surfline, he has deep SEO experience as well. The surf columnist for the San Clemente Times, Jake continues to dedicate himself to the culture and history of the sport through his involvement with the Surfing Heritage and Culture Center in San Clemente.