This slideshow highlights the first-ever multinational Eco-Audit of the Mesoamerican Reef. The Eco-Audit evaluates efforts to protect and sustainably manage the region’s coral reefs, celebrates management success stories, and documents the extent to which recommended management actions have been implemented in Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico. Visit wri.org/reefs to learn more about the World Resources Institute’s collaboration with the Healthy Reef Initiative to develop and implement the Eco-Audit of the Mesoamerican Reef.

1. 2011 Eco-Audit of the
Mesoamerican Reef
Countries
Photo: Rebecca Weeks

2. This slideshow highlights the first-ever multinational
Eco-Audit of the Mesoamerican Reef.
The Eco-Audit evaluates efforts to protect and sustainably
manage the region’s coral reefs; celebrates management
success stories; and documents the extent to which
recommended management actions have been implemented
in Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico.
Visit wri.org/reefs to learn more about the World Resources
Institute’s collaboration with the Healthy Reef Initiative to
develop and implement the Eco-Audit of the Mesoamerican
Reef.

3. Mesoamerican Reefs Ecoregion
The Mesoamerican Reef
is the largest coral reef in
the Western Hemisphere.
It stretches 1,000
kilometers (over 600
miles) from Mexico to
Honduras.
Credit: Map courtesy of
Healthy Reefs for Healthy
People

4. Value of the Mesoamerican Reef
The Mesoamerican Reef provides a
diverse array of goods and services
to the people of
Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, and
Mexico including shoreline
protection, critical habitat for
fish, food, and more.
Local economies are highly
dependent on marine
resources, especially from tourism
and fishing industries. In Belize
alone, the reef was estimated to
contribute approximately US $395 -
$559 million in goods and services
each year.
Credit: Jason Valdez, Belize

5. Threats to the Mesoamerican Reef
Unfortunately, the health of the reef
is declining. This is the result of
poor ecosystem management and
threats including coastal
development, overfishing, pollution,
and climate change.
Between 2008 and 2010, 62 percent
of monitored reef sites decreased in
health, and reef declines outpaced
improvements by a ratio of five to
one.[i]
[i]
Healthy Reefs for Healthy People.
2010. Report Card for the
Mesoamerican Reef: An Evaluation
of Ecosystem Health.
Credit: Lawrence Alex Wu

6. What is an Eco-audit?
An Eco-Audit is a systematic
evaluation of how well
governments, NGOs, and the
private sector implement
recommended reef management
actions.
The Mesoamerican reef Eco-
Audit includes 22 indicators
across 7 themes, which are
explored in the following slides.
Credit: Zach Ostroff/Marine
Photobank

7. Marine Protected Areas
Marine Protected Areas are one
of the most widely used
management tools in reef
conservation. Protected areas help
to foster reef resilience, allowing
coral reefs to recover more
quickly from a variety of
threats, including diseases and
coral bleaching.
The Eco-Audit explores the
spatial extent of protected areas
and the degree of management
and enforcement capacity.
Credit: Krishna Desai

8. Ecosystem-based fisheries management
Overfishing and destructive
fishing are the most widespread
threats to coral reefs. The
continued collapse of global
fisheries will have far-reaching
economic and ecological
consequences.
The Eco-Audit measures the
standardization of fishing
regulations for size limits and
closed seasons, particularly in
efforts to protect grouper
spawning sites and parrotfish.
Credit: Julie Stockbridge, Belize

9. Coastal Zone Management
Coastal development, including
human settlements, industry,
aquaculture, or infrastructure, can
dramatically alter nearshore
ecosystems.
The Eco-Audit measures extent of
coastal zone management plans in
the reef countries plans or steps
toward developing such plans.
Credit: R. Ritson-Williams,
Smithsonian Institute

10. Sanitation and sewage treatment
The high level of nutrients present
in sewage can result in blooms of
plankton that block light and
encourage the growth of algae
that compete for space on the reef.
The Eco-Audit explores the extent
to which regional standards for
wastewater management have
been developed and applied to the
construction of new sewage
treatment infrastructure.
Credit: Steve Spring/Marine
Photobank

11. Research, education and awareness
The number of local leaders that
understand reef ecosystems and
their value has greatly increased
in recent years. This is largely due
to the efforts of researchers to
share their work and make the
case for healthy reefs.
The Eco-Audit measures the
efforts of researchers and
managers to standardize
monitoring methods and share the
information in a publicly
accessible and up-to-date
database.
Credit: Lorenzo Álvarez Filip

12. Sustainability in the private sector
Marine recreation providers
depend on healthy marine
ecosystems, especially reefs.
Partnerships between the private
sector and the public can facilitate
information exchange, training in
best practices, and collaborative
efforts to find solutions to issues
of shared concern.
The Eco-Audit measures the
degree of participation of marine
recreation providers in programs
that promote sustainability.
Credit: Colin Zylka, Honduras

13. Global issues
A global approach to protect coral
reef ecosystems is essential. We
must work internationally to share
knowledge, experience and ideas
to achieve solutions to global-
scale threats such as climate
change.
To accomplish this, the Eco-
Audit measures the extent to
which a regionally accepted map
of potentially resilient reefs has
been adopted and utilized in the
region.
Credit: Baja Sun Press

14. Eco-audit Workshops
Belize Guatemala
The Eco-Audit draws on input
from a variety of
NGOs, governmental
agencies, and the private sector
and includes publicly available
results.
In September and October
2011, HRI and WRI convened
four national workshops, whose
purpose was for participants to
collectively rank each indicator
and to compile documents to
Mexico verify the rankings.
Honduras
Credit: Benjamin Kushner

15. Call to Action
For the results of the Eco-Audit and to learn more, please visit…
www.healthyreefs.org
www.wri.org

16. Credit: Kip F. Evans