Pollution caused by chemicals from the petroleum industry, toxic human waste, overfishing and spillage from oil tankers are threatening two-thirds of the Gulf region's coral reefs and its marine life, according to an environmental researcher.

 

Abdul Nabi Al-Ghadban, a researcher at the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research, said recently there were dangerously high levels of petroleum hydrocarbons in the sea.

 

Al-Ghadban said that the Gulf region has 8 percent of the world’s coral reefs but two-thirds have been classified as endangered by environmental organizations. Pollution has increasingly affected marine life because of land reclamation and oil dredging, he said.

 

He said there are three times more petroleum hydrocarbons in the Gulf than in the North Sea and double the levels in the Caribbean. This has affected the coral reefs and mangrove forests, he said.

 

Other sources of pollution are untreated sewage being pumped into the sea from the city’s sewers and heat pollution caused by electricity and desalination plants.

 

The many instances of dead fish floating up on Gulf beaches were a direct result of oil and other forms of pollution, he said.

 

“There are no high levels of minerals such as mercury, lead, nickel, cadmium and copper in the region, but some hot spots have been created next to chemical plants because of waste disposal and water desalination. This has created an unhealthy environment for marine life and may lead to their extinction,” he said.